This paper offers a brief overview of the Australian education system and compares it with the United States system of education. The Australian economy presents no threat to U.S. hegemony, but its education system presents an interesting contrast. The paper describes the following features of the Australian education system: governance; school…

This report looks at recent educational history in West Virginia, particularly in Lincoln County, where school conditions stemming from poverty and politics resulted in the historic 1982 decision by Judge Arthur Recht. The Recht Decision found that the state's public schools failed to meet the "thorough and efficient" standard demanded…

This paper contrasts three theoretical positions which lead to different predictions about the impact on instruction and learning of enhanced teacher roles in school and classroom decision making. The "teacher professionalism" view maintains that empowerment enhances instruction and learning, the "bureaucratic centralization"…

Current school restructuring experiments are likely to result in more balanced local education systems characterized by decentralized and centralized control. The potential leadership contributions of school district superintendents in a balanced system are described in this exploratory study, which is based on agency theory, a politics-oriented…

Historically, in sharp contrast with the United States, the Australian state systems of public education have always been extremely centralized and hierarchical in structure. While these highly centralized systems served the sparsely populated Australian states well during the early years of this century in providing universal free education and…

The growth of federal influence on American higher education and the roles of state and local governments are discussed. The shift of power to a central government and precedents that over the years have established federal involvement in educational issues that are not directly enumerated in the Constitution are addressed. A decision that…

Decentralized school systems make the principal's role more complex in the U.S. than in Australia's highly centralized system. Principals are pivotal to school success in both countries. A principal sets a school's climate, affecting decision-making, communications, educational innovations, and teacher morale, while performing formal tasks…

The contents of H.R. 15643 and the transcript of hearings held on it are presented. The bill proposes consolidation of Federal City College, the Washington Technical Institute, and the District of Columbia Teachers College into a single land-grant university. Witnesses include faculty members, administrators, and trustees of the three original…

An analysis presents the many factors which enter into the process of reorganizing two central school districts into a larger, more effective district. The analysis follows the two districts through the reorganization procedure and into resulting administrative and financial problems. The involvement and influence of the State Education Department…

A survey of library service in Vermont, financed with Library Services and Construction Act funds, was conducted in two parts: (1) an examination of the procedures used by the Free Public Library Service in its role as the focus of interlibrary cooperation in Vermont and an evaluation of library resources in the state and (2) an evaluation of…

The author sought to evaluate the feasibility of developing a centralized instructional television (ITV) production facility for institutions of higher learning in the state of Utah. He considered economic factors, availability of qualified personnel, space and physical plant, potential to provide the required service, and the degree of acceptance…

Case study of a poor, rural Pennsylvania school district's experience with the Reading First initiative illustrates how the No Child Left Behind Act confines districts to a few federally prescribed, "scientifically proven" curricula that ignore local conditions. Sanctioned schools are negatively labeled but receive inadequate funding,…

National survey data are used to address questions about the centralization and decentralization of decision making about computer use in American schools. Settings in which centralization and decentralization in decisions about computers are greatest are considered. The consequences of alternative decision-making structures are also considered,…

This paper presents the remarks of the President of Indiana University (IU) concerning the state of the university in 1995. It discusses excellence in education and research at IU, noting the contributions of various nationally-recognized faculty, graduates, and current students. The speech also reviews the rapid growth of IU in recent decades,…

The Educational Priorities Panel undertook a study to find out how funds are distributed among community school districts in New York (New York) and how resources are distributed to individual schools within the system. District decision making was also studied. In Part I, interviews were conducted in 10 representative school districts to learn…