To understand the dynamics of moving from fragmented work units to an integrated whole, a recent study examined the work cultures of 28 schools involved in major change efforts. This paper presents findings from three participating high schools that represent different phases (fragmentation, differentiation, and integration) of the development…

Responds to C. Aaron McNeese's (1995) article, "Family Social Work Practice: From Therapy to Policy." Suggests that it is time for family therapists to shift to a new paradigm, one which encompasses both policy and practice interests of social work, and that, for the purposes of public policy, that a definition of family be confined to…

Explains how intranets facilitate documentation availability within a company at substantial cost savings. Topics include intranet document management systems (IDMS); publication costs for printed materials; hardware and software specifications; performance; and security. (Author/LRW)

Describes meaning and six important features of local assessment systems in Maine. For example, assessments are administered across multiple grades. (PKP)

Nine articles in this theme issue address problem-solving teaching and supervised agricultural experience. Topics covered include systems approaches to SAE, SAE for Y2K, SAE for science, applied SAE, types of SAE, and examples of activities. (JOW)

European educational systems are under immense pressure to change, develop, improve, and satisfy many conflicting demands. Educational development and improvement in these countries is unlikely to progress in a neat, orderly, and linear fashion. Applying nonlinear (chaos) theory to development theory may aid understanding of educational…

Describes efforts of the Baldrige in Education Center and Quality Leadership Academy in Santa Cruz County, California, to support teacher and administrator efforts to improve student performance in selected schools through the use of continuous-improvement techniques adopted by many American corporations to improve product quality and increase…

Examines the developmental needs for Web-based courses, focusing on content, user interface, and pedagogy. Studies the Web course development process as a system, explores various stages in the process, and includes graphs and tables designed to be used as management tools for the effective development of Web-based courses. (Author/LRW)

A content analysis was performed on 43 articles published between 1970 and 1998 discerned as relating family systems theory (FST) frameworks and constructs to organizational consultation. Frameworks and constructs were investigated in relation to four independent variables: type of organization; decade of article publication; gender; and…

This article contains short stories that involve positively focused systemic strategies. The three examples that provided in this article are all grounded in open-ended, asset-based inquiry about what is life-giving, generative and important for children and adults. In addition, each focuses on giving youth an opportunity to recognize the impact…

Recently, G. C. Van Orden, J. G. Holden, and M. T. Turvey (2003) proposed to abandon the conventional framework of cognitive psychology in favor of the framework of nonlinear dynamical systems theory. Van Orden et al. presented evidence that "purposive behavior originates in self-organized criticality" (p. 333). Here, the authors show that Van…

In recent years, career development and career counseling have increasingly been informed by concepts emanating from the constructivist worldview. For example, the Systems Theory Framework (STF; M. McMahon, 2002; M. McMahon & W. Patton, 1995; W. Patton & M. McMahon, 1997, 1999) of career development has been proposed as a metatheoretical account…

Objective:: To help close the gap between health promotion research and practice by using systems thinking. Methods: We review 3 national US tobacco control initiatives and a project (ISIS) that has introduced systems thinking to tobacco control, speculating on ways in which systems thinking may add value to health promotion dissemination and…

Equipping engineering students with the skills and knowledge required to be successful global engineers in the 21st century is one of the primary objectives of undergraduate educators. Enabling students to practice self-directed learning, to find solutions to design problems that are sustainable and to recognize that they are part of a global…

Systems thinking plays a key role in producing the understanding of a big picture--a broader view of looking at the overall system needed to develop a learning community more effectively. Practical expectations to improve the functioning of Human systems, here teacher preparedness, on identifying possible interventions, relate at description and…