Research suggests that current methods of obtaining and training substitute teachers benefit neither substitutes nor students. A staff development program that is continuous, addresses substitute teachers' expressed needs, creates lines of communication, and provides continuously accessible resources is needed. Includes three references. (MLH)

The role of staff development in establishing charactertistics of an effective school was examined in order to illuminate associations. A framework was used to categorize these characteristics into three critical dimensions. Two consistent patterns emerged that are described and used to present broad guidelines for the conduct of staff…

Describes the career development programs used by IBM, Bell Atlantic, and Xerox. They consist of career assessment by the employee, with the manager performing the role of facilitator. The organizations provide an environment conducive to professional growth, training and development opportunities, and support for the programs. (JOW)

Discusses instructing, coaching, and mentoring as three ways in which managers can help their staff. Describes questionaires to measure the use of each approach, reports results from one organization, and considers practical issues in using the approaches. (JOW)

The Comprehensive Instructional Management System (CIMS) is a partnership between the state of New York and local school districts. Regional teams integrate curriculum, assessment, instructional support, and staff development for local schools by focusing on student outcomes. (MD)

This article describes several ways to bridge the gulf between teaching and research. These approaches are divided into three categories: (1) collaboration between teachers and researchers; (2) teachers as the primary researchers; and (3) teachers' study groups. Through participation in research, teachers learn more about teaching. (MT)

This article describes how principals can learn about their teachers' developmental needs and use this information for creative staff development. Many examples are given. (MT)

Staff development programs in school districts have been changing to comprehensive, adaptive approaches that focus on specific needs and concerns of individual teachers. This bibliography gives citations of documents and journal articles that discuss both theoretical and research findings on the improvement of instruction through staff development…

Ten rural elementary schoolteachers participated in two weekends of intensive seminars focused on effective instruction research findings. All teachers were observed three times, both before and after the seminars, and half were given feedback. Results on teacher implementation of teaching behaviors from the seminar are presented. (MT)

The article describes a model of paraprofessional placement in special education. The process involves four steps: (1) assessing needs and skills; (2) comparing role expectations; (3) resolving differences in perceptions of teacher and paraprofessional; and (4) writing individualized job descriptions. A list of resource materials for training…

A survey of 190 public and community residential facilities indicate that staff in community and public residential facilities must be prepared to deal with maladaptive behavior, that behaviorally oriented response strategies appear to be most effective, and that there is a need for greater attention to training direct-care residential staff in…

The advantages of using a computer to analyze needs assessment data for continuing education are (1) it allows the expression of organizational needs, (2) all learners are able to declare their own needs, and (3) it provides rapid access to large amounts of information. (SK)

Describes the implementation of a master teacher program in the Webster Groves School District, St. Louis County, Missouri, in which teachers systematically identified as excellent in instructional practice were given specialized training and support to enable them to become in-service leaders and workshop directors in staff development…

Dexter, Kansas, uses a four-day school week that is improving classroom instruction and cutting energy bills. There is evidence that four-day schedules improve student achievement, increase attendance, allow more class time, raise teacher morale, and provide more staff development time. (MD)

Describes a Texas educational program that uses interactive instructional television to teach fully accredited high school classes, staff development workshops, and preservice and inservice education classes. (MD)