The "Positive Action" model is a time-tested tool for achieving far-reaching school reform. The program's designed to reform and revitalize schools so that the needs of children are met. The Positive Action Program was developed for elementary schools and has been expanded for middle schools and high schools. The Positive Action Program is based…

"Learning to Lead Together: The Promise and Challenge of Sharing Leadership" examines the dilemmas for school leaders and administrators, and the benefits for schools and students, when principals work with teachers (and their communities) to share leadership. Most schools function within existing hierarchical structures that contradict…

This report compares district leaders' perspectives on changes in school capacity, student outcomes and district policy over three years of implementation of Middle Start (MS), a comprehensive school reform program to demonstrate the potential for improving the effectiveness and sustainability of CSR at the school level through integrating…

This book is a short edited volume that brings together in one place, the best scholarly articles in charter schooling by national experts and leaders, written in a user-friendly fashion. It is the ideal introduction for those interested in the charter school movement with numerous insights for and by charter operators, administrators, and…

The Ninth Grade Summer School Restructuring Program of the Detroit Public Schools (Michigan) was designed to restructure ninth grade in ways that improve academic performance, develop positive attitudes toward learning, improve the school environment to promote learning and self-respect, and prevent dropping out of school. Instructional and direct…

Americans increasingly distrust their educational institutions and the people who work in them. This paper is about the salience of social trust in urban schools and its implication for school reform. The paper describes outcomes of a 5-year project that explored Chicago's (Illinois) attempt to use expanded local participation as a lever for…

The passage of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act and the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in 1994 represented a fundamental shift in the character of federal aid to education and demanded new roles and responsibilities for states, districts, and the federal government. This handbook presents findings from a…

This paper examines the demands on teachers' knowledge, attitudes, and practice associated with reforms commonly attempted in high schools and the corresponding opportunities for teacher development. Data come from a study of comprehensive school reform to illuminate the degree of fit between high school reform agendas and teachers' professional…

There are about 80,000 public school principals in the United States. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates there will be a 10 percent increase in the employment of educational administrators of all types through 2006. The National Association of Elementary School Principals estimates that more than 40 percent of principals will retire or leave…

This report presents the results of an interim assessment of the Higher Education Restructuring Act of 1994. The report is based primarily on two surveys. In the first, various state agencies were asked to indicate whether tasks assigned to them as a result of the Restructuring Act have been addressed. Results from that survey indicate that of the…

This report is the first in a series on Project GRAD (Graduation Really Achieves Dreams) in the Newark, New Jersey Public Schools. Project GRAD is an education initiative that combines several proven or promising reforms with the goals of increasing reading and math achievement test scores, improving classroom behavior, reducing dropout rates, and…

This report describes the development of indicators of classroom practice for monitoring and improving the quality of school reforms. The work entailed development of a rubric to rate key factors of classroom practice based on assignments and samples of student work. This approach was used to describe the intellectual challenge of class…

This paper presents data from the first year of a study that seeks to reveal the effective practices and structures that address the match between the philosophy of Title I and beliefs and practices at the school site. A national study has been designed to investigate the compliance and effectiveness of urban schoolwide Title I programs. As part…

High schools in the United States face tremendous challenges involving changes in cultural and economic forces and necessities. They need to transform themselves into places of learning where knowledge is relevant to students' needs and aspirations. Because many traditional high school structures are large, compartmentalized, and impersonal, they…

This paper discusses the future of higher education in the United States, focusing on societal changes and strategies for universities in coming decades. It examines population aging, shifting demographics, life-style and other social changes, and workforce changes such as the growth of the service sector in the economy, noting their effects on…