State boards of education are routinely placed in the challenging position of reacting to emerging problems or responding to policy proposals generated by other actors in the policy arena. This policy briefing paper was written to help members of the North Carolina Board of Education identify educational policy issues they are likely to confront…

Discusses the efforts of Troup County (Georgia) to restructure their schools and curriculum to provide all students with an equal education without resorting to tracking or heterogeneous grouping practices. Five main strategies are discussed: reorganization of curriculum and grouping in each school; professional development; developing a Magnet…

An analysis of the development of diverse educational programs based on a common curriculum core is the purpose of this paper. After an overview of the major kinds of option/choice programs, a study of educational options in Utah and the United States is described. Three research methodologies were used to collect data: a statewide survey on…

Explores the current educational reform movement through its first and second waves. Progress to date is reviewed, and issues for future concern are discussed, including (1) outcomes-based education; (2) national testing; (3) the curriculum; (4) parental choice; and (5) urban schools. (SLD)

A summary of the school restructuring movement and an outline of strategies for implementation are presented. The underlying principles of restructuring are included in four broad strategies, which include school-based management, teacher empowerment, voice/choice, and teaching for understanding. New responsibilities for state policymakers include…

The authors in this book address the issues that relate to the crisis in American education and review some of the proposed solutions. To transform education, schools must be examined as social systems that are interrelated with families, communities, and the world of work. Following the introduction, section 1, "Conditions for Educational…

The papers in this collection describe how education is being reinvented in urban school systems in the United States. Selections discuss the urban landscape, the social context of schooling, and the theory and practice of multiculturalism. Papers include: (1) "Introduction: Reinventing Urban Education" (Francisco L. Rivera-Batiz); (2) "The…

This paper focuses on school reform in England and in particular on the attempts to increase diversity and choice through specialist schools. It examines the extent to which diversity and choice have been introduced into the state (public) education system and then presents key findings to emerge from an evaluation of the flagship government…

Reforms in education have raised two critical fiscal policy issues: How is education reform to be financed? and Do the dollars spent on education reform make a difference? Schools can successfully meet these challenges by practicing sound fiscal management and placing an emphasis on cost-effectiveness and accountability. In the future, a…

This analysis of the Boston (Massachusetts) Public School System considers ways of advancing the opportunity for parent choice of school and program, and ways of breaking the bureaucratic culture of big-city American public schools to introduce a culture promoting innovation and experiment. The Boston public schools system, like large urban…

This collection of four case studies discusses the work of teachers and their efforts to change their classrooms, schools, and districts. The case studies show that teachers can learn to use their own strengths and talents, knowledge, shared vision, and commitment to student growth and development to effect change. The first case study,…

Eleven separate addresses made by the Assistant Secretary of Education for Educational Research and Improvement during the period April-August 1990 comprise this document. Arranged chronologically, it includes two addresses before the American Educational Research Association in April and others as follows: (1) to Javits Grant recipients on May…