This review of the literature on performance appraisal for college and university faculty was undertaken to serve the ultimate goal of improving student cognitive learning. The starting point was to ask what is known about performance appraisal. What are its positive and negative consequences? How does the manner in which it is conducted relate to…

This paper describes a collaborative project involving Texas Tech University personnel and four school districts in a school improvement program. The project was built around an agreement between the university personnel and school districts committing them to the program and using the Outcomes Driven Developmental Model as the basis for action.…

This document reports on the first of three outreach meetings convened by the Migrant Education Secondary Assistance Project. The meeting addressed characteristics that affect the academic achievement of migrant secondary school-aged youth. Held in conjunction with the New York Migrant Education Program State Conference, the meeting provided…

Blue ribbon commissions in the United States from 1965-1983 are discussed with attention to what makes a commission effective, the history of blue ribbon commissions, features of a commission, whether these commissions are useful on campus, and criticisms of blue ribbon commissions. Factors that contribute to the effectiveness of a blue ribbon…

The Netherlands' New Basic School was implemented in the mid-1980s to increase individualized instruction and curriculum differentiation in the earliest grades and to improve schools' capacity to serve students with varying learning needs and ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Under the plan, preschools and primary schools were brought…

Quality Circle/Site-Based Management (QCSBM) concepts were introduced into educational administrative structures during the early 1980s. The scarcity of comprehensive research that focuses on QCSBM implementation in public school districts was the catalyst for this exploratory study. Fifty-five of 100 administrators and consultants in 24 states…

Vocational education is needed for a strong economy, and the decline in vocational education enrollment is a serious concern. One recommendation is for more specific job training in the United States at the high school level, comparable to the apprenticeship programs in West Germany. Through the years, as certain needs have become apparent,…

Borrowed from the literature of more than two decades ago--when it alluded to key communicators within organizations--the concept of "gatekeeper" is reintroduced in this report. The role of information counselors, who, like informal gatekeepers, take part in liaison activities, networking, advising, information filtering, transmitting,…

This paper discusses the need for developing provincial/state, regional, and district partnerships to provide critical support for library media programs at the building level. It maintains that the experts who provide leadership at each level must be strong advocates for the integration of the library media program into all aspects of the…

This article includes excerpts from case studies of at-risk students. It discusses the basic conditions associated with being "at-risk," the high prevalence of at-risk students in rural areas, and the relationship of this phenomena to social structural changes, particularly in the rural United States. Necessary policy and social responses are…

These five articles offer ideas on rural education, school consolidation, and community-based educational improvement initiatives. The first article, by Boyd Kidwell, gives a status report of rural schools, which are saddled by declining enrollments, fewer dollars, and demands for higher standards. Examples in Georgia, Texas, and Missouri are used…

Making changes in the area of grouping for instruction is difficult because it involves adjustments in the curriculum, in teacher planning, and in teacher attitudes. A concern that the present form of grouping may result in intellectual and racial discrimination began in the Central Office and the Curriculum Office of the Crete-Monee School…

The importance of legislative initiatives to improve postsecondary education is discussed, along with mechanisms that legislatures have used to induce change in higher education, and guidelines for action. Structural obstacles to improvements that have confronted most public colleges include lack of clear priorities, fragmented responsibilities,…

Three types of surveys were developed to obtain specific recommendations from key educational personnel for improving preservice teacher education programs. Deans, directors, and chairpersons of Florida teacher education programs provided profiles of faculty and students; the institution's standards for admission, selection, and retention of…

This booklet is intended to assist Australian employers in helping female apprentices in nontraditional trades overcome barriers to their successful completion of training. The first part deals with the following difficulties experienced by female apprentices: isolation, restrictions on the breadth of training, women's need to "prove" themselves,…