Describes how North Carolina educators cooperated to build a system of teacher-performance appraisal. To build the program, educators derived basic teaching functions from literature and observed teachers to gather performance data. Training is now provided to districts, and information about effective teaching is disseminated throughout the…

Four crucial areas in the success of mainstreaming are good communication, administrative support, adequate time, and inservice training. (Author)

A California school district used the Hunter teaching model for a study to measure the effect of the model on teachers and students in two schools over a four-year period. Evaluation shows that student achievement and teacher behavior improved during the first three years then dropped during the fourth. (MD)

The Comprehensive Interagency Diagnostic and Prescriptive Center of Richmond, Virginia, offers troubled youth a chance to have their problems evaluated and treated through a cooperative pooling of staff and resources from five agencies. (MD)

Skillfully interviewing students can elicit useful information about the quality of the educational program. (JM)

Reviews the factors that any teacher motivation plan must incorporate to be effective and outlines 11 principles that should be followed in designing career ladder plans to meet teacher needs, increase teacher competence, and facilitate effective instruction. Warns against potential pitfalls in career ladder plans. (PGD)

Describes an adult education program run by volunteers in northern Ohio. (MD)

Pasco, Washington, School District will complete its fourth year using Thomas McGreal's (1983) goal-based teacher evaluation process. Describes the model's progressive phases designed to build teachers' responsibility for their own improvement. The plan invigorated teachers and improved teacher-administrator relationships. (CJH)

School districts can integrate computers into the curriculum by accounting for the following variables in their planning: (1) revision of district learner goals, (2) adjustments in instructional priorities, (3) selection of hardware and software, (4) staff development needs, (5) expected technological advances, and (6) systematic review of the…

School systems can promote computer literacy among teachers by starting at the administrative level, making inservice comprehensive and long-term, providing concrete support, and offering opportunities for participation. (Author)

Reviews educational research on bilingual education and describes biases present in recent evaluations of bilingual programs. Contrary to assumptions about bilingual programs, recent findings suggest that native-language programs may be very effective. They support a strong foundation in the native language and set the basis for subsequent…

Lists 45 criteria for assessing a school's multiethnic education program. (JM)

Describes lessons learned from a five-year comprehensive model evaluation program developed by school systems in Minnesota and Iowa. The learner's experience was planned through instructional and curriculum strategies. Performance criteria were established for teachers, and principals and students evaluated classrooms. Pre- and post-testing…

Educators alone cannot solve youth's complex problems, but can contribute to their solution by increasing others' awareness and being more responsive to students. This 11-item directory of organizations, projects, and curricular materials is a step in this direction. Organizations include Action for Children's Television, Children's Defense Fund,…

This review of the literature highlights research-based ways to improve schools and classrooms. Emphasis is on student time-on-task, effective teacher behaviors, and positive teacher supervision. (JM)