Rural education trends in the 1980s--influenced by decreased federal, state, and local funding and demands for higher academic standards and greater accountability--will have a significant impact on staff development in small and rural schools. Along with ebbing support for compensatory education and increased focus on math and science…

Major local-, state-, and university-designed programs with the objective of fostering instructional effectiveness at the elementary school level are described in this paper. Instructional effectiveness is defined as a prerequisite to academic achievement in that it occurs when all students obtain at least minimum academic mastery as measured by…

A critical review of literature on factors affecting nurse staffing in acute care hospitals, with particular regard for the consequences of a movement from team nursing to primary nursing care, was conducted. The literature search revealed a need for more research on the philosophy of nursing and nursing goals and policy as they relate to nurse…

A review is presented of recent literature concerning teachers' attitudes toward inservice programs. One of the studies concluded that items that teachers like at inservice meetings are: (1) active involvement; (2) teaching; (3) practical information; (4) meetings that are short and to the point; (5) in-depth treatment of one concept; (6) well…

This review and synthesis of the literature on correctional vocational education includes historical documents, recent surveys and reports, journal articles, dissertations, and speeches and presentations which were located by computer-assisted and manual searches of these data bases: Abstracts of Instructional and Research Materials in Vocational…

This report presents an analysis of the state of the art of leadership training. (Leadership is defined as "the process of influencing the actions of individuals, groups, and organizations in order to obtain desired results," and leadership training includes all courses and programs designed to enhance the abilities of participants to exercise…

This third edition of a report updates important developments in marketing and distributive education research. Most research studies discussed are from 1968-1978, but several 1979 and 1980 studies are also included. The studies are grouped under the ten main topic areas as follow: philosophy and objectives (historical research, goals and…

This report reviews what is known about alternative routes to certification (ARC) in special education. First, it defines ARC and discusses the confluence of factors that has hastened its growth and popularity, particularly in specialized, high-need areas such as special education. Factors cited include persistent shortages of qualified personnel,…

Reviews five dimensions (focus, scope, structure, process, and capacity) of an organizational design used by 20 New York districts planning for site-based management (SBM) implementation. The confusion surrounding devolution of decision making hinders districts' efforts to effect changes in intermediate variables (job satisfaction and staff…

This paper reports a comprehensive "meta-review" and synthesis of research on variables related to learning, including both cognitive and affective schooling outcomes. A conceptual framework was developed, encompassing 228 items related to school learning, organized "a priori" into 30 scales within 6 categories ordered roughly from more distal to…

This brochure, intended for the parents of current and prospective French immersion students, answers commonly-asked questions about immersion education, including who should participate, how good the child's French will be, whether immersion students are likely to lose ground in English or academic subjects, how parents can provide support at…

This book presents a comprehensive examination of the nature and scope of the literature on adult education. It includes the historical perspective and interpretation necessary to understand links between the diverse and seemingly separate aspects of the field. The volume describes over 1,200 books, tracing the development of basic theories and…

This document describes the design, content, and methods of a teacher education program (TEP) with a specialization in environmental education (SEE), intended to prepare teachers for middle schools. The SEE is also suggested as inservice for staff members. Part 1 presents the goals of the TEP and translates these goals into learner objectives. It…

The United States is experiencing a change in the school population at all levels of the education system. There is a compelling need to develop an integrated perspective on the literacy needs of the newly diverse population of speakers of English as a Second Language (ESL), so that all language minorities may develop literacy skills for both…

Evidence suggests that limited-English-proficient (LEP) students are among those most likely to drop out of school. Inconsistencies in defining dropouts and limited research affect estimates of LEP dropouts. Factors increasing the dropout risk include: low level of English language competence; large school size; lower expectations of certain…