Presents the Quality Reading Program Questionnaire, which has been used in more than 100 school districts to evaluate or improve existing reading programs. (Author/WD)

Offers practical suggestions for minimizing 14 problems that frequently occur when curriculum programs are evaluated. Timing evaluations, evaluating appropriate factors, making meaningful comparisons, meeting skepticism, selecting tests, selecting evaluators, assessing evaluation results, and maintaining credibility are among the concerns…

Presents an evaluation form that library media specialists, teachers, and students can use to rate their school library media center. (WD)

Physical education contributes to the physical, mental, and emotional health of young people. Administrators must recognize these contributions and ensure an effective program by evaluating and retraining teachers to keep abreast of the recent knowledge explosion in physical education. (CJH)

Proposes questions that can be raised by principals evaluating the character and effectiveness of their high schools. Suggests studying the nature of daily school operations, the school program, the school's structure and schedule, student activities, staff quality, guidance services, off-campus learning opportunities, administration, and school…

Outlines a three-step process to justify the existence of the guidance program, including writing a job description, logging daily duties, and evaluating the program. (Author/WD)

Offers recommendations about how to evaluate student activity programs. (JM)

Staff development is the key to middle school effectiveness, and this article lists characteristics of an effective staff development program, examples of activities and topics, and questions for program evaluation. (DCS)

One approach to rebuilding public confidence in schools is to establish a visiting program for parents and patrons. This article describes a one-day "accreditation visit" program in Colorado that asks parents to observe classes, assess school climate, and make suggestions for school improvement. (MLH)

Students can succeed in remedial programs if such programs are well-planned and systematic, say these writers, who offer some guidelines. (Author/JM)

Presents the results of a national survey conducted in 1983 that investigated teachers', administrators', and parents' preferred strategies for educating gifted secondary school students; reviews related program evaluation data, particularly as regards accelerated courses and independent study programs. (MCG)

What should a student activities program be? What should it provide? Who should be responsible for its organization and smooth operation? Answers these questions in a discussion of this important part of every school's total program. (Editor/RK)

The arts program in the Attleboro, Massachusetts, public schools is an interdisciplinary attempt to communicate the basic knowledge structures used in most subjects through nonverbal visual means. An evaluative study showed Attleboro seventh graders' gains in visual concepts as significantly higher than those of traditionally taught students. (JM)

Having worked for several years with three Wisconsin school districts, the author describes the metaplan that emerged for developing districtwide improvement plans. He presents a completed plan to clarify the process. The participating school districts welcome inquiries. (Author/TE)

Broad-based effective schools research suggests a school excellence model attributing student achievement to principal leadership, a positive school climate, the primacy of basic skills, high teacher expectations, an assessment and monitoring system, and the integration and coordination of the real and ideal curriculum and student assessment. (DCS)