Overviews the role of school councils in each of the 12 Canadian provinces as part of a trend toward site-based management that empowers local communities with decision making and encourages significant input from those responsible for implementing decisions. Suggests that school councils allow parents decision-making power in the policy areas of…

Examines the potential for site-based management and shared decision making to impact the curriculum, particularly in science and mathematics teaching and learning. Information comes from studies in two school districts that had experimented with both strategies over the years. In both districts, the strategies significantly impacted curriculum…

Examines reactions of three types of stakeholder groups (administrators/policymakers, early interventionists/teachers, and parents) to the National Center on Educational Outcomes' early childhood outcomes models. Group members represented either a general early childhood perspective or an early childhood special education perspective. Presents…

Addresses one way in which spending less on public schools might actually improve school performance. The article focuses on bringing together those who have the greatest stake in school performance (the parents and the community) as planners and caretakers of their children's education. Such collaboration is viewed as strengthening understanding…

Two university educators use reflective dialogue to discuss processes they went through in understanding the political nature and assumptions of their own pedagogical practices as they searched for methods which would promote teacher empowerment and actively involve students in shaping course curriculum for a language arts class they team taught.…

Explores the idea of school-community councils as a way of establishing a social compact between schools and the community. Specific suggestions are given for establishing councils and keeping them functioning smoothly. Literature and community resources that can help are suggested and listed. (SLD)

This article explores the future of special education within four contexts: service delivery systems, personnel qualifications, emerging technologies, and policy developments. The paper argues for participation by all educators in active efforts to promote "best" policies and practices for the education of all children with special needs.…

Action research, in which classroom teachers engage in systematic inquiry to develop new alternatives for approaching problematic classroom situations, is presented as a dimension of collaboration that has the potential to reduce teachers' resistance to changes in teaching practice as they work to accommodate diverse classroom populations.…

Traces the development of the principles and practices of Total Quality Management (TQM) at El Camino College, in California. Discusses institutional resistance to change and the need for careful implementation analysis and constituent group involvement. Includes a nine-item bibliography of theoretical and descriptive works. (MAB)

A Foxfire teacher describes student reactions to a democratic approach implemented in an undergraduate teacher education course and an inservice teacher workshop. Goal was for participants to develop methods and activities that would involve their future K-12 students in active and democratic learning. (LP)

This article analyzes the purposes for which collaborative special education programs are established and outlines alternative structures for operationalizing the concept of collaboration in schools. These structures include the teacher assistance team, the child study/resource team, peer collaboration, behavioral consultation, collaborative…

The formation of regimes (collective international schemes) for managing global problems depends on culture, history, and perceptions. The ways in which these elements affect bargaining among nations over issues of the global commons are discussed. Implications are reviewed for a regime to deal with atmospheric conditions and global warming. (SLD)

The Indian Children's Parliament (Rajastan, India) emerged from the Social Work and Research Centre (later known as the Barefoot College), which provides academic and vocational classes at night for rural working children. These children contribute to family incomes, but previously their opinions were not acknowledged. Students elect 17 Parliament…

Theoretical rationale and rural examples illustrate that local government, directly or through participatory community-based intermediaries, can promote development of community social capital. Important program features are participant autonomy, linkage, and returns on investment. Examples with varying social capital impacts include…

Children are unique. They need different things at different times. Parents and educators should listen thoughtfully to children to determine how best to support them. Describes how a New Hampshire Quaker boarding school implements a thoughtful mix of direction and freedom based on participatory decision making and listening. "Clearness…