The authors advocate a holistic approach to program development that transcends the boundaries of the sponsoring agency and provides a link between needs assessment, instructional design and development, learning activities, and societal impact. This frame of reference views the efforts of adult educators and their organizations as means to…

The author, who took a performing arts tour of Japan with 35 junior high students and seven adults, provides some tips to other music educators intending such a venture. Discussed are goals and objectives, getting things started, maintaining the pace, logistics, and final organization. (RM)

Urges teachers to become involved in developing and planning gifted and talented programs in their schools. Notes three barriers to program initiation: money, colleagues, and administrators. Suggests 10 guides for success in obtaining programs and stresses that success depends on hard work, risk taking, commitment, and working with others. (SB)

In 2001, Canada's Alberta Learning embarked on development of a new provincial high school social studies program by conducting a province-wide needs assessment survey. Its purpose was to gather data, input, and suggestions to guide curriculum developers in the development of the new program. A needs assessment questionnaire was the primary tool…

This guide is intended as a resource for school administrators, school leadership teams, and other teacher leaders as they learn about implementing professional learning teams (PLTs) in their schools. PLTs are teams of four to six teachers who come together to help each other improve student learning by changing classroom instruction. This guide…

A comprehensive needs assessment is the critical first step a coalition or organization must take in order to develop an effective and successful underage drinking prevention effort. This guide details the elements of a needs assessment. Beginning with data, the booklet walks the reader through the process organizations must follow to obtain all…

This technical assistance packet is intended as a guide for those who develop programs in support of mentors of youth. It offers guidance to help mentors build trusting relationships with their mentees, and, ultimately, contribute to positive outcomes for the children and youth in the mentoring program. Successful mentoring programs provide…

Using the centers approach to resource-based learning, this book incorporates important information skill-building into a variety of exciting learning opportunities across the curriculum. It provides an ongoing library center program through a series of mini-lessons that cover topics ranging from author exploration and natural resources to rockets…

Based on the work of the National Council on Research in Child Welfare (NCRCW), this handbook is designed to help social service agency executives cope with changing times for child welfare agencies, strengthen traditional services to meet today's needs, and analyze and plan for the future. The manual aims to demystify quality improvement theory…

This publication provides a step-by-step guide to help schools and districts implement strong, sustainable professional development that drives achievement of student learning goals. The toolkit is based on the experiences of national professional development award winning schools and districts. The most common thread among the winners is that…

This annotated video transcript follows the discussion of six experts in community relations and charter schools. The panel was convened as part of an initiative to identify the specific needs of charter-school founders and to develop a leadership-training program designed to address those needs. Each member of the panel shared his or her insights…

This booklet is intended to help decrease the barriers of prejudice toward people who have mental illnesses. It serves as an educational tool to eliminate the stigma associated with mental illness and to help develop anti-stigma or anti-discrimination programs. Increasingly, the media is doing a better job of breaking down the stereotypes…

Noting that a family with young children is under tremendous pressure and that a babysitting cooperative can give parents relief during a vital stage of a family's development, this book provides guidance for mothers of preschool children in starting and maintaining a Smart Mom's Babysitting Cooperative based on the University Place Baby-Sitting…

This book takes school leaders through the process of creating and sustaining an induction and mentoring program. It challenges school leaders to think beyond initial, short-term goals to a wider, long-term vision, providing guidance on telementoring in the cyberage and advice to ensure development of highly effective practices that will improve…

This paper describes a process for developing quality teacher education programs. The process begins with the core beliefs of all faculty members involved in the program. A retreat is an appropriate place to start the process of promoting appropriate philosophy and developing core beliefs in faculty members. Once this process is completed, it is…