There are many reasons why a school should plan for extending its facilities' hours of use and making them available to the community. Benefits include improving cost effectiveness in using limited resources, improving security, promoting the school, enhancing staff's potential to offer industry-related training and expertise, and enriching…

A study investigated the use and effectiveness of dental crowns and alternative treatments for posterior teeth, using data from insurance claims. Results show older patients more likely to receive crowns, with higher costs. Regional treatment differences were also found. Data raised questions about consistency of treatment recommendations among…

Examines the outlook for new media based on past experiences. Discusses failures and successes among instructional media of the past decade; factors that inhibit the adoption of new media; characteristics of successful educational technology implementation and future challenges and changes. (AEF)

Describes one school district manager's tactics for successfully controlling district costs and increasing capital improvements while only marginally increasing the facilities maintenance budget. Highlights guidelines for controlling personnel requirements and cost-reduction methods. Discusses specific cost-control measures involving telephone…

A severe space crunch and dismal academic performance prompted a Texas school district to adopt multitrack year-round education. Six years later, crowding is under control and test scores and attendance are up. In an interview, the superintendent and assistant superintendent discuss the district's success with this controversial schedule. (MLF)

Benefits and risks of expanding international student exchange in the European Union are weighed, at the levels of both the individual and the host and home nations. A variety of possible approaches to expansion are considered: regulatory; noncooperative; and cooperative (discipline-specific, bilateral, multilateral on norms, and multilateral on…

Reports on a 10-year investigation of the use of behavioral contingency management technology to improve low-performance students' skills, which was conducted across 17 offerings of a sophomore-level undergraduate course. Findings indicate that behavioral contracting technologies involve very little cost and produce highly effective results. (AEF)

Presents a taxonomy of research areas in educational economics and outlines key topics deserving more research attention. Emphasizes documenting the unit cost of education at different schooling levels and curriculum types, along with learning and earning schooling outcomes. Topics needing further research include the screening hypothesis,…

Examines the decreasing role of hierarchy in society and organizations and describes emerging mental models for the role of people in organizations. Discusses human resources and cost control; learning hierarchy in instructional design; information technology, access, decision making, and communication and collaboration across hierarchical…

Discusses the use of transaction-cost economics in measuring the impact of educational reforms and whether these reforms are likely to succeed in the "real life" of schools. Several current educational reforms are judged on the basis of their transaction costs and consequent prospects for success. (GR)

By placing integrated access to online information on the desktop, companies gain a competitive edge, empower their employees, and deliver higher-quality service at less cost. Information audits, focus groups, and employee interviews can determine the information needs of organizations and enhance their information infrastructure. In this light,…

While many universities and colleges are emphasizing distance education as a way to reach working adults and control costs associated with maintaining campus infrastructures, the World Wide Web is beginning to provide a medium for offering courses to students anywhere in the world. Discusses virtual universities which combine the Web with other…

Addresses the limited use of technology in education, the potential impact of technology on society, and the role of technology in the learning process. Predicts that future developments in advanced technology, such as hand-held computers and improved software, will revolutionize education and the process of learning. Lists eight resources for…

Discussion of the use of microcomputers for developing tests for paper-and-pencil presentation compares two options: item-bank, or test-generator software, and word processing. Tests and test generators supplied by textbook publishers are described, cost effectiveness is considered, and possible future developments are suggested. (10 references)…

Provides an overview of the basics of retrospective conversion and guidelines for the analysis of the collection, including its depth, age, and extent of foreign and nonprint materials. The use of accepted cataloging standards is advocated. (CLB)