The COVID-19 Omicron variant was causing a new wave of infections and, because of school and life disruptions, students were struggling with learning loss and a decline in mental and emotional health in 2021. Against this backdrop, FHI 360, an organization whose education initiatives aim to dismantle obstacles and give students the tools they need…

It is the author's view that an applied behavioral science approach to the problems of learning and instruction is fundamental to instructional technology. The systems approach may constitute the core technology around which other relevant technologies may be clustered and integrated in application. The author outlines his plan for implementation…

Balanced educational development, derived from planning, permits the attainment of educational growth with the minimum social and financial costs or attainment of the maximum rate of growth with fixed social and financial expenditures. (Author/WM)

Among the many types of models developed over recent years in educational planning, some have been restricted to a single institution while others have formed relationships between entire educational systems and the economy at large, but very few have given results helpful to an educational planner. (Author/KM)

Systems analysis and educational technology are powerful concepts, but to date their application to educational systems has been limited. The overall function of the systems analyst has yet to be defined and no operational or theoretical base has been created to support a technology of education or to justify its integration into school…

The needs assessment process must begin first with the determination of "what should be." The next process in needs assessment is the determination of "what is." The gaps or discrepancies between "what is" and "what should be" are the needs of the school or district. The results of this needs assessment must then be viewed in terms of the resource…

Educators must adapt the way they think about change if they and their students are to see the benefits of instructional technology. This new paradigm is called systemic change, and combines general systems theory and what has traditionally been called diffusion of innovations. This paper explores some of the lessons it holds for integration of…

This brief document summarizes the content of a paper by Sharon L. Kagan, entitled "Excellence in Early Childhood Education: Defining Characteristics and Next-Decade Strategies," that analyzes the field of early childhood education and defines excellence in terms of quality, equality, and integrity. The critical component of quality is discussed…

The rationale and procedures are described for moving academic planning from "disjointed incrementalism" to a continuing, systematic, cyclical process involving six phases. They include: institutional assessment, goal clarification, data analysis and modeling, designing and testing change efforts, implementing the strategy, and program monitoring…

This book is designed for use as a theoretical and practical tool for planning and implementing secondary school change. Chapter 1 presents the history of the development of the CaMaPe models and a perspective on the universality of educational and organizational structures and describes the kinds of schools appropriate to the models. The basic…

The report of an international seminar on educational technology emphasized the distinction between learning and being taught. A change to active learning associated with the provision of resources to which the learner has direct access is seen as the new goal of education. These resources can take the form of "packages" consisting of texts,…

The two essays contained in this discussion paper examine means for determining alternatives to formal education. "The Strategic Uses of Comparative Learning Environments" assumes that different environments are conducive to accomplishing different goals. In the future there is a need to find out more about the structural properties and…

This paper presents a case study in which systems theory is used as a framework for analyzing the experience of international consultants in assisting the education ministry of a developing country in formulating a national education 5-year plan. The study highlights the broader dilemma faced by international consultants who are frequently…

In this presentation the outlines of a general systems model for education which may be of value in the areas of curriculum development, course design and teaching are offered. It is based on what is called the "Principle of Natural Organization" which is defined as follows: every form tends to articulate its elements into functional structures;…