Mentoring, a powerful tool for developing and training school principals, must be managed wisely. Drawing on the experiences of a mentoring program operating in Singapore since 1984, this article discusses three major issues influencing success: mentor selection, program preparation and development, and program operation and organization.…

Based on case studies of a Dutch adult-education organization and an Irish residential center for mentally handicapped people, this article discusses some implementation dilemmas that occur when organizations face challenging innovations. Conflicting pressures for centralization and local autonomy in implementation activities and for unified and…

Examines the impact of the special education needs sections of the 1981 Education (Scotland) Act, focusing on interprofessional collaboration while drafting a record of needs. Role conflict and confusion hampered administrator-psychologist cooperation, and power struggles between doctors and psychologists compromised service delivery to special…

From a National Steering Group perspective, this article reviews the recent history of the national framework for teacher appraisal in England and discusses six lessons to be drawn from a project that tested the new system. Appraisal is still associated with controversy and poor industrial relations, arouses suspicion, is politically complicated,…

Presents premises of educational services directed at the aged, how the services have been implemented, and criticisms of services. Reviews vocational and general education for the aged and examines research conducted in Finland on education for the aged. (JOW)

The Royal Blind Society of New South Wales sponsors a program called Sportskills Week in which individuals with visual impairments are provided opportunities to pursue goals common to the population as a whole. Sighted athletes who assist in the program take their expertise back to local communities to develop additional programs. (JDD)

This article introduces a group of six papers on sustainability of programs for visually handicapped persons in developing countries. Sustainability is discussed from an anthropological perspective, noting the importance of a social soundness analysis and a social impact assessment, enemies of sustainability, and the need for broad local input in…

An interactive, computer-based assessment system implemented at the University of Luton (England) delivers end-of-module examinations, formative assessments, and self-assessment options. Student and faculty response to computer-based objective testing has been positive and suggests the approach is desirable both pedagogically and economically.…

In UK schools, improvement is demanded and expected. The 10-year-old Quality of Education for All project, emphasizing both structural and cultural change at the school level, has achieved demonstrable success in diverse school contexts. Insights on the theory, process, and practice of school improvement are discussed. (MLH)

Discusses internal and external change agents' roles in school improvement, drawing on England's Moving Schools project. Effective external agents or cadres work not just in the school, but in the classroom. Conceptual organizing, a whole-school viewpoint, commitment to action, and teacher development linkages are key to supporting cadres.…

A case study of three programs in British secondary schools (Somerset Thinking Skills, Instrumental Enrichment, and Philosophy for Children) affirmed the difficulty arising from the lack of immediate concrete outcomes from thinking-skills lessons. Teachers' perceptions had a significant influence on effective implementation of these programs. (SK)

Describes the implementation and evaluation of the partnership between the University of Alberta, Fairview College, and Kayas Cultural College offering synchronized, multipoint video conferencing for introductory faculty of arts courses in remote regions of Alberta, Canada. Aboriginals constituted 70% of the students in the first year. Proposes a…

Examines educational decentralization efforts in developed and developing countries. Explores which conditions produce best results and roles and relationships of the school/community and region/center. Summarizes typical reasons for school-based management's failure, highlighting schools' need to build capacity, maintain decentralization, and…

Past payment by results schemes have failed miserably. Britain's modified 150-year-old system was disdained by teachers, school managers, and inspectors; schools became learning-impoverished environments with test-driven curricula. In modern-day America, accountability concerns and mistrust are corrupting or crippling genuine improvement efforts.…

Discusses implementation of the Literacy Hour in small rural schools in England. Notes that the study supports evidence from national United Kingdom data that progress in literacy was made during the first year in which the Literacy Hour was operative. Shows that reading scores provide only a partial picture and that progress in writing may be…