Describes environmental workplace assessments as tools in developing customized training, highlighting the group process and individual interview techniques. Suggests that, by assessing the cultural climate of an organization, education providers can gather essential baseline information on an organization and thereby provide a guide for further…

Maintains that classroom teachers, often underpaid and overworked, can avoid job dissatisfaction by constantly evaluating their worth to the students they teach. Many teachers may find graduate school, a sabbatical, or a career move into administration or higher education an alternative to teacher burnout. (MDM)

Reasons for adopting Open Software Foundation (OSF) standards for distributed computing environments (DCE) within colleges and universities are examined. Adoption would promote interoperability across heterogeneous systems within and between institutions, aid in transition to client/server computing, and facilitate sharing and leveraging across…

A study of 111 senior faculty at 11 campuses found these faculty members cared greatly about teaching and found it fulfilling; they found little opportunity, day-to-day, to focus on instruction; and they were helped when institutions structured the teaching situation to eliminate isolation and brokering individual development opportunities. (MSE)

A healthy work environment for the business-office team requires a balance among the components of organizational leadership, collective continuous improvement, and individual caring. (MLF)

An attorney provides the legal background for sexual harassment suits. Defines actions that school administrators can take to limit exposure to a charge of sexual harassment or to provide a good defense once a charge has been filed. Contains a sample effective sexual harassment policy and a 17-item sexual harassment quiz. (MLF)

Finds that U.S. teachers have large class sizes and teach more classes than their international counterparts; that workdays are almost the same length for teachers and private sector workers, although work years for teachers are shorter; and that, compared with private sector workers, retirement benefits are somewhat better. (SR)

Total quality management (TQM) has become a U.S. social movement. This commentary analyzes the writings of W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Juran, and Kaoru Ishikawa to assess TQM's coherence, distinctiveness, and likely perseverance. Rhetoric is winning over substance, unrelated interventions are being herded under the TQM banner, and research is not…

Describes a study investigating the working conditions of Albanian teachers and their influence on job satisfaction. Indicates that, although the economic and physical conditions were worse than in other countries, levels of job satisfaction and engagement in classroom practices were high. Suggests that work efficiency is predicted by social…

Examines simulation in entrepreneurial research, reviews cognitive structures and theories, and presents a computerized simulation of strategic decision-making in situational stereotype conditions for entrepreneurial companies. The study suggests repeated exposure to a pattern recognition issue in entrepreneurship may lead to a broader…

Measuring employment outcomes for persons with severe disabilities has gone from a focus on task performance in sheltered settings to measurement of a number of individual outcomes in supported employment settings. Measurement considerations for individual, group, and organizational variables are discussed. Use of more than one measurement…

Explores 40 urban principals' perceptions concerning obstacles to school effectiveness. Schools as organizational workplaces are plagued by stress, frustration, and alienation. There is a growing gap between school culture and the larger society. Kids who no longer buy into the American dream often fail to meet educator-imposed expectations.…

Reports on a survey of 321 community college faculty comparing reported job satisfaction with their perceptions of the leadership styles of their college's president. Finds high job satisfaction correlated with a "high relationship/low task" leadership style. Finds low job satisfaction among male and vocational faculty. (DMM)

Heterosexism and homophobia, revealed by surveys to be common on university campuses, must be countered by positive, proactive administrative and faculty action, including statements of nondiscrimination, equal treatment, unequivocal response to acts and words of intolerance, and encouragement of research and curriculum on this and related issues.…

Business educators must define their position and responsibility as they prepare students to enter and become productive in a diverse work setting. The Policies Commission for Business and Economic Education affirms its position on the roles of business education and of business regarding cultural diversity. (JOW)