This paper discusses the implementation of a project in which a writer-respondent intervention was used to develop the academic literacy practices of students. Writer-respondent projects are based on the idea that detailed developmental comments and questions on students' draft writing can assist them in acquiring the peculiar norms of academic…

The growing demand for colleges and universities to be accountable to their publics and the recognition that assessment is of little value without a systematic planning effort have led many institutions to turn to the concept of Total Quality Management (TQM). This pamphlet discusses the process of adapting TQM to a typical community college, a…

This handbook was designed to help school administrators, teachers, and community members make a successful transition from a junior high school to a middle school. The focus is on the process rather than content. Chapter 1 provides an example of how one junior high school faculty and administration made the shift to a middle school. Chapter 2…

In response to the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act and its amendments, most urban schools have created special programs for homeless students to help them succeed academically and to offer them access to social services and a safe and stress-free environment. Recruitment, enrollment, and service coordination policies are adapted to the…

With growing population diversity a feature of both the work force and the schools, a study was conducted to explore what implications diversity has for school preparation. Data from a national longitudinal study of students enrolled in both secondary and postsecondary programs featuring emerging vocationalism (programs featuring tech prep,…

This document presents findings of a commissioned survey that explored public attitudes toward a number of issues affecting K-12 education in Saskatchewan. Data were derived from telephone interviews with 708 individuals and focus-group interviews. Of the telephone sample, 54 percent had children attending school. Themes that emerged were…

This paper presents findings of a study that described the existing nature of school-based management (SBM) structures and procedures associated with school-development planning in Western Australia. It also examined the impact of SBM on the curriculum and professional activities of teachers. Data were obtained through analysis of official policy…

To enhance the relevance and usefulness of social-science research, large-scale research grant-allocation policies are emphasizing, if not requiring, the formation of research partnerships between researchers and members of the community of practice. The emergence of a revisionist conception of traditional dissemination and utilization of…

This book provides insights into one of the nation's largest and most comprehensive school-restructuring movements, the Accelerated Schools Project. Since its inception in 1986, the focus of the movement has been on transforming schools with students at risk of dropping out into schools with high expectations of all students. This is accomplished,…

This study sought to evaluate the implementation of a program to foster the inclusion of differently abled students into a regular elementary school classroom. The report is based on interviews with eight regular and two special education teachers, as well as the school principal, along with classroom materials and information on inclusion…

In 1992, Okanagan University College, in British Columbia (Canada), undertook a project to develop and implement an integrated curriculum in four participating health and human services programs. The project stemmed from findings in province-level reports on curriculum integration and on needs for health and human services programs. Specific…

This book presents essays by researchers, practitioners, and policy makers who study the impact of classroom portfolios in the assessment of writing achievement by elementary and middle-grade students. Essays in the book report on a national survey of exemplary projects and presents contributions to a Portfolio Conference held at Stanford…

State-level policymakers, local-level administrators, and teachers alike are interested in how standards actually apply to classroom learning. This paper presents answers to questions that policymakers and educators should consider before implementing standards-based education at the local level. The following questions help sort through the…

Many people prefer to learn in ways that differ from the ways in which other people of the same class, grade, age, nationality, race, culture, or religion prefer to do. The ways in which people prefer to learn are their "learning style preferences." This handbook was designed for supervisors interested in implementing and guiding staff in the…

In preparation for a 1996 restructuring at State Community College, in Illinois, from a state agency to an independent community college, a project was undertaken to develop a strategic plan to guide the transition. Specifically, the project sought to determine the necessary elements of and functions and activities required by the plan,…