No Child Left Behind (NCLB) accountability mechanisms have the potential to derail comprehensive school reform (CSR) implementation. For those pursuing CSR, the question is how to reconcile the implementation of NCLB accountability mandates with ongoing CSR efforts. Drawing from longitudinal data from a national study of CSR, this article explores…

In 1990, Kent-Meridian High School in Kent, Washington, decided to implement four schools-within-schools, each with its separate academic and career focus. The first school, focusing on the area of health science, was implemented in 1992. A second school-within-the-school, the International Business and Global Studies (IBGS) School, was…

Recommendations for implementing school-based management and shared decision making are presented in this educational policy bulletin. Based on a literature review and reported experiences of educational practitioners, four recommendations include: transformation of authority at district and school site levels; development of a systemwide…

Findings of a study that examined the relationship between superintendents' leadership styles and educational change are presented in this paper, with a focus on the implementation of the EDUCATION 2000 National Model Schools Network, a site-based school improvement and restructuring initiative of the American Forum for Global Education. The…

This paper chronicles the organizational life of two high schools in the northeastern United States as they responded to the national impetus for change. The study used a methodology employing ethnographic field study methods including field notes, interviews, and artifact collection and analysis. Riverside High pursued a locally initiated change…

The Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSRD) program is a federal initiative to introduce and reinforce comprehensive reform programs in schools. The Southwest Educational Development Laboratory developed a survey to gather information from CSRD-awarded schools in the southwestern United States on their initial progress in implementing the…

The first-year global evaluations of the eight design implementations in Memphis, Tennessee, are based on syntheses of data from multiple sources. Common strengths included revitalized schools and initiation of new school organizations and teaching strategies. Common concerns include the need for more focused training, teacher collaboration time,…

Educational technology can be a catalyst for creating new learning structures. For the past six years, Central Harlem's Earth Lab project has been designing, implementing, and observing effects of a local area network system intended to facilitate collaborative work in elementary earth science. System coordinates small groups, promotes teacher…

For 6 years, Frederick County (Maryland) Public Schools has pursued a major restructuring effort involving 30,000 students and 46 schools and covering all disciplines and grades. This initiative involved five components: developing student outcomes, defining curriculum, developing new assessment tasks, planning for instruction, and providing for…

Presents a strategy for identifying schools that are restructured across several dimensions. Analyzes data from a nominated sample of restructured schools to discover relevant dimensions and criteria and degree of restructuring. Schools tended to meet more criteria in the areas of student experiences and teachers' professional life; significantly…

Along with the restructuring of educational programs must come the restructuring of resources. Schools should review all resources, including the ones for teacher development, to focus on serving students optimally. Under the new Title I schoolwide programs of the Improving America's Schools Act, this is easier and more logical than before. (SLD)

The Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) Program was established as a demonstration program in 1998 and authorized as a full program in 2002 as part of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). It is one approach to help low-performing K-12 public schools meet state performance standards. CSR emphasizes two major concepts: mandating that school reform…

Does Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) work? Research results have been mixed. Some studies have measured a modest improvement in student achievement; others have found no effect. A team of RAND researchers has approached the question of CSR's effectiveness by first focusing on an even more basic question: Has CSR been implemented? A shortcoming…

An overview of school-based management (SBM) and the issues involved are provided in this document. Information is offered on the following topics: the advantages and liabilities of SBM; its effect on the roles of the school board, superintendent, and district office; decision-making processes; elements of SBM implementation; examples of three…

Findings of a study that identified time management strategies used by schools involved in restructuring to address the problem of time are presented in this paper, which is based on the assertion that school faculties need time to restructure while implementing new programs. Methodology involved a survey of 31 schools and 14 school districts that…