This paper describes and interprets the case of a middle school's first year of using interdisciplinary teacher teams as a key among several restructuring moves. It describes: (1) characteristics of the teaming process--leadership, decision making, professional growth and support of individual teachers, and cooperation, competition, and conflict…

This manual is intended for use in training volunteer community conciliators involved in resolving conflicts between schools and parents of special education students. After an introduction, the manual outlines the principles of conciliation, emphasizing that it should be voluntary, informed, self-determined, impartial, and confidential.…

This report discusses the application of the International Organization for Standards's ISO9000 quality assurance standard and Total Quality Management (TQM) to higher education in light of the "new collegialism." It defines the basic elements of ISO9000 and TQM, reviews the strengths and weaknesses of both approaches, and notes efforts…

This paper provides the framework and context for a systems approach to planning, detailed descriptions of specific steps in the planning process, conclusions, and questions for consideration when executing strategic planning in higher education. The analysis is based on the work of James T. Ziegenfuss, Jr. in his book "Designing…

This book describes in detail the basic elements of school-based management (SBM) and the ways in which to implement successful change in the individual school. Specifically, it tells how Prince William County Public Schools (Virginia) has implemented SBM. Chapter 1 presents a rationale for the development of a more effective school-operation…

This resource book presents cooperative learning activities which relate to our world and the social studies. The book is divided into three sections: (1) "Preparation," to help make cooperative learning part of the curriculum today; (2) "Activity Units," focusing on world culture, natural history, governments and leaders, and contemporary…

This book contains seven exploratory research papers from a conference on diversity and workplace teams. The authors examine diversity in terms of a variety of attributes, including race and sex. The book is divided into three sections. The first contains three papers that deal with the management of diverse teams. The following papers are…

This handbook is designed for individuals responsible for planning employee education, technical training, and other human resource development services in a workplace setting, especially in small business. It provides information on integrating basic education activities with technical training and organizational change activities to enable all…

Distance education is becoming a major delivery mechanism for teacher education programs in special education, especially for rural areas. Whatever the delivery system, telecourses depend on the mutual efforts of an instructor and a producer to satisfy the demands of both academic content and production values. Both instructor and producer have…

This book teaches the skills and art of good coaching and how to realize its value in unlocking people's potential to maximize their own performance. Chapters 1-3 define coaching and its business application, discuss the manager as coach and the manager's role, and examine the context of change. Chapter 4 considers the two key elements of…

Students with special needs are increasingly taught in the least restrictive environment, which often means the general education classroom. Mainstreaming and inclusion provide the most appropriate education for each student in the least restrictive setting, considering the education needs of students rather than their clinical labels. A key…

In July 1993, the Pennsylvania Department of Education revised the regulations guiding state assessment of school districts, educational curriculum, graduation requirements, student assessment, and the planning process that districts use to guide educational delivery. This document describes a year-long, collaborative project, in which the Western…

This document reports on a study of the nature, causes and consequences of team learning among faculty in five secondary schools. Data were collected primarily through group interviews; 48 individual team members also responded to an 11-item survey about team learning conditions. From the data analysis, three teams were classified as functional…

The use of computers in the foreign language classroom in the Czech Republic is viewed with suspicion. Many teachers assert that computers prevent engagement in communication and teamwork, and that a computer could never replace a good teacher. This paper argues that from within a cognitive framework of language acquisition computers do indeed…

As states transfer more responsibility for education decisions to local school systems, effective leadership at the local level is essential. This report presents the Southern Regional Educational Board (SREB) model for leadership development, as practiced by the SREB Leadership Academy. Since 1991, teams from 12 school systems in the southern…