Applies the findings of the Effective Schools Movement and the School Development Program to improving the educational opportunities of Black urban students. Recommends progressive reform in the following areas: (1) recognizing the centrality of human relations; (2) eliminating barriers to effective teaching and learning; and (3) mobilizing…

Principals must realize the positive effects that marketing can have on improving schools and building support for them. Market analysis forces clarification of the competing needs and interests present in the community. The four marketing phases are needs assessment, analysis, goal setting, and public relations and advertising. (MLH)

Reviews characteristics common to principals of effective schools. Outlines a behavioral approach by which principals can convey high standards and expectations to teachers, other staff, and students. Suggests a four-step method for creating a positive environment and collegial atmosphere in school. Contains 12 references. (SV)

Reports on a survey of 247 education inspectors who built a portrait of conditions in Nigerian primary schools from their visits to and supervision of teachers. Results suggest that many teachers are undertrained, additional classrooms are needed, and basic teaching aids and textbooks are in short supply. (RJC)

Examines the informal administrative career path leading from the rural school district to "big league" urban and suburban areas. Reviews research emphasizing the importance of the superintendent in effective rural districts. Suggests a subsidized preparation program specifically for rural administrator candidates, involving an intensive…

Claims school counselors can make their contribution to effective schools by establishing a positive, supportive, people-oriented school climate from which the other correlates of effectiveness can be implemented. Describes six actions counselors can take to promote effective schools and provides suggestions for dealing with the political…

Using the research on effective staff development, a rural Minnesota school district developed a grass-roots professional development program which featured opening-week workshops, training programs, mini-grants, a professional library,and a school effectiveness program. (JD)

Discusses six elements necessary to effect change in a community college: the motivation to change, a vision of the future, knowledge of the institution's present status, a planning framework and process, adequate personnel and financial resources, and an evaluation/assessment mechanism. (DMM)

Neither hyperrationalist nor decentralist reform strategies will seriously improve educational quality. Successful reform strategies incorporate three dimensions: the authorized movement, regional or localist responses, and conversation, involving changes in school rhetoric. States must create a context for developing organizational competence at…

A primary grade school with a large low-income Hispanic population reviewed and revised several instructional programs, particularly for language arts and mathematics, to increase student achievement and motivation. (CB)

Many school boards view standardized test scores as indicative of school effectiveness. This primer outlines basic facts about standardized tests and tells how school systems can use test results productively. (MLF)

To become more effective leaders, principals must become informed of national quality initiatives and integrate them into their schools. Holding great responsibility for student achievement, principals are given lists of actions to take and others to avoid. Increased standards of licensure are addressed, as well as implementations of a systems…

Considers the use of outcome-based education (OBE) as an accountability system. The interpretation and use of OBE for accountability and issues arising from its use are reviewed. The use of OBE will exacerbate rather than solve current problems in education, but its potential should be explored. (SLD)

From the perspective of a small (less than 50 full-time equivalent children) university-based childcare center, notes benefits afforded to large centers and advantages of being small, e.g., less institutional atmosphere, unified commitment to goals and philosophy, training beyond the basics, flexibility and spontaneity, more individualized…

Argues that the deputy headteacher is well-placed to exercise curriculum leadership within the collegially run (British) primary school. Identifies key factors in developing the deputy headteacher's role and investigates them empirically. Deputy headteachers, while being prepared for curriculum leadership in some areas, require much more specific,…