In interdisciplinary teaming, each student belongs to a manageably sized group of students associated with an in-common, shared group of teachers. Study comparing professional and student involvement in team versus departmental organizational structures supports interdisciplinary teaming for middle schools. Teaming's participative climate is…

Because resistance is inevitable, the primary task of managing change is motivational, not technical. Implementation depends on five change dimensions: reform content, faculty willingness and capacity for change, the school's organizational strength, support and training, and leadership. Innovation is fostered by clarity and focus, participation,…

For 6 years, Frederick County (Maryland) Public Schools has pursued a major restructuring effort involving 30,000 students and 46 schools and covering all disciplines and grades. This initiative involved five components: developing student outcomes, defining curriculum, developing new assessment tasks, planning for instruction, and providing for…

Computer technology can be used in the classroom in three ways: as tools, integrated learning systems, simulations and games to motivate students. This article identifies eight major observations about schools that have adopted computers, discusses resistance to technology, and outlines guidelines for designing a self-improving school system.(39…

Resistance is not simply a function of individual psychology or pathology but is influenced by organizational variables such as norms, legalities, degree of teacher participation, and available resources. Change facilitators should refrain from imposing solutions, concentrate on beliefs and perceptions, emphasize processes, and encourage…

If educational leaders are to reshape education, they must acquire new and effective skills suitable for deployment in the information age. Administrator certification programs need to provide an understanding and application of formal organization theory, management functions, and the relationship of human growth and development to the learning…

To ensure scientific literacy at graduation, teachers at Littleton (Colorado) High School created Direction 2000, a two-year Integrated Science course to introduce students to the life sciences, physical sciences, and earth science. Graduation is based on demonstrations of what students actually know and can do, rather than on accumulated credits.…

The president of Teach for America, a privately funded teacher corps, believes that school districts, states, universities, and nonprofit organizations must assume new roles, implement substantial policy changes, restructure, and reallocate resources to improve teacher recruitment, selection, training, and assessment. (SK)

Examines the concept, implications, and dilemmas of school restructuring, whose meanings are confusing and complex. Restructuring can be synonymous with top-down reform or ruthless retrenchment or can signify redefined power relationships in classrooms, staff rooms, and schooling communities. This paper identifies four restructuring dilemmas…

Presents a strategy for identifying schools that are restructured across several dimensions. Analyzes data from a nominated sample of restructured schools to discover relevant dimensions and criteria and degree of restructuring. Schools tended to meet more criteria in the areas of student experiences and teachers' professional life; significantly…

Recent survey of time usage in restructuring schools disclosed five time-management strategies, including freed-up time (temporary interventions freeing teachers from scheduling constraints), restructured or rescheduled time, common time (for teacher planning and preparation), better-used time (to replace faculty meetings and professional…

Traditional school-finance systems need dramatic change to make them more supportive of the goals and strategies of standards. The shortcomings of current structures are reviewed, and suggestions are provided for changing finance structures, including a shift from fiscal equity toward educational adequacy. Elements to enhance a new system are…

Evaluation of recent literature and interviews with Russian educators showed how liberalization of schools has shifted power to teachers and students, resulting in short-term teacher demoralization and student indiscipline. The situation is complicated by competing interest groups and ideologies, and indecisive leadership. (SK)

Raises the questions of where school psychologists fit into school reform and whether they have the organizational knowledge and skill to contribute to this comprehensive process. Critical to success of programs is the use of a collaborative problem-solving consultative model, which incorporates a four-stage process: problem identification,…

Examines implementation of various restructuring designs in 13 elementary schools in the culturally, linguistically, and ethnically diverse Sunland County Public School District (Florida). Preliminary findings indicate a variance in implementation across sites and suggest demographic and numeric shifts in student population, lack of teacher…