Whereas schools are organized around stability, uniformity, tradition, and ceremony, business operates on a more Darwinian "adapt or perish" ethic. Although business and public education have different goals, educators should look to successful companies for clues to size, assessment, leadership, and accountability. Includes nine references. (MLH)

Defines school-based management (SBM) as a program adopted by schools or school districts to improve education by increasing school staff autonomy in making building-level decisions. Analyzes SBM's key objectives, benefits, and limitations. Budget, curriculum, and staffing decisions are commonly decentralized under SBM. Staff communication is…

Takes a critical look at who has the legitimate right to engage in supervision and for what valued social purpose, contending that those who are closest to the work are best qualified to form judgments about its quality and worth. Proposes an "educative" model of collaborative supervision to encourage self-awareness and self-determination among…

A school-based evaluation/supervision/development (S-BESD) model of teacher evaluation is presented. This model will provide a reasonable balance between teacher autonomy and system control. The model provides 5 growth alternatives and 10 growth support elements to meet teacher needs, reduce isolation, promote reflection, and improve performance.…

Begun in 1977, British efforts toward school improvement through monitoring and accountability have failed, partly because of the failure of school self-evaluation and teacher resistance to monitoring and concern about professional autonomy. However, inspectors, researchers, and teachers have increased our understanding of school effectiveness.…

An upstate New York school district's collaboratively designed teacher-evaluation system reflects years of instructional improvement programs and many rounds of contract negotiations. In other districts, collegial efforts to redesign teacher-evaluation systems signal administrators' changing attitudes. Principals see themselves as mentors,…

Administrators can improve school climate and student achievement by understanding and improving their own role in shaping the learning environment. A survey of 32 urban secondary school teachers found that principals shape climate by supporting teachers and recognizing their achievements, mediating between teachers and "problem" parents…

Examines the implications of the exercise of academic freedom as well as potential threats to it. Considers administrative problems, reasonableness of standards, grading practices, and relevance of course content as well as scholarship. (KEH)

Explores power relationships between teacher and participants in an inservice course as the tutor attempts to shift responsibility away from a teacher and toward the learners. Sees episodes of silence during the reflective discussions as particularly significant in the dynamic and changing awareness. Uses fictional writing to express feelings,…

Teachers' perceptions of their own professional power and how the interaction between principal and teacher gender affects teachers' evaluations of principal leadership were studied for about 9,000 teachers from the Administrator and Teachers Survey of the High School and Beyond study. Interaction between teacher and principal gender contributes…

The large, exclusive research deal the Scripps Research Institute (California) made with one drug company has drawn criticism for conflict of interest. Critics fear researchers will focus more on marketing than on pure science and will protect corporate interests. Much of the deal-making is with foreign companies, sending profits overseas. (MSE)

Establishment of a professional development school by Arizona State University and Tempe (Arizona) Elementary School District has provided opportunities for teachers to make curriculum decisions, shape school procedures and policies, engage in collaborative activities with school and university faculty, and develop greater autonomy. (IAH)

In light of recent debate over the censorship of articles, college alumni publications editors are seeking to establish professional guidelines for publication content and clearer lines of authority within institutional administration. They feel alumni magazines should be interesting and reflect current issues on campus, even when controversial.…

Argues that with the increasing complexity of American college and university governance, the presidency should be strengthened, and the president's goal should be to use the powers of the office in serious, not cosmetic, collaboration with others who have responsibility and interests in the institution, and to bring partial views together in a…

Used a national-level data set to investigate four elements of teacher professionalization in both magnet and traditional urban secondary schools and examine the impact of school organization on teacher professionalization. Results indicated that the magnet school context is noteworthy in the areas of autonomy, classroom control, influence on…