A description is provided of the use of a group process approach to the Freshman English research paper at El Paso Community College. After highlighting problems associated with traditional approaches to freshman research papers, an overview of the group process approach is provided, along with warnings for instructors who might view the approach…

Superhero play among preschool children appears to be quite different from socio-dramatic play. While exhibiting characteristics of socio-dramatic play, superhero play does not facilitate the development of social or verbal skills. Observations of television programs indicated that superhero play provides little opportunity for verbal reasoning,…

This pamphlet discusses group problem solving in schools. Its point of departure is that teachers go at problems from a number of different directions and that principals need to capitalize on those differences and bring a whole range of skills and perceptions to the problem-solving process. Rather than trying to get everyone to think alike,…

Very little has been written in the area of the application of structured or planned groups in college settings, particularly in making a direct connection between theories of college-student development and the use of groups to facilitate and encourage that development. Information is provided in this book for all in higher education who are…

This training guide and reference manual helps educational leaders learn to be facilitators in the program called "Improving the Human Environment of Schools" (IHES), a participative problem-solving method designed to improve a school's "quality of life." An introductory chapter reviews the history of IHES and outlines IHES…

The evaluation of long-range goals of the Race/Human Relations Program of the San Diego City Schools consisted of observations to determine the degree to which racial mixing was occurring at school sites and the quality of interactions among students and adults. Fifty district employees were trained in the use of the Contextual Evaluation Form. A…

The computerized group decision making system has potential to become an important part of an organization, but the research done thus far in this area is unfocused, lacks rigor and a theoretical base, and disregards the communication component of the technology except on the most pragmatic, fundamental level. A review of the research makes clear…

For the internship site visit to be the most effective vehicle of evaluation for the director, and for open communication between intern and supervisor, the director must be aware of both the communicative relationship issues and the content of the interactions. In all six phases of the site visit--pre-site visit, site visit entry, intern…

Research conducted in the United States has found that people exert more effort when they perform a task individually than when they do so in a group. This phenomenon has been labeled social loafing. To examine the transcultural generality of social loafing, 20 male and 20 female Chinese school children in Taiwan were selected from grades 2, 3, 6,…

This paper addresses the use of one technique, role play, in the resolution of conflictual situations at various levels in the school system. While a variety of options for dealing with conflict are discussed, primary emphasis is given to that method which resolves the conflict and leaves the relationship intact. The method of role play and its…

To understand how computer conferencing can be used to meld communication and education among remotely located high-level professions, an ongoing exploratory study started to collect data from participants in an advanced adult education course conducted primarily via computer-mediated communication in the area of top level management. The…

This document describes the process by which a consortium of media professionals was brought together to develop a graduate level, competency based, educational program for school media specialists. It is divided into four sections: (1) process description of program design, (2) competencies for the school media specialist, (3) an annotated…

This essay considers how prosocial behavior can be learned in the classroom and whether it can be transferred from this setting to others. It also focuses on two aspects of such behavior which the authors consider important: (1) the development and enhancement of the self-concept; and (2) the development of productive interpersonal relations,…

The objective of this study was to examine the interaction between professional and bureaucratic decisional environments in schools and discover the impact of this interaction on the processes of educational governance. A case study methodology was used to gather data; the analysis was conducted within a conceptual framework of organization…

In a study of the relationships between school racial composition and intergroup hostility in 123 desegregated elementary schools, four measures of racial hostility were considered: (1) white attitudes toward desegregation; (2) whites' friendliness toward blacks as perceived by blacks; (3) white attitudes toward voluntary social interaction with…