Like adult education, the field of volunteer management shows increasing movement toward professionalization. The establishment of standards--both for the profession of volunteer management and for volunteer service itself--is generating debates similar to adult educators' debates over purposes and objectives. The types of learning that occur in…

A good deal of evidence now suggests that a strong sense of community in schools has benefits for both staff members and students, while providing a necessary foundation for school improvement. This digest in Spanish provides an overview of the literature on schools as communities. The digest identifies the elements of community schools, the…

A good deal of evidence now suggests that a strong sense of community in schools has benefits for both staff members and students, while providing a necessary foundation for school improvement. This digest provides an overview of the literature on schools as communities. The digest identifies the elements of community schools, the effects of…

Strategies for dealing effectively with sexual harassment in the educational organization are presented in this document. Identification of the problem is complex, compounded by the context in which it occurs and different male and female perceptions. One starting point for identification is the 1980 federal guidelines passed by the Equal…

School leaders can generate student motivation by creating an atmosphere where academic success and the motivation to learn are expected and rewarded. Leaders can create a school culture conducive to learning by shaping the instructional climate and using activities and symbols to communicate goals. School restructuring that creates a positive…

This document examines transformational leadership, which focuses on the importance of teamwork and comprehensive school improvement, as an alternative to other modes of leadership. Transformational leadership is contrasted with: (1) instructional leadership, which encompasses hierarchies and leader supervision and usually excludes teacher…

Since the 1980s, shared decision making (SDM) has become a significant part of school-reform efforts. Advocates say that SDM will improve student learning, create teacher satisfaction, and develop new forms of leadership. This digest presents an overview of research that investigated whether SDM delivers on these promises. Studies indicate that so…

"Vision" is one of the most frequently used buzzwords in the education literature of the 1990s. This digest presents an overview of visionary leadership, which many education experts consider to be a make-or-break task for the school leader. It discusses various definitions of vision, the significance of vision for organizations, the…

Since the 1980s, shared decision making (SDM) has become a significant part of school-reform efforts. Advocates say that SDM will improve student learning, create teacher satisfaction, and develop new forms of leadership. This digest in Spanish presents an overview of research that investigated whether SDM delivers on these promises. Studies…

"Vision" is one of the most frequently used buzzwords in the education literature of the 1990s. This digest in Spanish presents an overview of visionary leadership, which many education experts consider to be a make-or-break task for the school leader. It discusses various definitions of vision, the significance of vision for…

In 1991, the U.S. Congress commissioned the Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and Improvement to investigate the various aspects of education reform. This digest summarizes the findings of a resulting study that focused on the effects of school reform on students at risk. The digest identifies the components of effective…

Influenced by leadership developments in the private sector, educational researchers have increasingly focused their attention on "transformational" models of leadership that emphasize collaboration and empowerment. The facilitative leader's role is to foster the involvement of employees at all different levels. This digest summarizes…

This brief report summarizes a longer document with the same title. It reviews how college faculty are increasingly collaborating to do much of their work. It notes that the two principal forms of collaboration, teaching and research, are often distinctive arrangements depending on the field of study, institutional environment, and task…

Beginning principals are often overwhelmed by their job. Traditionally, they have been left to fend for themselves. For this reason, schools and districts have been implementing formal induction programs to help the principals during their first year on the job. This digest examines the challenges faced by new administrators and the steps that…

Although basic skills and English language instruction are often viewed as real needs at the workplace, few companies provide this for their workers. Those that do are motivated by one or more of these factors: product quality improvement, commitment of top management to training and education, or the sales effort of an educational provider. Those…