This case study details the circumstances that led to a revised policy on gifted education in a large suburban school district. It discusses factors that affected advocacy efforts and emphasizes the importance of key individuals, commitment, tenacity, and the necessity of a system being in place for change to occur. (Contains references.)…

Provides personal perspectives from teachers about the prospects and problems illuminated by Stanford University's Teacher Assessment Project. Teacher remarks address the portfolio development process, assessment centers, implications for national board certification for teachers, personal thoughts and perspectives on teaching, and the future of…

The purpose of this paper is to describe the development and implementation of community-based, service-learning field projects by 30 health professional faculty fellows of Project MAINSTREAM, a faculty development program on substance abuse. The fellows worked together for two years in 10 Interdisciplinary Faculty Learning Groups (IFLGs), which…

In the early 1990s, states began establishing standards in academic subjects backed by test-based accountability systems to see that the standards were met. Incentives were implemented for schools and students based on pupil test scores. These early accountability systems paved the way for passage of landmark federal legislation, the No Child Left…

Clark and Murray examine the six Critical Performance Factors for Mega planning in an example drawn from the five-year history of the population program of a major west coast philanthropy. In this article, the authors describe the salience and scope of the population issue as it is relates to other global trends; the steps the foundation took to…

The growing interest internationally in leadership development and how leaders contribute to student learning makes the development of the National College for School Leadership (NCSL) an intriguing and potentially significant event. This article examines the aims and programs of the NCSL from a North American perspective. Based on a context in…

The focus of this article is a participatory action research project funded for 2 years by the Esme Fairbairn Foundation on the Professional Development of Subject Induction Tutors working with newly qualified teachers (NQTs) in secondary schools in three local education authorities in the East Midlands. A crucial part of the Project was three…

Evaluation of freshman English programs is a process involving recursive steps, such as planning which elements to review, securing resources to carry out the review, actually reviewing the planned elements, and providing written reports to decision-makers. The four elements of an educational program--contexts, input, process, and product--cohere…

A study examined the objectives of supported employment programs for individuals with severe disabilities and identified performance measures to document the practices and achievements of such programs at the federal, state, and local levels. A set of proposed data items and potential performance measures was developed on the basis of programs…

Self-instructional Mediated Learning Modules (MLMs), audiotaped or videotaped units based upon a structured learning approach, may be used by clinics to provide effective, low-cost psychological treatments to large numbers of people. MLMs produced by the Life Skills Training Project focused on interpersonal and self-management skills. Nine…

The development and evaluation of a counseling model, the College Orientation Workshop for college-bound students, was investigated. A questionnaire was administered to juniors at Pensacola Catholic High School. Student responses to the questionnaire determined the number of students to participate in the workshop as well as the information…

Turning Points schools create a new culture built around the collaboration of all members of the school community. This collaborative culture requires structures that empower teachers and administrators to work together to make the most important decisions regarding the educational experiences of their students. The two primary components of this…

Assessed the effects of changing the kindergarten school day. Studied two school systems, with the experimental groups attending a full-day, every-other-day program. Found no significant differences on measures of school achievement and behavior. Parental dissatisfaction appeared to increase in the experimental program. (Author)

Education majors preparing to be secondary school teachers could participate in a pre-student teacher field experience teaching project. Project participants had higher self-concepts at the end of student teaching than their nonparticipating counterparts. Field experience was not related to higher ratings of student teaching performance. (GDC)

Small community homes in England for severely and profoundly mentally retarded adults are described and compared to institutional settings and larger community units. The small homes were found to produce beneficial client functioning and high levels of staff/client interaction. The paper concludes that interaction effects are possibly more…