In early November 2013, the authors started talking about visiting the Hurley School, a dual-language school in Boston, Massachusetts. The Hurley School had spent considerable time transitioning to the Common Core State Standards on literacy, but little time addressing the shifts in math. They worried that math classes were no longer rigorous…

Explores the similarities and differences among three thinking skills programs that help students analyze and evaluate their own problem-solving skills. (MLF)

Description of a process for solving human performance problems focuses on the analysis phase, which examines information to determine causes and develops recommendations for solving the problems. Techniques used for gathering data are described, criteria for evaluating ideas are listed, and weighted scores for performance improvement ideas are…

Instructional supervision, despite the lack of evidence for its value, can potentially help improve instruction and promote educators' professional growth. To realize this potential, schools should analyze their supervisory practice according to these four premises: (1) that each school district and each school has unique organizational…

Describes a project that addresses the problem of the failure rate of African-American and Hispanic students in calculus. Discusses a solution that offers minority students a combination of workshops with intensified sections of the calculus course that challenge the students. (MDH)

Prepared for use by staff in development workshops at Burlington County College (BCC), in New Jersey, this handbook offers college-wide guidelines for improving the quality of service provided to internal and external customers, and reviews key elements of BCC's Customer Service System (CSS), a computerized method of recording and following-up on…

Describes a program to improve problem-solving skills of children by incorporating parents as partners in cooperative learning experiences with the children. Research results indicate that students working with parental partners displayed higher problem-solving ability on posttests than those not working with partners. (MDH)

This book shows school professionals how to develop and use the knowledge and skills needed for effective professional collaboration, including team meetings, parent conferences, co-teaching, and problem solving with colleagues. The publication provides pedagogical aids including advance organizers, chapter objectives, and practice and application…

A technical note based on the Indonesian Nonformal Education Project discusses use of Q-sort, originally a research technique for studying small groups or individuals, as a needs assessment method. The background of Q-sort, designed to take subjective factors into account, is covered, and its use in needs assessment described: cards, each of which…

This module for a 1-semester Total Quality Management (TQM) course for high school or community college students contains a brief overview of problem solving and offers a practical approach along with some of the tools that can be used. The following components are included: (1) narrative of the problem-solving process; (2) the problem-solving…

A collaborative approach to solving school problems in Maryland emphasizes planned change through organization development processes. Organization development, a process of planned improvement in overall functioning, strives for sustained capacity in problem-solving by communication, goal-setting, conflict resolution, and commitment. The…

Discusses how problem-solving networks can be incorporated into courses. Reports on the development of a new style of pictorial network that can assist students in the handling of experimental data. (CW)

Discusses the development and field testing of a prototype genetics tutor program for microcomputers written in Turbo Pascal. A preliminary field test with undergraduates is described that was used as formative evaluation, and suggestions are given for designing a more effective tutor that uses additional intelligent computer-assisted instruction…

This document is designed to provide enough information for technical colleges and similar institutions to conduct their own focus visits. A focus visit is defined as a full-day activity that takes place on the campus during which a team of 10-25 individuals (program faculty, former and current students, technical college staff, advisory committee…

This manual provides a framework, to be used by elementary program developers and teachers, for creating or improving guidance curriculum programs. The manual is based on the Georgia Comprehensive Guidance Model, which is appended for reference. The materials in the manual represent a competency-based approach that is designed to provide a…