Findings of a study that examined the impact of organizational structures for shared decision making on teacher participation are presented in this paper, with attention to the types of issues that were raised and the nature of changes introduced. A longitudinal study was conducted of 12 high schools in 11 states for an average of 17 months per…

This document presents information for Saskatchewan administrators who are considering rescheduling the traditional school day or school year. It discusses reasons for changing school schedules and identifies educational, societal, and economic concerns around the change. Steps in the change process include: evaluation/needs assessment;…

Chapter 2 of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act is a formula grant program providing funds for state and local education agencies to improve elementary and secondary education, meet the special educational needs of at-risk/high-cost students, and support innovative school programs. The study describes and evaluates the range of…

In this book, faculty from nine universities describe innovations undertaken in the context of their institutions' administrator preparation programs. The goal is to inform the profession about recent efforts to strengthen preparation programs in school administration. Following the introductory material--the preface, foreword, and…

Educators have long acknowledged that not all learning occurs in a classroom. This paper describes an innovative educational program in Minnesota, where the educational facility was built in a dedicated space at the Mall of America. The program is based on an outcomes-based, transdisciplinary curriculum for 16- to 19-year-old youth, featuring the…

California's charter-school legislation took effect January 1, 1993, and authorized the creation of up to 100 charter schools. By the end of the year, 44 charter schools were either operating or being planned. This document offers an initial look at California's charter schools. A total of 34 schools responded to a survey of the state's 44 charter…

The nation's Governors resolved to lead restructuring efforts in their states as part of their commitment to achieve the national education goals by the year 2000. States are experimenting with a range of approaches to restructuring, depending on their resources, demographics, governance structures, and traditions. This report describes states'…

Seven reform programs that were developed to change the quality of public school education in Utah are highlighted in this publication. The history, current status, and future directions of each of the following reform programs are described: the Career Ladder Program; the Incentives for Excellence in Public Schools Program; the Outcome-Based…

An overview of recent literature and some new models formulated by the Comprehensive Teacher Education Institutes and others regarding the development of school-university partnerships is provided in this paper. Following a general introduction, a brief account of the origins, development, and definitions of school-university partnerships is…

Problems in implementing educational change due to different perspectives and statuses of policy makers, practitioners, and researchers has contributed to an absence of shared paradigms. Combined with the intense demand for educational change, a system gridlock has ensued. Research of the last 2 decades on implementation of change is summarized in…

An overview of curriculum reforms implemented in China during the 1980s is provided in this paper. A brief historical sketch of educational policy from early Chinese civilization to the present is offered. Two phases of curriculum reforms occurred in the 1980s: those for restoration of the social order and those for structural adaptation and…

Exploring relationships between organizational and personal characteristics and responses to innovation, this study surveyed teachers--including identified innovators--in 10 small rural secondary schools. The research was informed by a developing theory viewing receptivity, or variation in acceptable conditions of risk, as determined by the…

A brief literature review and a report on two studies of change implementation in schools indicate that "directed development," in which experts give help directly to classroom teachers, is the most effective implementation strategy. The author's literature review traces research on program implementation from a 1975 Rand report…

The traditional system of letter grades discourages college-bound students from taking difficult courses. Many colleges look closely at an applicant's grade point average (GPA). When a student's GPA is computed, a grade from an easy course carries as much weight as a grade from a difficult course. Since a student can achieve a higher grade with…

An introduction to using word processing in writing instruction, this report first describes the basic terms and tools used in word processing and then lists the four characteristics of a good word processing program. They are the options to: (1) edit and insert; (2) cut and paste; (3) find and correct; and (4) store and save documents of between…