The general meaning of research data drawn from study of school improvement programs creates the opportunity for sound theory building. By emphasizing the principal's role in policy development, this paper analyzes the characteristics of large-scale educational innovation projects and their explanatory foundations. Belgium's comprehensive Renewed…

Providing introduction to the whole language philosophy, this book aims to demonstrate that whole language is indeed good education. It outlines what kinds of research support whole language education, how a whole language philosophy may be carried out in practice, and how to go about implementing a whole language philosophy in a school or a…

During the last five years, the Prince George's County (Maryland) public school system has brought about dramatic improvements in the academic achievement of at-risk students, offering strong evidence that public education can succeed for all children. This report describes how Prince George's County accomplished this turnaround through a process…

Following a thorough review of current studies and literature on women in leadership, this document examines the results of a study conducted to determine the significance of female gender in educational leadership, and how attitudes, values, perceptions, and life experiences of women differ from those of men and are reflected in female leadership…

The efforts of two pilot accelerated schools serving poor and minority students are evaluated in this report. A program goal was to integrate improvement at the school and community levels. Section 1 briefly describes the attitudes and meanings predominant in schools serving poor and minority youth. The focus on the individual, a narrow view of…

Limitations of using linear, unilevel regression procedures in modeling student achievement are discussed. This study is a part of a broader study that is developing an empirically-based predictive model of variables associated with academic achievement from a multilevel perspective and examining the differences by which parameters are estimated…

After a brief review of recent research concerning school effectiveness, this paper proposes an approach to operationalizing school effectiveness that is based on the achievement of students in a school over a period of time. This three-level model does not follow a single cohort of students as they progress through school. Rather, it uses the…

The Indicators of Quality Schools is a series of checklists of schoolwide practices or conditions found in schools known to have an effective instructional program. The instrument is designed to help schools identify areas of strength and areas where improvement is needed. The instrument consists of three parts: (1) the environment for learning,…

In spring 1988, a survey of the full-time employees of Palomar College (PC) was conducted to assess six aspects of the college's organizational climate: leadership, motivation, communication, decision making, rewards, and job satisfaction. Findings were compared with those from a similar survey conducted in fall 1986. Study findings, based on a…

The assessment of the institutional effectiveness of community colleges is illustrated through a description of the assessment program used by Johnson County Community College in Overland Park (Kansas). Emphasis is on measures of the degree to which students meet their educational objectives, identified through career, transfer, and…

The use of multiple indicators of educational achievement is called for to replace a single measure of student achievement in order to identify the school context in which education occurs. School-level indicators have been identified, such as access to knowledge, press for achievement, and professional teaching conditions. These indicators are…

Based on interviews with State Education Department personnel, this report presents information regarding the status of rural education in the seven-state region (Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming) served by the Mid-Continent Regional Laboratory. Of the 2,400 school districts in this region, 93 percent…

This directory reviews a variety of instruments that may be used by educators to assess the performance of students, teachers, and administrators; school climate effectiveness; and school-community relations. The instruments were selected on the basis of their sound technical quality, ease of availability, and proven utility. The student…

Results of a questionnaire on instructional leadership administered to elementary school principals and teachers in California confirmed literature findings that instructional leadership behavior significantly influences student achievement. The study sought to determine (1) the 29 most important instructional leadership behaviors through…

The nature and strength of college culture were studied, along with how culture is related to perceptions of organizational performance. Data were obtained from a study conducted by the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS). Questions of method, especially the validity of aggregating perceptual data to the organizational…