Effective teacher professional development is defined as structured professional learning activities which result in changes in teacher practice and improvements in student learning outcomes. Superintendents face common challenges unique to the rural environment which hinder the delivery of effective teacher professional development in rural…

Effective teacher professional development is defined as structured professional learning activities which result in changes in teacher practice and improvements in student learning outcomes. Superintendents face common challenges unique to the rural environment which hinder the delivery of effective teacher professional development in rural…

The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement's (IEA) mission is to enhance knowledge about education systems worldwide, and to provide high-quality data that will support education reform and lead to better teaching and learning in schools. In pursuit of this aim, it conducts, and reports on, major studies of student…

Globalization is a powerful force with far reaching impacts on education and education policy. The growth of large scale international surveys of student achievement and the increasing role played by intergovernmental agencies in education means that the influence that globalization exerts on education is likely to increase even further in the…

Designed for use in college-level reading methods courses, elementary and secondary classrooms, resource rooms, and reading clinics, this book presents an informal reading inventory and detailed instructions for its implementation. The fifth edition of book offers new instructions on how to use the text and administer, score, and interpret tests;…

This book is a tool for Illinois school business officials, superintendents, and other administrators with budgeting responsibilities. It is also a resource for school board members. The foreword describes the financial responsibilities of the school board along with the caveat that financial management is staff work, not board work. Detailed…

The effectiveness of school-business partnerships has been difficult to assess. This report focuses on the linkages among the public sectors and educational institutions, and examines the measurement, evaluation, and impact of school-business partnerships. Twenty-four case studies of partnership programs are presented in which measurement and…

Differentiation is simply a teacher attending to the learning needs of a particular student or small group of students, rather than teaching a class as though all individuals in it were basically alike. This book explores in 10 chapters how school leaders can develop responsive, personalized, and differentiated classrooms: (1) "Understanding…

Data can help identify solutions to some of the biggest problems in schools. Yet few schools use data effectively. The purpose of this book is to help schools become aware of the advantages of collecting and using data (data analysis) for overall school improvement. The book begins with an overview of the current state of education and the…

The stories, anecdotes, humor, and insights found in this book capture what it means to be a teacher. The book begins with common encounters that are the hallmark of the new-teacher experience, but continues into equally entertaining tales that come with years of working with students, parents, staff, faculty, and administrators. "What It Means…

The organizational-development approach argues that major educational innovations require changes in the culture of the school or college. This book demonstrates how strategies based on organizational development (OD) can bring about constructive organizational change in work settings. OD is based on the following assumptions: (1) Groups differ…

This book presents a study that examined the apparent failures of many top-level executive selections. For the study, information was gathered from 494 top executives. The research's purpose was to determine how executives are defined as successful or unsuccessful, how executive selection takes place in modern organizations, and what determines…

This book is an effort to document ideas, processes, and outcomes based on input from many people involved in accountability of interagency collaborative services programs. The goals, processes, instruments, and reporting systems presented have been developed through a team process over a 10-year period of involvement with Iowa's School-Based…

This handbook is designed to help educators set the stage for collaboration and teamwork by teaching how to become a SMART School using focus, reflection, collaboration, and leadership to set strategic and specific, measurable, results-based, and time-bound goals. The progress made in reaching these goals can then be measured using the…

This progress interim report describes trends in implementation, school performance, and related factors for a sample of schools participating in the New American Schools (NAS) program. NAS is a program funding the development of designs aimed at transforming entire schools at the elementary and secondary levels. This evaluation focuses on the…