This paper presents a dialogue on the subject of reading instruction in the 20th century, comparing historical perceptions of American public schooling with those of contemporary schools. It suggests that prognosticating about schooling traditionally seems to fall into the two categories of wildly optimistic or cautiously pessimistic, and that the…

The Accelerated Schools Approach is a whole-school reform being implemented in more than 1,000 U.S. elementary and middle schools. The program is characterized by a school structure that sets high expectations for students and teachers, a governance structure with broad teacher participation, and a "powerful learning" approach to…

This report examines the balance that exists between school-based management mandates and the superintendent's ultimate responsibility for student performance in Texas. It claims that the literature on school-based management stipulates that states must transfer authority, responsibility, and accountability from the central office to the school…

This paper explores how characteristics of complex educational change may virtually dictate the leadership strategies adopted by those charged with bringing about change. The change in question here is the large-scale reorganization of local education authorities (LEAs) across England. The article focuses on how across-the-board initiatives to…

This paper illustrates several collaborative program evaluation models and designs used in Newark, New Jersey, public schools since a state takeover in 1995. As part of its comprehensive design for school reform, the school district developed collaborations with community partners to provide direct services to schools. Each evaluation combined…

This essay traces the liberal to conservative changes in U.S. political attitudes and the effect these changes had on progressive and essentialist theories of education from the 1940s to the present. Focus is on the role Arthur Bestor played in these developments. Bestor was a leader of the anti-progressive movement during the 1950s and the most…

This paper explores the reform content and specific teacher learning conditions that enabled teachers at an urban California elementary school to find ways to examine the effects of their practices on students and to reflect on the values and beliefs underlying their practices. Over 5 years, a professional culture of inquiry developed, as required…

This paper focuses on how urban high schools may be not only revitalized but also transformed into institutions that are designed to help students at the crossroads of their academic careers. It discusses the rationale for change, historic highlights of this effort, and a new vision for American high schools. Some of the promising approaches to…

This report critiques the movement to decentralize decision making in public education. It provides an indepth examination of school-based management (SBM) with the aim of revealing why this type of reform seems to have had so little payoff for students. It addresses several key questions: What are the objectives of SBM, and are these objectives…

This book is part of a series of case studies that present better ways to educate Ohio's students. The case study is part of the Transforming Learning Communities (TLC) Project, designed to support significant school-reform efforts among Ohio's elementary, middle, and high schools. The text describes the transformation of a small high school in…

This book is part of a series of case studies that demonstrate better ways to educate Ohio's students. The case study is part of the Transforming Learning Communities (TLC) Project, designed to support significant school-reform efforts among Ohio's elementary, middle, and high schools. The text presents a case study based on an elementary school…

This brief, which is part of a series of concept papers on educational partnerships, focuses on changes in leadership. The paper offers strategies for addressing turnover in key personnel in both existing and developing alliances and provides some suggestions for sustaining collaborative partnerships over time. It states that leadership…

Discusses the impact of the contractualist environment on education in Australia, focusing on what teachers perceive to be changing in education and in their professional practice. Also discusses some of the challenges of professional practice in an age of contractualism. (MDM)

Researchers say that kids seldom practice what character education programs preach. In real-life situations, students often act as though they have never learned about honesty, sharing, and cooperation. Some experts call for authentic, fundamental changes in the ways schools operate. To become grounded in basic values, students must see good…

Most schools and teachers cannot provide the kind of teaching the new standards demand because they lack know-how and organizational support. The policy challenge ahead is to develop schools' capacity to teach challenging content to diverse learners by ensuring teachers' access to knowledge they need to be effective and by developing new…