Oregon's School Improvement and Professional Development Program (SIPD) was created to: (1) assist local district goal achievement; (2) establish site committees to initiate school improvement and shared decision making; and (3) provide professional development opportunities. The following outcomes are evaluated in this report: development of…

The failure of many international development projects is prompting project planners and implementers to reexamine the process of technological transfer between countries. This process involves one culture imposing change upon another in such a way that the recipient culture not only accepts the change but also adopts it as its own and expands…

Findings of a study that explored problems in the development of two newly created metropolitan middle schools are presented in this paper. Based on a framework of organizational change, the main premise contends that as new organizations, schools are also inherently vulnerable to the generic problems that face all organizations undergoing change.…

Quality Circles (QC's) consist of small groups of people who perform the same work and who voluntarily meet on a regular basis to discuss problems, seek solutions, and cooperate with management in the implementation of those solutions. QC's operate on the premise that employee participation in decision making and problem solving improves the…

At the core of the professional development school movement is the assumption that teachers' voices must be welcomed in the wider educational community through participation in mutual collaborative inquiry with university faculty. However, little thought has been given to the nature of teachers' voices, the dilemmas that arise when those voices…

A case study of a school district/university partnership for school restructuring is described in this paper. The collaborative effort focused on improving educational quality rather than changing the organizational structure; the goal was to turn all relationships within the school into learning relationships. The partnership focused on the core…

Outcomes of a teacher empowerment project implemented at a middle school are described in this paper, with a focus on the perspectives of a school administrator, a middle schools specialist, and a university faculty evaluator. The purpose of the project was to improve student achievement through establishing a school improvement team. From the…

Findings of a study that identified the school-level factors that affect teachers' dispositions toward their work are presented in this paper, which focuses on teacher satisfaction, professional engagement, commitment, and efficacy. Data were derived from the teachers' survey portion of the Teachers and Administrators Survey (ATS) from the High…

Aimed at development staff who work with the rural poor in developing nations, this book presents a coherent methodology for achieving development based on principles of conscientization, local control, cooperation, and self-reliance. Part I, Analysis (chapters 1-3), discusses theory. Chapter 1 reviews the most commonly held theories of poverty…

This document defines a framework for strengthening linkages between early childhood and elementary school programs at the local, state, and regional levels. The concept of a continuum of services is central within the framework, in the belief that when service providers link together to provide continuity, the connections they establish provide…

This report describes a negotiated evaluation model used to examine the effectiveness of 10 regional center cooperatives (RCCs) that assist small rural New Mexico school districts in implementing provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The 9-month evaluation aimed to determine the scope of existing RCC services, the…

American policymakers have come to view principals as linchpins in plans for educational change. Findings of a study that examined how the principal's role changes in a school that is engaged in fundamental restructuring are presented in this paper. Data for the longitudinal case study of a suburban-urban school district in the northeastern United…

This paper documents the study of three schools participating in a school-improvement initiative carried out by the Board of Education of the City of New York, the Fund for New York City Public Education (the Fund), and the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) during the 1990-91 school year. The project, the IBM/Fund Project for…

This book examines the nature of power in the classroom, school system, and society. Power relations in schools reflect the larger societal forces and the interconnections of institutions. This book also analyzes the empowerment of teachers and students. It explores the process through which people develop more control over their lives and acquire…

The 1988 School Reform Act (Illinois PA 85-1418) mandated that Chicago's public schools be managed locally by school-based management councils. Principals in Chicago public schools work with their local school councils (LSCs) to effect plans concerning school management, budgeting, school improvement, staffing, and curricular concerns. This report…