Academic program life cycle concept states each program's life flows through several stages: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. A mixed-influence diffusion growth model is fitted to enrolment data on academic programs to analyze the factors determining progress of academic programs through their life cycles. The regression analysis yield…

A study examined the situation-specific program development strategies used in 47 different settings in the southwestern United States from January 1987 to January 1988. Specialized and elite interviews were administered to program developers to identify the approaches that are being used and to determine how they relate to the approaches…

The theory of action research is discussed in terms of how second-order action research can help theorists to clarify and deepen their understanding of action research. After a brief introduction, the paper examines methodological criteria governing a piece of action research conducted at an action research training workshop sponsored by the…

A proposed three-dimensional model for identifying the gifted conceives of giftedness as a combination of characteristics. It emphasizes the different qualities of the characteristics as well as the fact that such characteristics exist in degrees or levels, thus helping to avoid thinking of giftedness or its components as being either wholly…

The Communication across the Curriculum (CAC) program at the University of Melbourne (Australia) was set up in a top-down manner, which was partly driven by outside pressures. Although informed by writing-across-the-curriculum theory and practice, the program reflects the university's original concern about the teaching of communication skills by…

Strategies are presented for fostering statewide program development and refinement in the field of special education. Sixteen observations about change are presented, with examples from various Washington statewide initiatives. Among the observations are the following: Reform should be promoted from within by empowering schools to explore…

A description is given of a model teacher preparation program under development at Memphis State University, Memphis, Tennessee. The model emphasizes more intensive preparation of prospective teachers in their teaching content fields, demonstrable accountability for both knowledge and skill acquisition in the various areas of professional…

Issues concerning the development of a pedagogically sound internship program, including objectives, student qualifications, requirements, evaluation, and the responsibilities of the director, are examined in this paper that explores the internship program development of the Speech Communication Department of St. Cloud State University at St.…

In this discussion of reform and improvement in teacher education, the feasibility of developing a scientist-practitioner model for teacher education programs is considered. This model advocates the development of research skills through a programmatic focus on research, with the application of these skills to practice. It is pointed out that the…

A study examined the program planning steps used by trainers on the job and the differences between the identified planning steps and the program planning models outlined in the adult education literature. Training managers from five corporations with headquarters in the Pittsburgh area were interviewed, and supporting documents about each…

After assessing its programs and teacher education research, it was decided by the Peabody College of Vanderbilt University that the ultimate goal of the programs would be to develop teachers who would be problem solvers who were able to assess each unique classroom situation and select from alternative strategies the strategy that is the…

Little Brothers--Friends of the Elderly is a non-profit, non-sectarian federation of agencies devoted to meeting the needs of the elderly poor, those poor not merely in worldly goods, but in love. The organization examined how it might more effectively spread its services and assure the establishment throughout the United States of programs with…

The need for trained counselors/counseling psychologists, and for counselor education, training, and accreditation, are topics of continued discussion within professional organizations, accrediting bodies, universities, and other training institutions. Following an exploratory meeting in 1998 to discuss the need for additional graduate counselor…

This paper describes the model and process developed by the Connecticut education department to assist schools in improving their effectiveness. The report offers an operational definition of the term "effectiveness" and summarizes the research that provides the conceptual base for the model. The characteristics selected from this…

When researchers and practitioners in early childhood care and education interact, outcomes are often disappointing to both. It is likely that a new brand of professionals, capable of living in the cultures of both the researcher and the practitioner, will bridge the gap. These professionals will be found mostly in intermediary organizations,…