A case study of a school district/university partnership for school restructuring is described in this paper. The collaborative effort focused on improving educational quality rather than changing the organizational structure; the goal was to turn all relationships within the school into learning relationships. The partnership focused on the core…

Outcomes of a teacher empowerment project implemented at a middle school are described in this paper, with a focus on the perspectives of a school administrator, a middle schools specialist, and a university faculty evaluator. The purpose of the project was to improve student achievement through establishing a school improvement team. From the…

Findings of a study that identified the school-level factors that affect teachers' dispositions toward their work are presented in this paper, which focuses on teacher satisfaction, professional engagement, commitment, and efficacy. Data were derived from the teachers' survey portion of the Teachers and Administrators Survey (ATS) from the High…

Aimed at development staff who work with the rural poor in developing nations, this book presents a coherent methodology for achieving development based on principles of conscientization, local control, cooperation, and self-reliance. Part I, Analysis (chapters 1-3), discusses theory. Chapter 1 reviews the most commonly held theories of poverty…

This document defines a framework for strengthening linkages between early childhood and elementary school programs at the local, state, and regional levels. The concept of a continuum of services is central within the framework, in the belief that when service providers link together to provide continuity, the connections they establish provide…

This report describes a negotiated evaluation model used to examine the effectiveness of 10 regional center cooperatives (RCCs) that assist small rural New Mexico school districts in implementing provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The 9-month evaluation aimed to determine the scope of existing RCC services, the…

American policymakers have come to view principals as linchpins in plans for educational change. Findings of a study that examined how the principal's role changes in a school that is engaged in fundamental restructuring are presented in this paper. Data for the longitudinal case study of a suburban-urban school district in the northeastern United…

This paper documents the study of three schools participating in a school-improvement initiative carried out by the Board of Education of the City of New York, the Fund for New York City Public Education (the Fund), and the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) during the 1990-91 school year. The project, the IBM/Fund Project for…

This book examines the nature of power in the classroom, school system, and society. Power relations in schools reflect the larger societal forces and the interconnections of institutions. This book also analyzes the empowerment of teachers and students. It explores the process through which people develop more control over their lives and acquire…

The 1988 School Reform Act (Illinois PA 85-1418) mandated that Chicago's public schools be managed locally by school-based management councils. Principals in Chicago public schools work with their local school councils (LSCs) to effect plans concerning school management, budgeting, school improvement, staffing, and curricular concerns. This report…

This paper summarizes an ethnohistorical study of the way in which a medium-sized suburban school district's implementation of site-based, shared decision making interacted with attitudes and procedures created by earlier district reforms. A second focus is on how the adoption of a new curriculum framework, based on a whole-language philosophy and…

American River College's (ARC) Human Resources Development (HRD) plan for 1991-92 marks the third year of implementation of HRD funding at the college. Funds for HRD were received as part of Assembly Bill (AB) 1725 and activities have included computer training, multicultural awareness, shared governance, and "flexible calender" (paid non-teaching…

This quarterly report, covering July 1 through September 30, 1990, summarizes problems with Project Creating a New Approach to Learning (CANAL), part of a court-mandated desegregation plan in Chicago (Illinois). CANAL's goal is to train the constituent representatives of the public schools to engage in shared decision-making and to develop…

The Leda Study, a research project, examined Sweden's team teaching system. The working conditions of teacher teams in different types of school organizations are described, with a focus on group decision-making and problem-solving processes. Methodology involved observations of teacher teams in four schools; interviews with teachers, team…

This study examines economic development in Third World countries and the use of portable video systems in development projects. The study, conducted in 1985, attempts to measure the level of effectiveness of videotape programs as a communication tool for training rural subsistence women in Honduras in technical aspects of pig-keeping. Classical…