Designed to serve as a resource for school districts, this manual focuses on new applications of the information technologies that are available for use in education. The first of four chapters presents a statement of the values, philosophy, mission, and goals of the Minnesota State Board of Education. An outline of learner goals and objectives is…

New York's "New Compact for Learning" in public elementary middle, and secondary schools is described in this booklet. Educational principles and strategic objectives are described, as well as the roles and responsibilities of the state, students, parents, teachers, support staff, principals, school district administrators, community,…

The effect of institutions on school effectiveness is explored in this book, which argues that school reforms in the United States are destined to fail because of the failure to address the root of the problem, which is found in the institutions of direct democratic control by which schools have traditionally been governed. Methodology involved…

Outcomes of the local school-based management (LSBM) plan, implemented by the District of Columbia public schools in 1989, are presented in this report. The 17 participating sites included 2 senior, 3 junior, 1 extended elementary, 9 elementary, and 2 special education schools. Data gathered from structured interviews with 12 of the participating…

The implementation of educational reform in Chicago is discussed. Reform was initiated in Chicago to improve education for all children. A new governance structure is being created for the schools, based on the premise that schools should be under the firm direction of parents and that authority should be vested in the school community, rather…

This report concludes that the house plan should be the centerpiece of a systematic restructuring of New York City neighborhood high schools to reduce the dropout rate and improve academic achievement. The house plan is based on the subdivision of one or more grades into smaller schools within schools. Long-term monitoring of New York City dropout…

Interviews were conducted with teachers who chaired the steering committees for 3 of the 25 National Education Association Mastery in Learning (MIL) Project schools with the purpose of eliciting their viewpoints on teacher empowerment and leadership. The schools (Orchards Elementary School in Lewiston, Idaho; Willow Creek Junior High in Rochester,…

The findings of a recent Economic Policy Institute report that asserts that U.S. schools are financially undernourished compared to other nations is critiqued in this paper. The argument is made that not only is there no systematic relationship between increased spending on education and academic performance, but also that increased spending is…

The formation of hypotheses and generation of a theory to explain and predict the outcomes of educational reforms based on the concept of school reform cycles is the purpose of this paper. Two complementary hypotheses are proposed to explain the success or failure of educational reforms. The first hypothesis is based on an inverse relationship…

The necessity of design and planning for school restructuring with a macro focus on education systems design is discussed in this paper. Eight support and implementation strategies are identified: utilization of a formal change process; planned coordination; multiple sponsorship; formation of a grassroots collaboration network; external and…

In this national survey, local changes in primary and intermediate schools are examined in response to radical administrative restructuring of the New Zealand educational system. Recent administrative moves toward decentralization are based on the assumption that such changes will improve educational quality. The study focuses on the relationships…

Decision-making responsibilities of participants in a school based management program in Chicago (Illinois) are discussed in this report. Tension among the local school board council, principal, and professional personnel advisory committee is examined, with a focus on learning decision making skills. Shared decision-making facilitates…

There is no more pressing problem in education today, writes the author, than closing the achievement gap between low-income urban schools and more advantaged predominantly suburban schools. A study by the Center for Education Research & Policy at MassINC (CERP), identifies some of the characteristics of higher-performing urban high schools in…

Across the United States, nearly 50 million students are served by 96,000 public schools. Federal policymakers cannot be expected to diagnose the diverse learning needs of these students and to craft solutions adequate to meet all of them. Four decades, eight reauthorizations of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, and expenditure of…

The study investigates what practitioners are doing to create effective middle schools for Latino students (the Latino student population in seven of the nine schools was more than 90 percent). The study includes a literature review that places itself within the larger context of research literature. The study?s research findings are organized…