This essay argues that the development of leadership skills in the education of college students should be on the agenda of all faculty and describes ways to build the development of leadership skills into virtually any course or program of study through a technique called Reflective Controversy. An opening phase of the essay describes the signs…

Lee Canter's Assertive Discipline method was studied using a survey of 72 high school teachers' attitudes. Assertive Discipline calls for firm but fair rules, negative consequences for inappropriate behavior, and positive consequences for positive behavior, all set by the teacher. After a lengthy literature review, the survey is discussed.…

This publication summarizes research that investigated how school-based management (SBM) can be implemented for long-term school improvement. It is argued that a successful SBM plan must be part of a quest for improvement and utilize a "high involvement" model. In addition to having more power, schools need knowledge of the organization,…

The Administrator Development Academy (ADA) is a 6-week preparation program for aspiring school administrators, developed by the Department of Educational Administration at a large state university in a midwestern city. Since 1983, the program's approach has shifted from one based on traditional discussions and lectures to one centered on the…

This paper develops a theory-practice view of administrative and organizational decision making. Its goals are to improve administrative decision-making processes, facilitate organizational change through faculty involvement, and increase the potential for success in education reform efforts. The first sections discuss the nature of theory and…

Responding to the crisis in leadership at community colleges, scholars and practitioners alike have called for a new style of leadership capable of adapting and responding easily to an uncertain political and social climate. Although community colleges are rooted historically in a hierarchical leadership mode, there seems to be broad consensus…

This paper describes the Accelerated Schools Project, which was begun at Stanford University in 1986 to improve schools for children caught in at-risk situations. The first sections describe the present deficiencies of schools serving at-risk students and the limitations of general reform proposals for educating at-risk youth. The Accelerated…

In a rural school district in northern Michigan, video is used as an administrative tool to communicate with board of education members, staff, and students. The great distances between schools makes board visits to areas of interest impractical. The district superintendent uses videos to take the board on tours of facilities so that they can get…

This document describes outcomes of the Arizona School Restructuring Pilot Project, implemented in Arizona in 1990. The project provided 11 elementary and 4 high schools, selected in a competitive grant process, with the opportunity to pilot their restructuring plans over a 4-year period (1990/91-1993/94). Data were obtained from a survey of key…

This paper describes the processes and outcomes experienced by the Marshalltown Community School District (Iowa) as it implemented a shared decision-making, school-improvement program. A district Shared Decision Making (SDM) Team and School Improvement Program (SIP) teams were trained to facilitate greater staff participation in the…

This paper discusses how the University of Minnesota's College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) is meeting challenges related to the changing nature of professional development programs, focusing on programs featuring a system of shared decision making on matters of design and governance of program elements. After a commentary about CEHD…

This essay reviews the history of the University of California's Academic Senate, focusing especially on how the senate came to be what it is today, how it acquired its significant role in the shared governance of the university, and how its mode of operation adapted as the university increased in size and complexity. The essay is organized around…

The 1994 and 1995 School-Based Decision Making (SBDM) Surveys were conducted in the fall of each of those years for the Study of Education Policy. This report compares the 1994 and 1995 responses to three questions: (1) What do people think of the effectiveness of SBDM? (2) Who is involved in the SBDM decisions? and (3) What are councils doing?…

This paper examines the emerging practice and issues surrounding consortia of educational institutions, formed in Scotland, in order to widen access to higher education for underrepresented groups, and suggests some key strategies for assuring quality in the interests of students. The paper describes the Scottish Wider Access Programme, its…

Findings of a study that examined female teacher leaders' views of teacher leadership are presented in this paper, which focuses on the potential of teacher leadership for facilitating school reform. Interviews were conducted with six women teacher leaders involved in restructuring efforts--three in school/college collaboration and three in…