Managing disruptive learner behaviour has for many years been a matter of concern to school administrators, teachers and parents. In Zimbabwe, teaching and learning processes have been affected by serious interference that has adversely affected the learners and the teachers. The research question addressed in this study relates to the strategies…

This article discusses how the key players' multilayered collaboration may be enacted by the Change Laboratory methodology in the footsteps of Virkkunen and Newnham (2013) to address a complex issue for the benefit of adolescents. It can be defined as a group processing approach used by a group to solve a problem of its own defining. Over six…

The extant literature indicates that parental engagement is positively related with student achievement (Celenk, 2003; Epstein, 1995, 2009, 2011; Gul, 2007; Henderson, Daviess, Johnson & Mapp, 2007; Henderson & Mapp, 2002; Kotoman, 2008; Jeynes, 2012; Sad, 2012; Sheldon & Epstein, 2005; Sui-Chu & Willms, 1996). Despite its promise…

Article suggests a model for training members of school-community councils. (GB)

Describes an elementary school principal's struggle to obtain parent, staff, and student assistance with problem student behavior at neighborhood bus stops. Instead of personally monitoring bus stops, this principal shared her authority, took some risks, improved her patience and listening skills, identified common goals, and involved many people…

Nine locally initiated projects designed to improve the connections for problem solving between urban schools and the community were examined. Results showed that the desired school/community connections were difficult to achieve and seemed fragile and vulnerable. A new approach to school reform in urban schools is suggested. (AOS)

This case study describes the Imaginative Educational Cooperation (IEC) Project, a program that focused on organizational development and participative decision making in two city schools. The IEC was one of nine programs chosen by the Documentation and Technical Assistance (DTA) Project as representing exemplary strategies for problem solving in…

This study examines the relationships between effective school-community relations, community support for schools, and student achievement in two communities of different socioeconomic makeup. The study was carried out in a rural area with low and middle income residents and in a suburban area with middle to upper income residents. A validated…

Emotionally charged, often disgruntled, and occasionally abusive parents--sound familiar? This newly revised, second edition of Elaine McEwan's bestselling classic will help manage the most difficult audience, adding several new features and examples that will give the confidence and skills needed to handle such situations, including: (1) Over two…

Describes the Carnegie Middle School (CMS), a North Carolina public charter school that uses the community as the classroom. Examines the school's emphasis on parental support and partnerships with neighborhood business and service organizations, as well as its unique features of accessibility, problem solving, teamwork, goal setting, and life…

This booklet provides information to parents, students, teachers, and community members about the new mathematics curriculum in western Canada that was developed as a result of the Common Curriculum Framework for K-12 Mathematics. The curriculum represents a dynamic approach to mathematics with problem solving as the main focus for all grade…

Cognitive frameworks are the common meanings that a group of people share as they perceive things, communicate, explain events, understand connections between events, and interpret their world. This paper explores the use of the concept of shared cognitive frameworks in formulating methods for improving public schools. The analysis is based on…

This case study deals with efforts made in one city to enhance the professional development strategies of schools by placing them under the auspices of a Successful Teacher Center (STC). The teacher center for the "Iroquois City" schools (Iroquois City is a fictitious name) was one of nine sites chosen by the Documentation and Technical…

This paper is a partial report on a three-year field experiment in participatory educational planning in a suburban school district. It is shown that teachers, administrators, parents, and students, working voluntarily with technical support as a "collateral organization" within a district, can substantially broaden the scope of…

This case study is the result of observations of the Responsive Education Project, undertaken at the University Center for Responsive Education, a resource center used by teachers, parents, and children, and at several New York City elementary schools in which the Project operates its Learning Community Program. This open education project was one…