Describes a Master's of Arts in Writing program which is an attempted reform of the master's degree in English: an experimental curriculum designed to revive rhetorical approaches to the construction and interpretation of literary works. Outlines the program's strengths and the problems that emerged in the first three years. (MG)

Policy initiatives from Kentucky to California are espousing curriculum based on NCTM-backed core concepts that students understand through induction rather than memorization, teaching based on guided mastery rather than didactic instruction, and assessment that is open-ended rather than machine-scorable. This article highlights obstacles to…

Eugene (Oregon) Public Schools want to replace the traditional content-driven curriculum with a general concepts-based curriculum stressing the relationships among ideas. To help district educators understand the new model, a coin metaphor describing the two interlocking areas of curriculum (learning core conceptual knowledge and strategic…

Evaluates a small New York school district's efforts to reorganize its two K-5 elementary schools into one K-2 primary grade school and one 3-5 intermediate school, focusing on student, staff, and parent reactions. Although the new arrangement created more focused schools, the intermediate principal misses the energy deriving from the Kindergarten…

For 6 years, Frederick County (Maryland) Public Schools has pursued a major restructuring effort involving 30,000 students and 46 schools and covering all disciplines and grades. This initiative involved five components: developing student outcomes, defining curriculum, developing new assessment tasks, planning for instruction, and providing for…

Three years ago, a coalition of three Washington State districts, Peninsula, Tacoma, and Issaquah, began cooperating to help one another implement programs and policies fostering a service ethic. This article describes each district's progress at implementing its Project Service Leadership program. (MLH)

The Refugee Health Education Program was developed to provide refugees from the Soviet Union, Iran, Vietnam, and Cambodia with information on disease prevention, chronic disease management, and effective utilization of New York's health services. Additional goals include health promotion through culturally adpated education and provision of…

Describes the Central New York Education Consortium's efforts to develop university-school district partnerships and devise a positive approach to ethical instruction. The group identified essential "schools of character" aspects, such as clean, orderly environment, constant curriculum evaluation criteria, administrator role modeling,…

Describes pilot program at University of Louisville (Kentucky) which was designed to assist in orienting adult learners to the collegiate environment. Addresses special concerns of adult learners, including child care, career planning, academic support, personal support, and financial aid. Explains program development and presentation, materials,…

Describes the implementation of portfolio assessment in a writing program at Kenai Peninsula College, a small college in Alaska. Discusses adjustments to the program, problems, and future applications. Suggests that portfolio assessment can be useful to a writing program even if it is implemented for only one or two semesters. (SR)

Briefly described is a sample 10-week program combining a supportive environment for the exchange of ideas, a support group, and a learning opportunity for individuals with both diabetes and visual impairment. (DB)

Feedback from 10 students, 32 clinical preceptors, and 4 group supervisors revealed that a shared supervision model during an adult physical health block clinical placement is a feasible alternative for occupational therapy fieldwork. Results suggested the importance of clearly defining roles and responsibilities of students, group supervisors,…

Describes Virginia Intervention Education Weekend (V.I.E.W.), project designed to implement peer-based alcohol and other drug prevention programs in institutions of higher education. Notes that 46% of 28 institutions had alcohol and other drug action plans in place at follow-up. Of others, 61% reported other positive outcomes as result of V.I.E.W.…

Describes a principal-initiated advisory program at a Toronto middle school. Summarizes successful program elements, including a 6-month planning period; a staff-supported inservice program offering training in team-building and adolescent development; daily advisory group meetings, with maximum group size of 15 students, who retain the same…

Describes Success for All reading program, its development in Baltimore and Philadelphia, and recent study evaluating its replication in 15 schools in 7 states. Program clearly improves student reading performance. Evaluations for previous years show program's effectiveness in Baltimore and Philadelphia. The longer a school remains in the program,…