Describes organizational factors that influence most instructional development projects, relates them to the features of the project-oriented matrix, and lists and explains specific matrix management strategies that instructional developers can use to solve common management problems. (MBR)

In this short article, the author discusses how Henderson Middle School in Jackson, Georgia used shared decision making to improve student achievement through the use of laptop computers. With effective use of technology and shared decision making, administrators at Henderson believe that they can continue to achieve Adequate Yearly Progress under…

School leaders are finding that business as usual is no longer an option. This fastback provides a framework for thinking about the multiple demands of school leadership, suggesting that the different models of leadership can be reconciled by considering them to be complementary strategies. The fastback describes the hierarchical,…

One of the most widespread restructuring reforms involves decentralizing decision making to schools and sharing decision making with a variety of groups. This paper presents findings of a study that examined the organizational conditions in schools using School-Based Decision Making (SBDM) where there is higher quality instruction and greater…

The School-Based Management Project was designed to determine how School-Based Management (SBM), when combined with curriculum and instruction reform, could work to improve the performance of schools. This report presents findings of a study that examined American, Canadian, and Australian schools that exhibited a range of success in restructuring…

With the advent of large interest in school-based management came the task of inventing a different type of budgeting system--one that delegated the many tasks of developing a budget, expending the allocated funds, and controlling those expenditures in a way that did not exceed the allocation to the site level. This book explores the various means…

The Advertising section of the Proceedings contains the following 13 papers: "Offering a Creative Track in the Advertising Major: A Case History" (Beth E. Barnes and Carla V. Lloyd); "Messages of Individualism in French, Spanish, and American Television Advertising" (Ronald E. Taylor and Joyce Wolburg); "Frequency Levels…

This booklet for teachers reports what participants in the U.S. Department of Education's 1996 National Teacher Forum had to say about teacher leadership. Forum participants were 120 exemplary public and private school teachers nationwide. The report also includes thoughts of teachers who used e-mail to share their ideas on teacher leadership.…

This paper addresses briefly the responsibilities which site-based decision-making (S-B D-M) imply and presents the many opportunities to innovate collaboratively as a way to achieve greater professionalism. Texas' Senate Bill 1 (199) and House Bill 2885 (1991) set into motion two important aspects of educational reform, the decentralization of…

The examination of teachers' perceptions of the role of parent and teacher participation in shared decision making provides insight on whether teachers view themselves as influencing decision making at their schools. The study explored the perceptions that Florida teachers of the year have about the involvement of teachers, administrators, and…

Joint rural school-community projects are best sustained when developed by a collaborative group. The two basic dimensions of working collaboratively are team building and team planning. Critical elements of the collaborative process are: 1) community readiness--an assessment of community readiness should be performed, taking into consideration…

Millions of students are attending classes in substandard schools, a condition that is becoming a major concern for many public school parents, teachers, students, and administrators. This report is the result of research investigating school facility issues, assessing the scope of the problem, and making recommendations to the membership of the…

Conventional anti-poverty efforts have failed because they have not created the structures for the poor to help themselves, and they are designed and controlled by people outside of the affected communities. Introduced in 1968 by the National Association of the Southern Poor, the Assembly is a non-political structure that organizes community…

This study investigated the empirical structure underlying students' perceptions of their teachers' behaviors in terms of the amount of control displayed in the regulation of students' learning activities. A group of 2,061 Dutch secondary school students taught by 67 teachers completed a 14-item survey that examined their perceptions. Data…

Pennsylvania's Philadelphia School District implemented an action plan that mandated establishment of small learning communities (SLCs) in all schools. SLCs were intended to increase teacher professionalism and effectiveness by bringing decision making power to the local level. This paper examines how two elementary schools' SLCs implemented…