Presents a brief outline of the characteristics of effective staff development programs and lists seven sources of help for school districts and staffs designing staff development programs. (JM)

Outlines an alternative method to improve the quality of education through the use of master and mentor teachers. (MD)

An advisor can help teachers improve the quality of their work, select and adapt curriculum materials, and release and develop their potentials. (Author/JM)

Outlines a four-year program developed in the Hemet Unified School district that is working to imporve the quality of education through a more effective evaluation process. (MD)

Instructions are given for creating a staff development content profile out of the expressed in-service needs of individual staff members. Articles in this journal issue report on presentations made at the First Curriculum Conference of the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA) in 1978. (SJL)

Seven steps are outlined for a comprehensive school district needs assessment. To show how different approaches can be used, a variety of survey methods are suggested for needs assessment in the areas of parent participation, interpersonal relations, and staff development. (SJL)

Discusses three basic conditions necessary for a school district that wants a strong sense of professional and personal commitment from all employees, a high degree of job satisfaction and productivity, and a cooperative and nonadversary relationship between students, teachers, administrators, classified personnel, and board members. (Author/RK)

Borrowing from Madeline Hunter, school districts should define staff development as school- or district-wide efforts to improve the quality of teacher decision-making. This article outlines a six-step process (including needs assessment, brainstorming, strategic plannning, communicating plans, coaching for effectiveness, and periodic monitoring)…

In the Vallejo City Unified School District (California), the Professional Development Center represents a districtwide effort to support and build the skills that make up good teaching. (Author/JM)

Describes a program in the Vallejo City Unified School District (California) in which the principal, using classroom observation and teacher conferences, assumes the role of teacher of the staff. (Author/JM)

The North Bay Area Writing Project at Sonoma State University (California) is an inservice program designed to train teachers and improve their effectiveness in writing instruction. (JM)

A unique feature of the Vallejo/Dominican College Teacher Corps Project (California) is that the first year is set aside for planning. This allows better needs assessment, more teacher involvement, and a broader definition of staff development. (Author/JM)

Today's instructional leader must possess skills in four critical areas: curriculum development, clinical supervision, staff development, and teacher evaluation. (Author/JM)

Noting the changing role of the principal toward instructional supervision, this article suggests several plans by which California schools and districts can put together staff development programs using resources from the state's school improvement legislation, AB 65. (SJL)

The Torrance (California) Unified School District is proving that learning flourishes when the community collaborates to create a conflict-resolution program. This article profiles North High School's efforts to develop and select peer mediators, integrate conflict-resolution principles into the curriculum, address roots of conflict in the…