The current emphasis on accountability, standards, and assessment is missing one important dimension--connection to a sense of values and beliefs. In California, standards are stifling creativity and flexibility; standard-setting is too politicized; test scores are eclipsing democratic values; and cash rewards won't necessarily improve student…

A study identified several problems encountered by nine Newfoundland schools while converting to a team leadership model: time restraints, school management concerns, limited perceptions of leadership, district interference, personnel changes, apathy, dysfunctional politics, goal-setting difficulties, reduced professional-development…

The compelling ideas underlying the standards movement are being distorted by poor implementation and political opportunism. Higher standards will probably not affect the nation's already booming economy or close the white/minority achievement gap. An emerging rebellion, driven by negative testing consequences, is eroding political support.…

Looks at how "scientifically based" literacy research promoting the direct, explicit, and systematic use of phonics and related word skills in beginning reading instruction is having a massive effect on policy and practice. Examines what this research claims to have found and what it actually shows. Discusses how it harms research,…

Argues that terms such as self-determination and sovereignty, which were developed as political tools to influence federal Indian policy several decades ago, now contribute to an ideology that relieves Indian college students and scholars of their responsibilities to Indian communities. Suggests that American Indian Studies programs clarify what…

Compares educational change in Zimbabwe and South Africa in the two years after those countries' first democratic elections. Although change in Zimbabwe was characterized by a rapid expansion of service in response to popular demand, South Africa has emphasized changes in policymaking processes with little change in the delivery of educational…

Explores literature on educational change and examines two literacy innovations gone "bad": process writing and literature-based reading. Argues that growth occurs from the interaction of "bad" things with good ideas (which are never perfect ideas), thereby reshaping, reforming, and strengthening them. Examines how this affects educational policy,…

Faculty fellowships, designed to foster individual achievement, are in trouble as doubts emerge about individual efficacy in a global environment that requires teamwork and collaboration. They have become politicized, divided by conflicts over criteria. If they are to be renewed, the dominance of research over teaching and service must be…

Reports on a nationwide survey of instructional beliefs and practices of elementary public school teachers. Finds that teachers generally do not assume a polar, either/or approach to phonics and whole language, but instead provide children a balanced eclectic program involving both reading skill instruction and immersion in enriched literacy…

Provides an analysis of the identity construction of students in two Mexican secondary schools within the structural, cultural, and informational resources that schools provide. Explores the lack of congruence between the resources educational institutions provide students and their daily struggles to construct personal and occupational…

According to William Spady's "Beyond Counterfeit Reforms," politically driven, mechanistic "reforms" box educators into smaller, limiting ways of thinking and running schools. Donald McAdams's book "Fighting to Save Our Urban Schools...and Winning!" shows the salubrious effects of high expectations and community…

State education agencies mandate lofty goals and give school boards the fewest possible resources to achieve them. The board's role is not to lead educationally, but take punches for other institutions' failings. Local control exists in name only. Boards at least keep instinctive self-seeking within bounds. (MLH)

Examines the invention of school effectiveness as a specific curriculum and pedagogical discourse that has captivated researchers, policymakers, and politicians. Considers school-effectiveness research methodology, politics, and underlying epistemological assumptions. Explores the dilemmas confronting inclusive education research. The concepts of…

Argues that the legitimacy of accreditation in teacher education is rooted in political consensus, power, and scholarship. Because these roots are fragile, there is no accepted concept of educational malpractice. The legitimacy of accreditation should be rooted in scholarly evidence that the program has fulfilled the claim that its graduates are…

A retrospective study examined how authority to confer Bachelor of Education degrees was extended to private colleges in Alberta in 1995. Sources of the policy change included local political pressures and international pressures for neoliberalization of public policy. Opposition from professional educators and other stakeholders has implications…