In addition to being a neighborhood school, Stonewall Jackson Elementary is the site of the Dallas, Texas, school system's program for the deaf. Proposes that students' high scores in standardized tests can be attributed to the techniques used for the deaf children that contribute to the success of the other students. (MLF)

Explores the relevance of culture to school effectiveness and school improvement. Develops two "ideal culture" typologies (traditional and collegial) and discusses each for its heuristic, conceptual, methodological, and explanatory potential in school effectiveness and school improvement research. Advances recent writing on collaboration by…

Reviews research on the effectiveness of supportive leadership, teacher participation in decision making, and staff collaboration. Investigates conditions that promote or impede the implementation of these practices by using a multilevel statistical model. Finds significant variance between public and Catholic schools, as well as within-school…

Since 1986, over 1,500 elementary and secondary schools have been recognized and honored by the Department of Education for exemplary leadership, discipline, community support, and high standards and expectations. A recent survey shows that teachers in recognized secondary schools perceive their principals as more effective than teachers in…

Reviews paradigms of the academic communities of school-effectiveness and school-improvement researchers, practitioners, and scholars. Argues that the two models are very different and that this has hindered the improvement of educational practice. Provides examples of programs blending the two approaches and shows how school-effectiveness and…

To improve school effectiveness, this article urges administrators to admit students' achievement deficiencies, involve the entire staff in improvement plans, and enlist help from parents and the community. School renewal will succeed by establishing high expectations for student achievement, teacher performance, and instructional leadership;…

Second- and third-wave organizational development models fail to facilitate long-term school improvement or enhance individual growth and personal competency. The fourth-wave models focus entirely on individual growth as the primary source of overall organizational success, relying on team consultation, collegiality, and cooperative learning for…

Describes 10 components that are characteristic of effective assessment programs. Suggests that effective assessment programs are ones that have a recognized campus value in addition to satisfying the requirements established by external mandates. (RS)

Describes the application of strategic-planning principles at Gainesville College (Georgia) in the 1980s, the commitments the college made to both specific and general planning objectives, and the results over time as reflected in enhanced institutional effectiveness. Concludes that any strategic plan must be implemented daily and must be…

Examines effects of teacher knowledge about learning on school effectiveness, based on experiences of 32 secondary teachers engaged in a reflectively oriented professional-development program. Involvement in a systematic exploration of the learning process, with teachers explicating their knowledge about learning, directly affects display of…

Tested theoretical and null hypotheses concerning principals' optimism, teacher perceptions of that optimism, and school effectiveness. Teachers and principals in 50 secondary schools responded to two standard measures. Teacher perceptions of their principal's optimism and of their school's effectiveness were correlated, but the principal's…

Focuses on top-down administered accountability systems designed to drive the system toward higher student achievement. Warns that school-based accountability systems should be used with caution: using individual schools as the primary unit of accountability can create negative incentives for teachers and principals to avoid schools with…

Examines the role bureaucracy plays in shaping educational performance using district-level data from 350 public school districts in Texas. Reveals negative relationships between bureaucracy and student performance across several grade levels. (Contains 20 references.) (JOW)

Examines findings of a study that surveyed British primary headteachers about the design and implementation of their school development plans (SDPs). Considers findings in the light of recommendations to schools from the government, the local education authority, and the school effectiveness literature. Comments on discrepancies between the…

Discusses an elementary school that models Charles Wittle's theory that public schools jointly managed by the public and private sector can offer an education superior to that of traditional public schools. Notes that the school uses an integrated multicultural curriculum, new reading stimulants, practical training, and use of computers and other…