Identifies several effective-school characteristics of East Asian schools, including community support, teacher professionalism, attention to quality, and high expectations. Discusses major dimensions of East Asian culture: the individual-community dimension, the effort-ability dichotomy, and the holistic-analytic quality in analyses. Traces…

Examines the generalizability of a previously validated model concerning how visible aspects of organizational culture can affect performance within an educational environment. Analyzes data collected from a random sample of 156 teachers at 26 Singapore secondary schools. Results indicate that school performance can be determined from knowledge of…

"Horace's Hope: What Works for the American High School," by Theodore R. Sizer, reflects on the changes that have taken place during the past decade of school reform. This excerpt touches on 4 of the 13 lessons he has learned from his work with reform-minded schools. (MLF)

Addresses school effectiveness and school improvement, as interpreted by United Kingdom central and local government policy. Highlights recent forms of inspection and their impact on schools and other educational bodies. Argues that creation of two polar opposites, good/effective and failing/ineffective, has exacerbated rather than diminished…

The Hanover (Virginia) Public Schools won the U.S. Senate 1996 Award for Continuing Excellence for its productivity, or progress toward established benchmarks. Productivity is becoming part of the public school vernacular, as educators borrow business language and methods for educating more youngsters with fewer resources. An upcoming RAND…

Discusses a suggestion by the Bush administration that colleges be held accountable for their effectiveness in retaining students, which has some college leaders worried. (EV)

Presents case studies of five effective school improvement (ESI) programs developed in Spain. Identified characteristics of the Spanish education system that affect the way ESI programs are carried out and developed descriptions of the five programs and lessons learned from them. (SLD)

A study of characteristics of types of organizational culture in Hong Kong involved 60 primary schools and 389 teachers. The school organizational culture is classified into four distinctive types: productive, shaky, conservative, and hindering. Each of these types exhibited a distinguishable set of organizational characteristics with contrasting…

Reports on the effects of individual background characteristics, classes, and school on four noncognitive secondary education outcomes in Flanders: Degree to which the student feels at home in the school environment, extent to which the student does his/her best for the schoolwork, academic self-concept, and social integration in the class.…

Describes the evolution of a research project examining the impact of early schooling on children's language, cognitive, reading, math and, to a lesser extent, social development. Proposes that implementing an individualized instructional program, which tailors amounts and types of instruction to individual child characteristics or entering levels…

When homeless students attend school, the school must establish a climate of sharing, caring, and learning. One Dallas elementary school helps by referring parents to appropriate agencies, carefully orienting students, keeping a clothes closet, offering before- and after-school tutoring, mainstreaming homeless students, and adhering to effective…

The poor results of our educational system are a function of a bureaucratic, hierarchical, and factory-like structure of schooling whose organization and assumptions limit ways of teaching and learning. An innovative German model of schooling is described. "Charter schools," initiated by individual schools or small groups of teachers,…

Satchel Ford School (SC) is recognized in this article as an outstanding elementary school. Illustrations are provided of teacher-initiated activities, student motivation efforts, community involvement, and awards received by the school. (IAH)

This article provides several questions parents can use as guidelines for selecting a school district and a school. Highlighted is a discussion of a book which rates 500 school districts, utilizing an "effective schools index." (IAH)

Explains the major features of curriculum alignment (the determination of the congruence between the written curriculum and work performance). Relates the principles of alignment to the adult learning environment and curriculum management. (DMM)