Master of Science (M.S.) programs, including geography through geographic information science and technology (M.S. GIST), play a key part in training the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) workforce. A master's thesis has been a traditional part of geography programs, and across all kinds of disciplines the value of a thesis is…

In this important book, respected educator Robert Rueda proposes a multidimensional model that will provide a more comprehensive lens for addressing the achievement gap in today's schools. Drawing on work from educational psychology as well as several other fields, Rueda identifies three primary reasons for the stubborn failure of most school…

This study examined the perceptions of teachers and administrators with regard to AVID (Advancement via Individual Determination) teacher leaders. The purpose was to compare whether teachers and administrators agree on the types of attributes needed for teacher leaders involved in implementing AVID as a school reform effort. Results revealed that…

Describing a task force as a planning and problem-solving group within the school, this article outlines problems encountered in school-based planning efforts and ways to make future attempts more successful. (Author/JM)

A multimethod approach identified barriers and facilitators of action research training as a method to help teachers create school improvement. Content analysis of action research plans developed during training of 14 school leadership teams indicates the importance of technical research skills and the provision of time as a resource to those…

This paper describes experiences of the Documentation and Technical Assistance Project (Chicago, Illinois) in helping schools to improve their problem solving capacities through the use of cognitive frameworks (shared meanings that people use to interpret their world). The paper discusses two projects that illustrate how shared frameworks have…

The influences of cognitive styles have been the focus of research on problems in education for quite some time (Witkin, Moore, Goodenough, & Cox, 1977). In fact, agricultural educators are rapidly increasing the amount of research and education focused on understanding and utilizing cognitive function in an attempt to improve educational…

This Report describes a performance contracting program in Norfolk, Virginia; presents its results; and draws some inferences about the utility of performance contracting as a means for improving education. Participants were students from grades 7-9 in one junior high school and from grades 4-6 in one elementary school; both schools were in the…

The Gilroy, California, Unified School District contracted with Westinghouse Learning Corporation for the 1970-71 school year for the purpose of improving reading and mathematics achievement of approximately 100 Spanish-surnamed boys and girls from grades 2-4. The average gain at the end of the program was 0.6 achievement years in reading and 0.8…

A collaborative approach to solving school problems in Maryland emphasizes planned change through organization development processes. Organization development, a process of planned improvement in overall functioning, strives for sustained capacity in problem-solving by communication, goal-setting, conflict resolution, and commitment. The…

The organization and procedures of universities make it tempting to try to avoid contemporary challenges to graduate education. Much of the malaise in current graduate education results from a focus on the decline in resources, in the availability of conventional careers for graduates, and in the availability of talented students. (Author/MLW)

The author discusses the nature of challenges and lists challenges for secondary industrial education. He challenges educators to (1) develop a clear educational mission and attractive, challenging programs; (2) prepare students to integrate technological skills and to appreciate the limits of technology; and (3) prepare students to implement…

This report covers the first year of a five-year study of 11 school districts that are involved in school improvement activities. The schools are attempting to create new programs that will increase the effectiveness of linking agents working with the schools in three curriculum areas: basic skills, career preparation, and citizen education.…

The fourth publication in the Model Schools series, this guide for administrators suggests changes and procedures that come mainly from the authors' experience in the Model Schools Project, a five-year program sponsored by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. The project's purpose was to demonstrate in a group of schools that…

A project was developed to improve vocational administrators' program management skills through diffusion of the cost-effectiveness analysis system which was developed at Indiana University-Bloomington. Specific objectives were (1) to summarize the cost-effectiveness analysis system, (2) to develop a conceptual framework for the system's diffusion…