This paper describes research needs in light of changes taking place in school-based practice in both general and special education. The tenets of educational reform and societal concerns fueling demands for reform are identified. The context in which changes in educational practices are occurring is described, focusing on evolving relationships…

Educational policy analysts have recognized the need for an educational policy that combines the merits of "top-down" mandates with "bottom-up" teacher discretion. This paper describes the Reading Recovery program as an example of an educational program that balances top-down direction and bottom-up discretion by: (1) providing an overall…

This newsletter issue provides rehabilitation professionals with various information pieces concerning consumer leadership in supported employment of people with disabilities. First, a chart lists five questions concerning self advocacy and supported employment, and provides consumer responses to the questions. A second item describes…

Unions and employers currently operate in an environment that does not support investment in skill development. However, competitiveness demands that both work and the way workers are educated and trained be radically restructured. In high-performance workplaces, participatory labor-management approaches to job-linked basic skills development are…

This practical guide to the process of planning educational programs for adults explains the key challenges of planning in the real world of conflicting interests and power relations. Part 1 draws attention to the importance of program planning practice in adult education (Chapter 1) and offers a model of what adult educators actually do when…

In September 1991, Red River Community College (RRCC) in Winnipeg, Manitoba, decided to embrace the concepts of Total Quality Management (TQM) to provide an operational philosophy, enhance program curricula, and establish business opportunities. RRCC adapted W. Edward Deming's manufacturing philosophy to create its own approach, which focused on:…

This book was designed as a resource to help school principals and other school leaders become more effective on the job. The seven steps to effective instructional leadership outlined in the volume have been validated by research and can be adapted to a variety of teaching environments--rural, urban, high school, middle, or elementary school.…

This book provides useful guidelines for implementing collaborative decision making in the public educational system. The prologue presents the historical background of educational reform in the United States and offers a rationale for radical school reform at the individual school level. The nine chapters that follow are divided into three parts.…

School improvement cannot be negotiated. In many educational circles, negotiation carries a negative connotation that creates a perception of adversaries, causing trust levels between participants to decline. Decisions made in an atmosphere of adversarial relationships between teacher unions and school boards are not always the productive…

The position of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and National Education Association (NEA) on issues of shared decision making and administration in the public schools is examined in this report. Methodology involved telephone interviews with one AFT and one NEA representative on the following issues: decision making and forms of control;…

This study was conducted in Dade County, Florida, school district that has been involved in the restructuring movement since 1987. In the mid-1980's the district piloted a school-based-management program, aimed, in part at increasing teachers' decisional participation. The sample was chosen from 14 elementary and 2 senior high pilot schools and 14…

This evaluation summarizes an analysis of site observations of training sessions for the core planning teams of Project Creating a New Approach to Learning (CANAL), part of a court-mandated desegregation plan to reduce inequities in predominantly Black and Hispanic American schools in Chicago (Illinois). CANAL's goal is to train the core planning…

This evaluation analyzes participation of Local School Council (LSC) members in the special training activities of Project Creating a New Approach to Learning (CANAL), part of a court-mandated desegregation plan in Chicago (Illinois). CANAL's goal was to organize and train core planning teams (CPTs), including community members, to engage in…

Leadership roles performed by teachers after implementation of a school-based management (SBM) plan in Florida are described in this report. Telephone interviews with principals of each of the 33 participating schools were conducted to identify the leaders of the participating school bodies, or "cadres." Findings indicate that 75 percent…

Outcomes of the local school-based management (LSBM) plan, implemented by the District of Columbia public schools in 1989, are presented in this report. The 17 participating sites included 2 senior, 3 junior, 1 extended elementary, 9 elementary, and 2 special education schools. Data gathered from structured interviews with 12 of the participating…