The concept of active learning is analyzed in terms of its place in the democratic school. Defined is the meaning of an effective democracy and active learning. The relationship of participation to democracy is analyzed in terms of effectiveness. Ownership and empowerment are the keys to participatory democracy. Several educators' philosophies are…

After briefly introducing the effective schools movement, chapter 1 of this monograph describes Ron Edmonds' criterion for effective schools (poor and minority children should score well on standard achievement tests in proportions equal to those attained by children in the dominant culture) and his five basic characteristics (a strong,…

Prior work on organizational effectiveness and strategic management is applied to assessing the strategy and effectiveness of higher education systems. It is suggested that like organizations, systems need to address three kinds of effectiveness: goal achievement, resource acquisition, and constituent satisfaction. Both organizations and systems…

This document reports on a study undertaken to identify specific behaviors of secondary school principals that are effective or ineffective in promoting positive school characteristics. The researchers first searched the literature to find an organizational model that would take into account the organization's goals, the means for measuring…

This report presents the text of hearings on urban education and focuses on what makes urban schools effective instruments of learning and why urban school students consistently achieve above national norms on standardized reading, writing, and mathematics tests. Specifically considered are (1) the impact of the federal government's budget cuts on…

The potential for school improvement in schools and districts that score well above state and national averages was explored. Based on elementary reading and mathematics data from a collaborating district, it appears that a three-step school improvement logic can effect improvements in "good" schools. The first step is to collect…

The September-to-June school calendar has been a fixture of North America for almost a century. Its origins have usually been told as an unexamined tale attributed to features of nineteenth century rural society. We challenge this interpretation by suggesting that multiple pressures arising from increasing urbanization influenced its roots. We…

The importance of summer instruction for children from lower socioeconomic strata (SES) is emphasized by research which shows that the gap in achievement levels between higher SES children and lower SES children that is evident during the regular school year becomes greater during the summer. An examination of summer school programs in Austin,…

A statistical analysis of data on Michigan, New York City, New York state, and Project Talent schools found evidence of schools that consistently produce outstanding students even after allowance is made for the different initial endowments of their students and for chance variation. Methodologically, like many previous studies, this report uses…

This article reports on one school district's planning for a school-based staff development program, focusing on preparations made by the staff developers before the program began. Conclusions are drawn about the planning and preparation for such a program. (MT)

Outlines how educational reform could be enhanced by using teachers as private practitioners working in groups to contract their services as professionals to schools. In Minnesota the idea is being explored in a small project, Teachers in Private Practice. (MD)

Focuses on three urban secondary principals who were effective in turning schools in crisis into effective schools. Identifies the barriers the principals encountered and overcame in the process. Describes how these principals' authoritarian styles ceased to be effective when the schools were no longer in crisis. Points to a need for a new type of…

One-to-one tutoring is an exceptionally effective teaching method. Adding a well-designed peer or cross-age teaching component to an elementary or secondary school program has the potential for significantly augmenting the school's capability to promote academic achievement and interpersonal growth. (LHW)

Describes the Executive Educators' Round Table (EXERT), developed to meet the professional development needs of superintendents in large urban and suburban school systems, and Team 21, Teaming Educational Administrators with Expert Managers for the Twentieth Century, a cooperative program with private sector leaders. (JOW)

A quantitative procedure is presented for identifying effective schools, those producing superior student test performance (grades 2-11), in 1983 in Dallas. Stipend awards were given to teachers in schools ranked in the top quarter of each grade level category using the lower bound statistic based on individually standardized gain scores to rank…