There are many important questions teachers and administrators need to ask as they grapple with how to ensure high school graduates are college and career ready. What does it mean to prepare students for a world that is rapidly changing--a world in which science and technology are altering how we live, work, play, and interact? If teachers focus…

Multiple pathways connect college-preparatory curriculums with exceptional career and technical education, motivating students to learn by helping them answer the question, Why do I need to know this? Real-world learning is organized around such industry sectors as finance and business; health science and medical technology; building and…

The Simon Property Group, United States' largest mall developer, since 1998 has partnered with local public school systems to open 19 alternative public schools in malls in 11 states through its nonprofit Simon Youth Foundation. Lafayette Square's school, with a 200-student capacity is the newest and largest, which according to a watchdog group,…

For the last 15 years, the Education Policy Studies Laboratory has studied trends in schoolhouse commercialism and has found that this practice is increasingly pervasive and diverse. The manifestations of marketing in public schools include incentive programs, such as Pizza Hut's "Book It!" program; contracts that grant soft drink and junk food…

The commercial exploitation of curriculum creates an anti-intellectual emphasis spawning a trade school mentality to secure jobs and a consumptionist drive to purchase status goods. Safeguards are needed, including disclosure labeling of corporate sponsorship, alternative instructional materials sources, improved teacher and student training, and…

Given the importance of educating for democratic citizenship, the involvement of individual business people with policymaking bodies and task forces is highly desirable. However, schools should limit business involvement to civic-minded contributions free of marketing or advertising hype. To do otherwise betrays the spirit of educational…

Shows the gradual deterioration of the U.S. public education system, beginning with a hypothetical school district's acceptance of Channel One programing with two-minute commercials in 1990 and ending with Educate America's offer to pick up any costs not already borne by private enterprise (in exchange for adopting the group's curriculum) by 2010.…

A school-business partnership in Indianapolis (Indiana) has had significant results in raising student test scores, increasing attendance and reducing tardiness, and meeting schools' curriculum objectives. (Author/MLF)

A reaction to bureaucracy and its inherently authoritarian management and fragmented work styles, work-team organizations broaden and integrate responsibilities while focusing on outcomes. In April 1991, Lake Washington (Washington) School District successfully reorganized its central office staff, building administrators, and support personnel…

To help students with exceptional math and science skills debate career options, the Indianapolis (Indiana) Public Schools have established a mentoring program linking such students with exemplary adult scientists and mathematicians. The program allows students to apply their skills and use specialized instruments in industrial settings. Sample…

For 16 years, students at Missouri high school have been leaving classrooms to enter work environments of their choosing. Community Learning Program is school-business partnership providing many students with stepping stone to future careers. In semester-long program, students are not paid for work but get academic credit. Experience also helps…

South Dakota's Rural Schools and Community Development Project was based on the belief that rural schools and communities are tightly linked and highly interdependent. School success is too often measured by how many graduates leave to pursue education or job opportunities elsewhere. (MLH)

School districts should identify those whom new textbooks will affect--including teachers, students, administrators, and support personnel--and determine the needs of each, then negotiate a legally binding service guarantee with the textbook publisher to ensure that services and materials will be provided to meet the determined needs. (PGD)

Describes the legislated role for educational reform that the state of South Carolina has developed with its Education Improvement Act of 1984. (MD)

Business school collaborations have the potential for producing many positive changes in schools as outlined in the report "Investing in Our Children". (MD)