A consistent lesson from the literature on school change is that no single method exists for improving schools. In that spirit, this book presents a collection of short articles that address a wide sampling of ideas and trends in educational change. All the articles were originally published in "Education Update," the official member…

This paper reviews the literature on academic quality programs and examines issues faced at one institution in which two initiatives emphasizing student outcomes and faculty performance as indicators of quality are underway. In its review of the literature the paper focuses on concepts such as total quality management, peer or student evaluation…

Based on the belief that explicit teaching of social skills to young students will better prepare them for future academic and social endeavors, this action research project evaluated the impact of a program for increasing the incidence of appropriate social skills, specifically: sharing, encouraging, and accepting responsibility among young…

This book is a collection of nine papers presented at a 1996 symposium that addressed issues and models for strategic thinking about higher education, especially the economics of higher education, institutional mission as it affects positive change and accountability, and technology. The included papers are: (1) "Why Can't a College Be More Like a…

This book examines how academic staff at one British university respond to a period (1991-96) of rapid change, including rapid expansion in the number of students and new systems and structures, and especially to institution of the "credit framework" structure. Chapter 1 presents background information on the higher education system and…

This document contains four papers from a symposium on change processes in organizations. "Mid-stream Corrections: Decisions Leaders Make during Organizational Change Processes" (David W. Frantz) analyzes three organizational leaders to determine whether and how they take corrective actions or adapt their decision-making processes when…

Although Austrian schools legally belong to the state, the question of who has actual control remains controversial. Issues related to governance are discussed in this paper, which presents a historical overview of the development of educational policymakers' views on governance and the evolution of parents' rights, and an examination of teacher…

This guide is the second of three documents that make up a Professional Development Package for Educational Systems Design. The intended audience for this guide is a leadership group empowered to provide leadership, policy direction, and support for a design effort. This group may consist of the educational leadership in a community in cooperation…

In fall, 1988, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) in Alexandria, Virginia selected 12 districts to comprise an Early Childhood Consortium. Consortium members attended two meetings a year for 3 years; received assistance in such areas as child-centered instruction and developmental curricula; planned an exemplary…

Summaries of 73 conference presentations dealing with youth at risk are divided into 6 sections, as was the conference. Section 1 "Understanding Students at Risk," identifies a variety of human services and insights along with suggested procedures for prediction and identification of youth at risk. Section 2, "Preventing and Reducing Incidents of…

This bulletin highlights the proceedings of an Action Seminar on Physical Education and Sports for Students with Disabilities, sponsored by the National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE). The seminar explored barriers that hinder children with disabilities from participating in appropriate school physical education…

This paper describes a multi-faceted approach to improving student retention at an urban public university. It is noted that the students at this institution are older, working people; few live on campus and participate in what would be considered traditional student experiences. The paper examines the physical setting and external environment;…

The conference that generated these papers focused on the range of issues presently facing university libraries. Because there is no general consensus on the nature or importance of the most substantive problems or the solutions to those problems, the conference was designed to encourage discussion of the issues. An analysis of a series of recent…

This report explores what state boards of education can do to enhance the performance of classroom teachers, and it looks at those areas within the teaching profession that are ripe for improvement. The document focuses on four main areas upon which state boards of education have direct impact: (1) revamping policies and regulations for teacher…

This document presents the vision of the West Virginia educational community in providing special education services to gifted and disabled students through the restructuring of schools. The approach was developed during a May 1991 meeting of special education leaders at which participants examined the major education reforms being discussed at…