Describes changes at Lake Labish Elementary in Salem, Oregon, resulting from the school's participation in the federal Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration program. Comprehensive reform streamlines every aspect of the school, from leadership, curriculum, and instruction to attitudes, resources, and parent involvement. The school's new reading…

This document contains the four issues of Northwest Education published from fall 2000 through summer 2001. Issue themes are: (1) "New Moves: PE Reinvents Itself" (Fall 2000); (2) "Think Small: Making Education More Personal" (Winter 2000); (3) "The Wild Blue Yonder: Charter Schools Fly into the Unknown" (Spring…

Describes Meridian Academy, a small alternative high school for dropouts and potential dropouts near Boise, Idaho. Discusses the school's family-like supportive environment, teaching strategies that emphasize student projects and active learning, and discipline policies and practices. Sidebar presents a Meridian Academy teacher who was once an…

For one year, four Fairbanks (Alaska) teachers struggled through the process of laying the foundations of Chinook Charter School, a K-8 school serving 75 students. The school's philosophy respects children as learners, supports individualized student-centered instruction, and encourages substantial parent involvement. (SV)

A charter school in Kenai, Alaska, offers back-to-basics curriculum and direct instruction. The school has drawn many home-schoolers back to the public school system, and consistently scores high on standardized tests. The school's success is attributed to teachers' collaboration and common vision, continuity across grades, high academic…

Charter schools offer choices to parents and teachers dissatisfied with mainstream public education. Averaging fewer than 200 students, they offer nurturing educational communities, inventive pedagogies, and educators committed to learning. Devising an accountability system that accommodates such wide variety is their greatest challenge. Brief…

Describes the teaching experiences and philosophy of 1995 National Teacher of the Year Elaine Griffin. With her husband Ned, Griffin began her teaching career in the roadless village of Akhiok (Alaska) and now teaches in a three-room school in Chiniak, Kodiak Island. Classroom activities such as Socratic discussion are described that nurture…

Describes Open Meadow Learning Center (Portland, Oregon), a private alternative high school with a long waiting list and a probationary period for new students. School features include an advocacy role for teachers that strengthens teacher/student relationships, 80% attendance requirement, safe and supportive environment, environmental…

Two-thirds of Montana's school districts are rural, and most students attend schools with enrollments under 300. Such recent trends as peer tutoring, multigrade classrooms, and project-based learning have always been practiced in these small schools. One small community's successful effort to save its school, classroom practices in one-room…

Information technology offers advantages to small rural schools: access to courses not locally available, opportunities for collaborative work with other schools, and access to professional development courses. Federal money can help disadvantaged rural schools afford the technology, but the teacher must integrate good practices with technology to…

Elk City, Idaho, instituted an arts program in its small K-10 school with grant and community funding. An arts facilitator organized a visiting-artists program and trained teachers to recognize different learning styles and integrate art, literature, and music into the curriculum. Self-esteem and test scores have risen, and the community is…

Describes the evolution of alternative schools from progressive learner-centered free schools founded in the 1960s to the present emphasis on at-risk students. Outlines three models of alternative schools and discusses successful strategies and essential characteristics of effective schools for at-risk youth. Emphasizes the importance of…

Research has established that small schools create intimate learning communities where students can be encouraged by caring adults, reduce student alienation, reduce negative effects of low socioeconomic status, and encourage teachers to help students succeed. Strategies for creating small learning communities within large schools and findings on…

Award-winning teachers from rural Oregon, Alaska, and Idaho discuss their innovative programs and the advantages of small-town life and small schools. Teachers, students, and community members know each other and participate in school activities, teachers have more flexibility and control over what they teach, bureaucracy is minimized, and…