The concept of the principal as the sole instructional leader of a school is quickly changing. Substantial evidence from schools with successful instructional programs indicate this responsibility has been spread among many staff members. Teachers who have been trained in the functions of leadership, instruction, and student learning are becoming…

This fastback document examines the strategic-planning process. Intended for school administrators, the booklet offers practical advice on strategic planning, and the importance of such planning in those districts that experience high turnover. When conceptualizing a strategic plan, administrators should begin with an end in mind and then develop…

The school counselor as a team member has a leading role to play in inservice education of the teaching faculty. The counselor has considerable contact with students and has valuable information on developing a quality inservice education program. Inservice education has the goal of improving the curriculum for students. This paper presents a…

The advent of advisory councils presents a promising opportunity for schools to maximize a largely untapped resource for increased educational effectiveness. This modular training guide, which supplements "Developing Quality Schools: A Handbook," shows practitioners how to set the context for and apply the consensus decision-making…

This report describes how schools can draw on multiple voices to create a comprehensive portrait of important events in a school's history. In this "mapping" process, participants create a map that portrays the collective history of the school, facilitating an increased awareness of past actions and their connection to current conditions.…

The processes of educational leadership are educative when they both educate constituents and are informed by feedback from constituents; when they are conducted as an ongoing exercise of participatory problem solving. In short, educational leadership is educational when both its ends and its means are educative. John Dewey provided a theoretical…

This participant's manual provides materials related to a national teleconference on the next generation of independent living leadership for people with disabilities. Introductory material includes the conference agenda, information about the trainers, and information about the sponsoring organizations, the Independent Living Research Utilization…

The possible utilities and limitations of computer-assisted career guidance systems (CACG) have been widely discussed although the effectiveness of CACG has not been systematically considered. This paper investigates the effectiveness of a theory-based CACG program, integrating Sequential Elimination and Expected Utility strategies. Three types of…

This manual is intended as a resource guide for school councils in Arizona. The state created school site-based councils to bring together parents, the community, administrators, teachers, and students to form a decision-making body that can empower all stakeholders. The guide details the process of school councils as it relates to Arizona…

This paper reports on a study that investigated a top-down leadership approach that gradually shifted to a collaborative paradigm. It focuses on one junior high school's efforts to increase academic and social success for all its students. The restructuring process began when, for the first time, a female principal was hired in this 35-year-old…

This paper provides data from students in an educational administration class on use of teaming and collaboration to research educational problems. The instructor taught group dynamics and modeled the process of facilitating and developing collaboration in teams. Classes were offered in 3-1/2 hour sessions for 5 weeks. Various team-building…

Collaborations are usually developed on a school-to-school basis, and, at present, no vehicle is used for identifying or monitoring them. Little is known about what kinds of collaborations exist, and how many are true "collaborations" (as opposed to "cooperations and "coordinations"). Additionally, very little is known…

This paper discusses the misuse of power among boards of education, central office and building administrators, teachers, and the media. It describes several cases: members of a board of education who hired a family member; an assistant superintendent who, out of jealousy, organized a smear campaign against a new principal; a high school principal…

Assessment, with a capital "A", has become in the academy a politically loaded buzzword that closes many more doors than it opens. Assessment, with a small "a", however, is a necessary part of any attempt to find the best path forward in environments that change. At meetings this spring, Members of NERCHE's Departments Chairs…

Discusses the development since 1971 of an alternative school-within-a-school at the Wheatley School in East Williston (New York), emphasizing shared decision making, nontraditional teaching, and student self-evaluation. Describes recent changes in the program to improve both student evaluation and the program's communication with the traditional…