Analyzes scholarship on administrative leadership styles. Describes the writing program co-directorship model the author and a colleague developed at a Southern public university, and offers a critical analysis of both the possibilities and pitfalls of collaborative administration for untenured writing program administrators. Points out ways in…

A case study examined ways to improve schools through democratic accountability, highlighting a principal's strategies to increase staff and student expectations in a low-performing middle school in rural Florida. Results gleaned from interviews and surveys suggest that leaders must build schools' capacity for sustaining achievement. (Contains 32…

A 4-year study of 9 Ontario secondary schools examined their capacity for change. Change capacity consisted of liberation from structures that inhibit innovation, honoring cognitive dissonance, and forging new relationships. Imposing new organizational structures was less likely to perpetuate change capacity than was a commitment improvement…

In 1997, the National Education Association and the Teacher Union Reform Network urged local union affiliates to adopt a collaborative approach to negotiating with school boards and administrators. Research indicates that the cost of education in union districts is from 8-15 percent higher than in nonunion districts. Effects on student achievement…

An intergovernmental council on sustainable development in the Arctic discussed decision making, planning, protected areas, healthy communities, governance, assessment, and the role of youth. Recommendations included measuring scientific knowledge against the benchmark of traditional knowledge, establishing an Arctic university, allowing…

This study of 55 preschool children examined frequency of play and problem-solving activities, and management, collaboration, and assistance interactions as a function of relationships with teachers and peers. Findings revealed that problem solving occurs with peers and teachers; play overwhelmingly occurs with peers; management and assistance…

A long-term study in rural Alaska schools examined effects of parent involvement on student outcomes in three parental-role typologies: trust-building activities to close the school-community gap, informal parent involvement, and parent participation in school governance. The influences of stability of school conditions and socioeconomic variables…

Suggestions for facilitating inclusion of people with mixed abilities in outdoor adventure programs focus on creating an atmosphere of trust, cooperation, and mutual respect through open lines of communication, patterns of inclusive decision making, valuing of efforts and nonphysical accomplishments, emphasis on group challenges and activities,…

Significant, multisector community partnerships are a prerequisite for sustained, systemwide pre-Kindergarten through college-level educational reform. Like a few others, the University of Pennsylvania is developing higher education-assisted community schools designed to help educators educate, engage, activate, and serve all community members.…

Scholars theorize that engaging young people in organizational governance promotes positive youth development and organizational effectiveness. To explore this prediction, the study discussed here, based on interview data from 16 youth and 24 adult organizational leaders representing 8 organizations, mapped the developmental processes that occur…

Over the past four decades higher education institutions have faced increasing complexity related to governance (Berdahl, 1991; Birnbaum, 1988; Kezar, 2000; Leslie & Fretwell, 1996). In particular, institutions now face even greater competing priorities and demands to engage the community, business, and industry; to solve social problems and…

In this paper, we take up and advance the project of rethinking "scientific literacy" by Eisenhart, Finkel, and Marion (American Educational Research Journal, 1996, 33, 261-295). As part of a project of rethinking science education, we advance three propositions. First, because society is built on division of labor, not everybody needs to know the…

Against the background of several large-scale innovations in secondary agricultural education, this study explores the relation between teachers' professionality and their participation in school policy. For the research into this, 1,030 teachers of 98 schools for preparatory and secondary agricultural education have filled in two questionnaires.…

Prompted by Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, there is a growing number of examples of children and young people being involved in the policy process. To date this had not been matched by evaluation of the practice. This situation needs to change to ensure that existing experience provides learning for more widespread and…

Children's participation in decision-making is complex: it is undertaken for different purposes and is reflected in different levels of involvement, different contexts and different activities. This paper reviews the current state of participation and, drawing on practice and research literature, highlights several aspects of practice where…