This manual is designed as a resource for involving learners in literacy programs. Although the report is written at a high reading level, highlights for each section that are written in clear language are found at the beginning of the manual. Section 1 introduces the topic of learner involvement; it also describes the benefits of learner…

This document presents findings of a study that tracked the development of a shared decision-making project in a Florida county school system since its inception in 1989. The impetus for the Shared Decision-Making Project came not from school stakeholders, but from the interplay of national reports, regional problems, state legislation, and local…

An indepth analysis of critical issues in school restructuring is provided in this first of a series of reports. The first article, by Karen Prager describes selected aspects of school restructuring in a Milwaukee, Wisconsin, elementary school and illustrates how school-based management can articulate school vision and support teacher cooperation.…

Education systems in third world countries are facing severe pressures. The need for qualitative and quantitative advances has forced governments to seek innovative ways to achieve their goals. "School Clusters" is one such innovation. A cluster is a grouping of schools for administrative and educational purposes. Some common objectives of…

This paper examines the changing role of school leaders, in light of the current trend toward participative decision making. Executive Order 12871 mandates the formation of a partnership between unions and management, which will result in teachers playing an active role in decision making. Leaders, particularly leaders of Department of Defense…

This paper presents findings of a study that examined faculty/staff perceptions of their principals' leadership styles, with a focus on their use of shared-governance approach. Data were gathered through a survey of 32 faculty and 20 staff members in four county schools in Tennessee and North Carolina. A majority of the sample reported that their…

Findings from a study that explored teachers' and principals' views on restructuring are presented in this paper. Methodology involved interviews conducted with 14 elementary, middle, and high school teachers and with 15 public school principals in New York, Illinois, and Tennessee. Three issues that will affect the future directions of…

Findings from a study that examined the perceptions of different educational stakeholders about the context of schools and educational change are presented in this paper, which views educational change from within a transformational framework. The focus is not only on goals, but also on the beliefs and expectations of the stakeholders in the…

Developments in schools that redefine the relationship between school and community are described in this paper. The Environment and School Initiatives (ENSI) project seeks to combine two apparently contradictory aims of education: to develop "environmental sensitivity" and to promote students'"dynamic qualities" by involving them in coping with…

This paper presents findings of one in a series of four case studies that examined leadership in schools committed to reform. Sullivan High School is an innovative, innercity Chicago (Illinois) high school dedicated to creating a learning environment based on critical thinking and intellectual experiences. The role of the principal as an…

This paper presents findings from one in a series of four case studies that examined leadership in schools committed to reform. Methodology included onsite observation, interviews with stakeholders, and informal discussions. Hollibrook Elementary School, which serves a primarily minority population in Spring Branch, Texas, ascended from a low…

Findings of a study that examined the relationship between variations in patterns of school leadership and group problem-solving process are presented in this paper. Interviews were conducted at the beginning and end of the school year with 12 principals in British Columbia who had implemented the Primary Program. The initiative was designed to…

Ways in which roles are being redefined as school systems move toward organizational structures based on shared decision making are described in this paper. Specifically, teachers need training to function as effective decision makers and principals must learn to be instructional facilitators. Principals acting as facilitators must possess skills…

The role of school board policy as an instrument for empowering leadership is explored in this paper. Currently, the majority of policy handbooks are not designed to provide motivation or vision and are not part of an ongoing effort to create a congruence of district expectations. When policy becomes a statement of a school board's expectations…

This paper presents findings of a study that examined how school participants in two schools in a Florida city coped with conflict, with a focus on developing a cooperative school climate. Constructivism, which states that learning is the making-sense of experiences in a social environment, provides the theoretical framework. From this…