This report is based on research comprising: (1) an examination of the paper trace of Atlantic Science Curriculum Project's (ASCP) history, including correspondence, records of meetings and conversations, contracts and curriculum documents, designs and materials; (2) a review of research and theoretical literature on the relationships between…

The 19 papers in this conference report examine the formative period of the field of adult education, the development of workers' education, and the interrelationships of the two fields. The four papers in Section I, on defining adult education are: "Challenging the System: The Adult Education Movement and the Educational Bureaucracy of the…

In response to legislative mandate, three proposals were developed for encouraging student participation in the governance of California's community colleges and for establishing a minimum standard regulation for local procedures. The proposals are intended to improve and enhance access to governance mechanisms, improve accountability, enhance the…

The practices and perceptions of a shared planning team decision-making model and the effects on student achievement and attendance are examined in this study. Survey results, test scores, and background data on schools were utilized to analyze the relationships among the degree of shared decision-making and planning effectiveness ratings, student…

Because the ultimate power to control school reform is in the hands of the superintendent or some other similarly positioned administrator, the reforms tend to benefit some student or constituency groups more than others. Judging from the personal characteristics of most superintendents and the political context of the superintendency itself, it…

Guidelines for facilitation of a teacher workshop on participative decision making, with a focus on the development of a school improvement plan based on consensus, are offered in this manual. Session topics include: perceptions, creativity, brainstorming, consensus building, and action planning. The introductory section defines workshop goals.…

A multidisciplinary educational unit featuring product safety decisions made by businesses and consumers is presented. teach critical thinking and decision making while supplementing the science, home economics, social studies, and economics curricula. The activities rely extensively, though not exclusively, on Procter & Gamble's experiences…

The Southern Rural Development Center in cooperation with the University of Kentucky sponsored a workshop which brought together extension and research personnel interested in rural economic development concerns (i.e., inadequate water supplies, sewer systems, and schools). The proceedings include "Community Growth Management: The Land-Grant…

An inservice program was developed for elementary school teachers who requested help because of their students' apparent lack of written language abilities. Preliminary planning, involving the teachers (trainees) working with a trainer, determined a way in which student learning needs could be related to teacher training needs. The inservice…

Component-building research on practical issues of instructional design can make a substantial contribution to research-based school improvement. Component-building research consists of rigorous within-school experiments that test various components of instruction for effects on student achievement. Research would address practical issues that…

Project MAP (Model Accounting Plan) is designed to test a demographic system for monitoring the within-school and post-school transitions of special education participants. Implemented at the local level, this system produces data to inform school-level decision-making. In addition, the data that are produced can be aggregated for use at higher…

The report of the Independent Commission on the Future of the State University of New York is presented, based on public hearings, review of staff studies, visits to the 18 campuses, and interviews with personnel at the State University of New York (SUNY), other colleges, and state officials. Major findings include: SUNY is the most overregulated…

Internal and external pressures that affect college program discontinuance schemes were investigated, based on minutes of the Kansas State Board of Regents and three other government-related groups/subgroups. During 1972-1986, a total of 206 programs were merged or discontinued. In 1972 a policy was enacted whereby masters programs that had…

This case study of a central office school improvement initiative in an urban school system examines instructional leadership practices of two junior high school principals. The school-based research focuses on correlates of school effectiveness in "low achieving" settings and the principals' capacity to "reflect-in-action," an ability to make…

Building on previous investigations of the effects of team-organized instructional arrangements on elementary school teachers' sense of autonomy, this report reexamines data from 14 multiunit schools which still retained the team instructional plan at the end of the second year of implementation. Indicators measured were interdependent teaching…