A management program was implemented to increase the training activities and decrease nonwork behavior of eight direct-care staff in a facility for individuals with mental retardation. Improvements were maintained during a 43-week period, staff acceptability measures were positive, and beneficial changes occurred in clients. (JDD)

Describes the long-range efforts to develop a comprehensive, multitiered multicultural education program in the Columbus (Ohio) Public School District. The article includes discussions on the philosophical framework underlying the program, staff development, curriculum changes, program planning and evaluation, course descriptions, and program…

To support educational reforms, new assessments must stress the performance of complex, holistic tasks, not snippets of performance in segments, elements, or chunks of complex tasks. Sidebars present helpful guidelines for developing staff and creating an assessment. Assessments can assume numerous shapes, including budgeting activities,…

Professional development (PD) for the improvement of educational practice has attracted a great deal of attention in recent years. Although experts acknowledge the importance of PD, many PD programmes have little effect on educational practice. This article identifies influences on the effective implementation of Invitational Education (IE) within…

Educational consultants charged by a school district with instituting and overseeing an ongoing experimental program in writing across the curriculum can expect that veteran faculty members will be unwilling to change their teaching styles. A "soft sell" is necessary with reluctant faculty. Senior faculty members who are properly…

This paper describes a study designed to identify factors that have inhibited the success of adult training programs. The investigation looked specifically for key factors or incidents that contributed to program failure. The sample included 51 adult training programs scheduled for implementation between 1988 and 1992 in the Great Plains region of…

There is growing public recognition that the most important route to educational improvement is through enhancing the skills and status of adults who work within the education system. The purpose of this document is to provide a resource to school personnel who are attempting to improve their professional development efforts; hence both sections…

This guide is intended for adult educators who work with the unemployed in rural communities in England where demographic change, job mobility, decline in rural employment and population, scattered education provision, poor facilities, and transportation problems combine to complicate the work. It is particularly designed for staff developers…

Resident Supervisory Support for Teachers (RSST) is a peer supervision program designed to improve classroom instruction by training school personnel to use effective clinical supervision techniques. Participants are trained to help teachers identify strengths and improve their weaknesses. This final evaluation report provides information on the…

In 1984-85, the Mobil Corporation provided the New York City Board of Education with a grant for developing an instructional project related to the Public Broadcasting System series, "The Living Planet." This series explored the concepts of the balance of nature and the adaptations of various life forms to our changing planet. The Living…

Results of this study will be used to assess the possibilities and limitations of staff development as an instrument of state and local policy for improving educational quality in the public schools in California. Four basic questions were addressed: (1) What is the total California taxpayer investment in staff development and what forms do the…

This booklet, the first of a four-unit series on computer literacy, provides general guidance on establishing and conducting computer literacy courses, whether as components of other courses or as free-standing courses. An overview of computer literacy in the context of education and training and of guidelines for its implementation is followed by…

This study evaluated the effect of a comprehensive training program for teachers based on Madeline Hunter's Instructional Theory Into Practice (ITIP). To examine the question of implementation, teachers in the first through fourth grades in Napa Valley elementary schools were observed teaching two reading and two mathematics classes before and…

Guidelines based on Project Head Start performance standards are offered for persons interested in starting and operating a home-based child development program providing individualized family services through home visits. Opening sections of the manual sensitize prospective service providers to problems and positive outcomes of home-based…

A set of guidelines to be used in planning and evaluating multicultural teacher education programs is provided. These guidelines go beyond the minimum requirements of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) standards for designing exemplary teacher education programs that reflect a commitment to multicultural education…