The recommendations in this paper are based on the findings of a survey of 32 institutions that had subscribed--for a fee--to receive live via satellite one or more of five staff development teleconferences for school teachers and administrators. The teleconferences, which were one-way video/two-way audio productions, were broadcast during 1985-86…

This report focuses on current attempts by researchers to examine teacher effectiveness through the "task hypothesis," which asserts that effective teachers accomplish a large and diverse set of tasks--or discrete, goal-oriented units of work--in their classroom. After an introductory critique of past efforts to assess teacher "traits" or…

An overview of areas of classroom research explored in the past decade provides a foundation for discussing major conclusions which appear to emerge from recent research findings. The solid demonstration that teachers make a difference in student learning is cited as the chief contribution of classroom research in the 1970s. An example of research…

This report on action research projects conducted by student teachers as a part of their preservice teacher preparation program focuses on how action research improves the understanding of educational practices by the practitioner-researchers themselves. Two major topics are discussed. First, specific types of claims about the impact of action…

The teaching profession's present notion of the ability of teachers to contribute to theory development in language education needs reexamination. University researchers can best foster this ability by encouraging and assisting teachers to become engaged in classroom research. On the basis of both published evidence and field data, it can be…

The need to consider the interaction of characteristics that affect students' learning is stressed. Levels of cognitive development as proposed by Piaget are presented first, with how they relate to teaching mathematics discussed. Then two cognitive styles, relating to the way an individual most efficiently processes information, are considered:…

The Linking Outcomes with Organizational Planning (LOOP) process, initiated in 1984 in the Austin (Texas) Independent School District (AISD) is described. Focus is on the successful conversion to on-line computer updates and the development of a training package for key staff on writing status reports. LOOP is a nine-step process for integrating…

The personal and cumulative experiential knowledge of the education profession has been valued out of proportion to that which could be contributed by research. A comparison of education with agriculture provides a contrast showing the potential importance of the use of research in teacher education. Educational research is not as well developed…

This report describes and evaluates efforts to enhance school districts' capacity to implement and institutionalize the monitoring and management system for an instructional leadership program called Achievement Directed Leadership (ADL). Chapter one introduces the report's methodology, limitations, and structure. Chapter two first states the…

Change processes at the school building level are considered in order to formulate a number of locally based strategies, derived from research, for significantly improving schools and classrooms. Part I of the three-part analysis examines, through illustration, what is known about successful change processes at the school and classroom levels.…

The School Improvement Through Instructional Process (SITIP) Program, initiated in Maryland in 1980, was concerned with improving classroom and school activities through the application of process-product research on classroom and school effectiveness. All 24 local education agencies voluntarily implemented one or more of four research-based…

This document presents the final report on the redesign and restructuring of the teacher education program at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. The project was begun in October 1985, and at about the same time, a task force, charged with examining the then current program, issued a report which referred to a research base for teacher…

This book comprises part I of the eighty-sixth annual yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. Focusing on the theme of the ecology of school renewal, this volume consists of 12 articles by different authors. The first five articles focus on school improvement: "Structure, Process, and an Agenda" by John I. Goodlad;…

This paper examines the current and future roles of organizations such as education laboratories in serving the changing needs of urban education. Concerns for greater effectiveness in support services stem from the growing need to effectively deal with some of the complex, lingering issues which to data have been only marginally addressed. Urban…

A report is given of the development and progress of the Research Applications for Teaching (RAFT) project, developed at Mississippi State University. Based upon research findings relative to effective teaching and effective schooling, five curriculum modules were prepared and implemented in instruction. In the second year of the project the…