Too many middle school students struggle to comprehend their textbooks in science and other content areas. Thus, many adolescent learners lag behind in developing scientific literacy, which the National Research Council has defined as sufficient understanding of the scientific concepts and processes required for personal decision making,…

General education science teachers are meeting increasingly diverse classrooms of students that include students with disabilities. A one-week, summer, residential workshop was offered to interested science and special educators who worked through lab experiments one-on-one with students with physical or sensory disabilities (grades 7-12). To…

This paper describes the status and development of a school/university partnership from the point of view of the participants. Descriptions of the paths collaboration has taken, anecdotal recall, and reflections about working toward a collaborative relationship support comparisons of this relationship with the Professional Development School (PDS)…

This synthesis report examines the 30-year history of educational change to identify differing perspectives, strategies, and adoptable principles. Three influential perspectives in educational change have been: (1) the rational-scientific perspective positing that change is created by dissemination of innovative techniques; (2) the political…

This paper attempts to examine, in broad outline and from a reflective standpoint, the major attributes of professional development schools (PDS). The concept of reflection employed consists of five integrated components: biography, context, and end(s)-in-view, all bound together by the power of human transcendence and by the human capacity to…

The development of a comprehensive training model designed specifically for school-based decision making is discussed in this report, with a focus on teaching relevant skills and when to utilize them. Loosely based on Vroom and Yetton's 1973 model of participative decision making, the model is characterized by a general-to-specific continuum and…

Evidence indicates that lack of an explicit planning paradigm may account for widely reported unsystematic staff development and ineffective inservice teacher education programs. No published paradigm-related study provides a comprehensive framework for staff development. This paper synthesizes and develops a set of classes and models into a…

This paper examines a comprehensive approach to training for child care practitioners and presents a framework for developing staff training. It considers each of the four elements essential to building training experiences: adult developmental change, growth in professional competence, characteristics of adult learning, and training options. Each…

Leadership Kennesaw, a 1-year program designed to cultivate an institutional perspective and the leadership potential of a select cross section of the faculty at Kennesaw State College, is described in this report. The leadership model used in developing this project was a successful concept long used by chambers of commerce to promote…

The relative isolation of the elementary school counselor from other professional counselors is identified as a major supervisory difficulty. The potential of self-initiated supervision is offered as a reasonable method of dealing with such isolation. A list of possible self-supervisory activities is included to help counselors prevent burnout,…

Explicates four types of teacher competence (technical, clinical, personal, and critical) as they might relate to supervision. Examines the levels of comprehensiveness and complexity within each of the competence domains. Illustrates approaches to supervisory practice within these domains. Includes 2 extensive tables and 94 footnotes. (IW)

Presents an approach for the improvement of teacher performance through in-service programs related to computer science education. Identifies what teachers need to know about computers and offers a model for the planning, development, implementation, and evaluation of in-service programs for teacher computer literacy. (ML)

Teachers' personal concerns related to the tension between a bureaucratic and a professional conception of teacher evaluation are seen as a major roadblock to school reform. Suggests strategies for using the Stages of Concern Model to address the concerns of teachers as they implement an educational innovation. (16 references) (MLF)

Reviews practices related to professional growth and development from teacher training programs, business, and higher education and proposes a model applicable for the professional growth and development of teachers. (FL)

Describes the Southwest Texas Program for Improving Basic Skills Instruction in the Secondary Schools. It promotes a thoughtful, inquiry-oriented dialog between a university and six participating schools that encourages teachers to become more effective decision-makers. (MD)