Amaya Garcia of New America talks with Kappan about grow-your-own programs, in which school districts partner with teacher preparation programs to recruit and prepare community members, often current students or school staff, to teach in local schools. A recent 50-state scan shows that there is a great deal of variety in how these programs are…

The Common Core of Standards project has strong national support, but it will not succeed if it doesn't involve teachers in grassroots development activities. The initiative should involve local consortia of schools in working with the new standards, assessments, and support tools. Local teachers would design teaching units and then share these…

Central Michigan University's Chamber of Commerce/University Business Education Services Committee has been revitalized by the committee's decision in 1982 to share program-generating responsibility with more than 900 university faculty members and administrators. The numerous successful programs that have resulted, including faculty-conducted…

A caring, effective style of classroom management has transformed a Chicago elementary school. The Responsive Classroom approach acknowledges children's need to feel pleasure and significance as members of a classroom community via morning meetings, rules and logical consequences, guided discovery, classroom organization, academic choice, and…

A reform initiative's demise is often due not to its ineffectiveness, but to its inability to deliver immediate results. Beginning with a clear vision, educators move through a "ready, fire, aim" sequence that creates "products" along the way. Charting progress can help maintain everyone's faith by distinguishing between long-term and immediate…

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)

Shows applications of the Talent Identification and Development in Education (TIDE) model in two suburban Midwestern school districts. In both large and small districts, TIDE changes the way school communities view gifted and talented education. A broader understanding emerges that recognizes nurturing of strengths, interests, and talents in every…

Deinstitutionalizing the mentally ill failed because proper implementation required large-scale societal changes. Dumping disabled kids into regular education without appropriate supports could mirror that fiasco. Inclusion can help create a sense of community through promoting acceptance and respect among classmates. The Social Awareness-Social…

A Minnesota study showed that changing school starting times to accommodate adolescent sleep patterns profoundly affected many families. Implementation processes substantially influenced how families received changes. Policy makers should inform and involve all stakeholders, allow ample time, provide research-based justifications, support…

The San Francisco (California) Education Fund has made possible three projects: a solar greenhouse at an alternative elementary school, the All-City High School Youth Orchestra, and a high school cross-cultural peer tutoring program for Asian and Hispanic students. (Author/MLF)