Studies of seven school-sponsored programs conducted by the Harvard Family Research Project and the National Association of State Boards of Education found various innovative approaches to early childhood education. This article describes four major success strategies: organizing an early childhood unit; creating child-centered classrooms;…

South Lawrence East School, a K-8 facility in Lawrence (Massachusetts), illustrates how planners worked with the district to create an environment for learning and community involvement. The layout and circulation provide easy access to the community wing, which houses the auditorium, gymnasium, and activity room, without opening the rest of the…

Stresses the importance of local arts, focusing on encouraging modern dance at the local level. Addresses issues such as audience participation, sense of ownership and community, and accessibility that accompanies local art. Considers the implications for K-12 modern dance education. (CMK)

At Pottstown (Pennsylvania) High School, educators and community members have formed a community action team that cultivates relationships with parents; honors students' achievement in academics, attendance, and citizenship; and strives to improve every student's performance. Home visits are used to jumpstart and conclude yearly efforts. (MLH)

In Big Springs, Nebraska, school-based projects aim to increase students' knowledge of and connection to their community. Projects have included making and selling detailed miniature reproductions of local buildings, documenting local history, helping to renovate a historic hotel, reenacting a pioneer Christmas celebration, and researching and…

Presents excerpts from a satellite town meeting where participants discussed issues common to the nation's schools. Topics include federal legislation for school construction, the planning of one school for future technology, ways school design influences learning, and community involvement in school redesign. (GR)

Study of the impact of The Code of Practice for Children with Special Education Needs on the governance and administration of local schools in Northern Ireland and Britain. Suggests methods and topics for future research. (Contains 44 references.)

This case study profiles one of 24 high schools that participated in a school-based, NIH-funded study to increase physical activity among high school girls. The case study school was one of 12 randomly assigned to the intervention group. The study intervention was based on the premise that a successful intervention is developed and tailored by…

Education for citizenship has the teaching of social and moral education, community involvement and political literacy at its core. Perhaps more than any other curriculum area, the influence of the home is significant, yet little is known of the extent to which parents support the teaching of citizenship. This paper presents the findings from a…

Poverty reduction today, at least in rhetoric, is a global priority; the essential role of education in poverty reduction is universally assumed. However, the dialectic between the concurrent and contradictory processes of 'poverty reduction' and 'poverty induction' is not well understood, and the historically rooted and globally entrenched larger…

This article describes the development and field-testing of an observational tool, the Volunteer Tutor Instructional Practices Checklist. It is an example of action research in a clinical setting and will be of interest to all educators, including special education and reading center directors, in the training and ongoing supervision of community…

Health educators have embraced empowerment as an alternative to traditional frameworks that place greater emphasis on individual health behaviors than socio-political factors that promote or constrain life-style choices. A critical element of empowerment theory for health educators is the participatory process in which people might engage to…

Managers and decision-makers are under increasing pressure to engage community members along with experts in considering and resolving environmental degradation. This is especially the case with respect to decisions concerning water quality and quantity in Australia. The commitment of citizens and government to sustainable catchment management and…

This article furthers research and theory on the initiation and development of service-learning partnerships. It identifies three paths of engagement between university and community agencies: tentative engagement, aligned engagement, and committed engagement. This conceptualization helps to understand how service-learning partnerships evolve over…

The author proposes a citizen-and community-oriented approach to using information technology, whereby people are considered as participant members of the society. This empowering approach views people as subjects and actors who have abilities to develop, not as objects who lack these abilities and need one-way help from authorities. Empowerment…