This paper examines the concept of school climate as a key factor in the success of planned change in elementary schools. Beginning with a general review of the literature on organizational climate and using as its basis three major reviews that appeared in the mid-1970s, the paper defines climate, examines variables that have been used as part of…

This report profiles the positions of the six Democratic and six Republican 1988 presidential candidates on policy issues affecting U.S. competitiveness in the global economy. Candidate profiles are provided for: Bruce Babbitt, Michael Dukakis, Richard Gephardt, Albert Gore, Jr., Jesse Jackson, and Paul Simon (Democrats); and George Bush, Robert…

This book analyzes the future of the United States in terms of people in their role as consumers and as employees. It uses conventional economic accounting procedures to document economic growth, but also employs more qualitative standards for measuring progress in eight basic categories of demand or amenity: food, housing, transportation, health,…

After nearly half a decade of low income and debt service problems, farm financial conditions began to improve in the mid-1980s. Higher livestock returns, lower production costs, rising land prices, increased lender stability, and fewer tax-driven incentives to borrow and invest are among the factors that eased farm financial stress in 1987. Real…

Several studies were conducted in 1987 by the Multilevel Evaluation Systems Project, which focuses on developing a model for a multi-purpose, multi-user evaluation system to facilitate educational decision making and evaluation. The project model emphasizes on-going integrated assessment of individuals, classes, and programs using a variety of…

This review describes Alaska's economic boom of the early 1980s, the current recession, and economic projections for the 1990s. Alaska's economy is largely influenced by oil prices, since petroleum revenues make up 80% of the state government's unrestricted general fund revenues. Expansive state spending was responsible for most of Alaska's…

The superintendent's role is clearly different from that of board members or principals, yet many activities and skills are either similar or identical. This study examines training needs for school board members, superintendents, and principals. This particular report covers Kansas superintendents, focusing on job performance needs and associated…

By using a path analytic model, this study seeks to determine the relationship of school organizational stressors to teacher stress in public high schools. The model included three stress variables (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and degree of personal accomplishment), seven organizational health characteristics, a motivational variable,…

Interviews conducted with 15 elementary school teachers and 5 principals in a southern California metropolitan district bring out the differing work orientations and incentives among teachers and administrators, and reveal how various principal-generated orientations and incentives affect teacher performance. The research shows that the work…

Analyzed is the energy management program implemented in 1984 at the Akron Public Schools of Ohio. The program was implemented to address the problems of rising utilities costs and uncontrollable energy use. Background information ranging from simple attendance statistics to the utilities budget are provided as well as the procedure for choosing…

A qualitative study exploring the relationships between gender and world view as they manifested themselves in the experiences of 19 beginning faculty members within an elite research university is described. The study was directed by the following questions: (1) Do women and men interpret differently their experiences as beginning faculty in a…

A study of the institutional factors at research universities that motivate faculty to pursue research grants and are correlated with significant movement up and down an index of overall research activity is reported. Two institutions within one state system, one with a positive and one with a negative change, are used. Surveys of faculty at…

As teacher educators have worked to encourage teachers to become more reflective, they have noted the important role school context plays in supporting or constraining reflection in action. This study describes one kindergarten teacher's experiences in two contrasting school contexts. The study documents the characteristics of leadership style and…

This study, part of a larger research effort, focuses attention on the relationship between school context and the process of learning to teach reflectively. It is noted that it requires leadership within the schools to nurture reflection and to encourage the development of more sophisticated forms of reflection as teachers acquire knowledge.…

This paper discusses the role of staff development units with respect to "corporate culture" and in light of the experience of the Staff Development Division of the Saskatchewan Public Service. The term "corporate culture" has been defined as the values, symbols, and beliefs that people in a given organization hold jointly and…