Adversarial collective bargaining often leads to lingering resentments. Collaborative bargaining, conversely, is a problem-solving approach to contract negotiations based on common interests and mutual respect. It is estimated that at least 500 school districts nationwide incorporate major elements of the collaborative approach in their collective…

The study summarized in this report explored the attitudes of 320 teachers employed at three ethnically diverse high schools selected to pilot the Model Schools Project during the 1988-89 school year. The survey was returned by 164 teachers. The researcher-developed study questionnaire elicited attitudes toward school reform, perceptions of the…

This document is a stand-alone training package for staff development providers in rural small schools. Based on research and best-practice information, the school improvement model used promotes cooperation, content transferability, and adaptations for long-term program maintenance. The underlying assumptions of the model are that when school…

Although there is little literature on the topic, there seems to be no reason why quality circles (QCs) could not be implemented in an educational organization. The most important obstacles are the seeming lack of tangible results in education, the lack of a tradition of group decision making and participative management, and the confusion over…

Community education once was an educational philosophy aimed at improving public schools and the communities they served. Today, community education may well offer a promise of salvation for American education. This book, containing six chapters, questions the present authoritarian, hierarchial American public school establishment. Beginning with…

An analysis of the evaluation of partnership programs with a focus on accountability is the purpose of this paper. Research for the book, "Partnerships in Education: Measuring Their Success," entailed a survey of various partnership leaders from education, business, government, and nonprofit organizations. The survey results are discussed in this…

Over the years, researchers have defined "leadership" in myriad ways. On the whole, they have found that there are various kinds of leadership, that leadership works in many ways, and that it has distinctive requirements and processes. Leadership does not result merely from individual traits, but also involves attributes of the transaction between…

This inservice training program for special education placement team members has been implemented in a variety of school districts ranging from a rural town to inner-city school systems of more than 20 schools. Key characteristics of the program reflect the following data-based quality practices cited in D. Cline's (1984) analysis of inservice…

Following an 11-month period of study, planning, and pilot testing, a project was undertaken at Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) to implement quality circles, i.e., small groups of employees doing similar work who voluntarily meet on a regular basis to set goals, identify and analyze problems, find solutions, and cooperate with management…

Teachers can take effective schoolwide leadership roles if the principal encourages each teacher to take responsibility for an aspect of school life that the individual teacher cares strongly about. Such opportunities to engage in school leadership are attractive for teachers because (1) they offer possibilities for improving teaching conditions;…

The use of performance appraisal (PA) as part of a performance management system at the college level is discussed, and a process model to implement PA through staff development is presented. Through PA, the supervisor and employee develop a framework for identifying job duties and responsibilities, goals and objectives, and performance measures.…

In January 1986, Chicago City-Wide College (CCWC) began to revitalize its strategic planning process, striving from the outset to achieve institutional concensus during each phase of the effort. Before the strategic planning process could be implemented, the components of a strategic planning model had to be identified. An ad hoc planning…

This self-help manual contains advice for parents who want to improve the schools their children attend by influencing school planning, policy, and administrative practices. The first step in improving schools is deciding whether a new group is necessary. If it is, parents must connect with other parents and then hold a first meeting at which…

Views concerning the participation of nontenure-track faculty in campus governance were surveyed at Towson State University (Maryland). In spring 1985, a questionnaire was sent to all 425 full-time faculty members at the university, and 298 responses were obtained. Only 3% of nontenure-track faculty responded to the questionnaire, compared to 70%…

Over the past 20 years, the middle school has been a major innovative movement changing the face of intermediate education. While hard to define exactly, middle schools have different priorities and purposes than junior high schools. The former serve preadolescents (ages 10 to 14) through a balanced, comprehensive program. Middle school programs…