Presents major conclusions from a 1990 report "Unusually Effective Schools: A Review and Analysis of Research and Practice." Guidelines for multischool improvement projects include providing substantial staff development time and technical assistance, focusing on instructional improvement, avoiding faculty overload and overreliance on bureaucratic…

Describes a survey of two-year colleges in the southern United States to assess the colleges' involvement in practices that improve institutional effectiveness. Components of effectiveness included purpose and goals, evaluation, planning, institutional research, and organizational involvement. Practices were compared with perceptions of the…

Reviews recent research about program and school evaluation, including studies of qualitative evaluation methods, replicability in program evaluation, assessment of equity in schools, triangulation, site-based management, approaches to evaluating staff development activities, state reform efforts, and educational inequality. (DMM)

Four steering (leadership) functions that appear to be critical for innovation success were identified and delineated in case studies of Dutch primary schools. The relationship between these functions and three implementation outcomes (classroom practices, schoolwide practices, use of materials) was examined. Implications for inservice principal…

A study to determine the relationship between organizational decline and three domains of effectiveness (academic, morale, and external adaptation) in private colleges and universities is discussed. The results demonstrate that the relationship between decline and effectiveness is not uniform across three types of institutions. (Author/MLW)

For young adolescents, the link that exists between learning during the school day and opportunities for educational and social growth in the afterschool hours warrants attention. By implementing the connections of this link, young people will be able to utilize the proper skills, experiences, and guidance necessary to become contributing members…

Research on school effectiveness shifted its values from equity to efficiency at the time that socioeconomic status and other context variables were introduced into the research models. Lines of inquiry are developed that can complement future research that gives simultaneous attention to equity and efficiency. (TE)

Some aspects of the tension between the concept of the teacher as evaluator and the associated idea of school self-appraisal are discussed as they apply in the United Kingdom. Evaluation of students and educational policies and programs is discussed; and an institutional framework for action is outlined. (TJH)

The London Education Authority (LEA) stresses the importance of developing the interface between quantitative models of assessment and qualitative assessments, describing an interdisciplinary approach to the development of models of educational accountability, recommends an alternative method, data envelopment analysis, and compares it to the…

Investigates whether West German schools are open to cooperation with parents according to the demands of law. Indicates that teachers and parents typically confine cooperation to obligatory rituals, while optimum school success can only be achieved through genuine cooperation. Discusses what might be done to improve parent--teacher cooperation…

The measurement of the performance of schools is complicated by the need to adjust for differences in input mixes. Schools may have a differential effect on the performance of different types of pupils. Rather than a single performance indicator, a system of indicators is needed. Characteristics of a good indicator system are identified. (KDP)

Discusses the requirements of the U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon Schools Program and describes the characteristics of recipient schools. Indicates that the Blue Ribbon is awarded to schools with clearly articulated vision, strong leadership, emphasis on universal learning, parent and community support, and caring faculty and staff. (MAB)

Describes the planning and implementation of outcomes accreditation at Maine West High School, in Des Plaines, Illinois, from its beginnings in 1988-89 to the present. Indicates that the school discovered that changes in student achievement follow changes in teacher behaviors and that increases in student learning are based on instructional…

Examines the drive to develop a national set of standards for the English Language Arts curriculum. Addresses the issues of what standards are, what the current standards terrain looks like, what sort of standards could be set, and what the dangers are in the process. Offers suggestions for educators to begin the process of developing useful…

A study of the relationships of selected variables in 27 elementary schools in western Kentucky revealed significant relationships between student achievement and school climate, student socioeconomic status, and parent and community involvement. However, there was no relationship between school climate and student socioeconomic status. (LP)