Proposes the use of the multiple criteria utility theory, a means of measuring satisfaction of predetermined evaluative criteria, quantifying their relative importance, and identifying and determining the best trade-offs among them to evaluate information systems. This method is demonstrated via the evaluation of a hypothetical selective…

"Quality of graduates" is distinguished from "quality of education," which is renamed "efficiency of education." The first concept is defined in a quantitative manner; the second, by a set of 66 statements concerning the efficiency of education derived from judgments about the effectiveness of particular teaching methods in the achievement of…

The advantages of 1200 baud searching over 300 baud searching are explored with emphasis on equipment selection, offline and online printing, alterations in search style, efficiency, and costs. (JPF)

Making people aware of how they use--and waste--time must be the first step in any program to increase office productivity. Available from Geyer-McAllister Publications, Inc., 51 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10010; single issue $2.75. (Author)

Ways to turn wasted minutes into productive time are outlined. Problems and their solutions are grouped under planning, organizing, and controlling. (Author/MLF)

In 1986, Northeast Utilities began helping shool administrators combat school building energy wastage through a program called Energy Alliance. The typical school can reduce its energy bill by 30 percent by adopting a wide range of conservation measures, including cogeneration, relamping, and energy audits. (MLH)

A carefully prepared agenda is the first step toward a successful school board meeting. Board members should receive the agenda and supporting materials before the agenda becomes public. Guidelines are suggested for ordering agenda items and preparing an evaluation form. (MLF)

Tips to help music teachers develop time-management skills are presented. These include setting personal goals, keeping a time log, fighting procrastination, controlling interruptions, endorsing the art of selective omission, increasing delegation, self-pacing, practicing wastebasketry, and economizing work habits. (RM)

Highlights the major differences between software training and reference materials, examines the key features that should be present in both if they are to be effective, and presents a checklist for use in evaluating the documentation that accompanies microcomputer software. (MBR)

An emphasis on efficiency among public school superintendents did not emerge full-blown at the end of the nineteenth century, as Callahan argues, but was a basic tenet of earlier public school development and reform. This interest in providing economical and socially efficient institutions is crucial to understanding American education. (IS)

Data on costs of 48 secondary schools in one district in Great Britain are analyzed. The findings give some support to the hypothesis that per pupil costs are lower in larger schools, but the pattern is not consistent. Other consequences of size may be more important than cost. (Author/IS)

Examines procedural messages and group work habits of 20 three-person groups, 10 who preferred a tightly structured work cliamte and 10 who preferred a free-associative work routine. Results revealed that structured groups used abstract headings that organized group talk, while free-associative groups used specific details on a content-related…

After identifying six reasons why the traditional office is inefficient, the author offers six suggestions for coping with such inefficiency, emphasizing that word processing might be the answer since it enables a firm to obtain optimum benefits from personnel and equipment through carefully orchestrated procedures and controls. (HD)

Synthesizes into four nondiscrete categories--societal, organizational, jurisdictional, and fiscal--the deliberations of 78 persons dealing with problems and solutions in the area of educational finance. (Available from The Ontario Council for Leadership in Educational Administration, Suite N1201, 252 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1V5,…

In response to a request of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, public universities and community, technical, and state colleges in Texas were asked to provide examples of efficiencies implemented on their campuses between Fiscal Year (FY) 2001 and FY 2003. For purposes of this request, an efficiency was defined as an activity that…