Presents an interview with Mike Eisenberg, co-founder of Big6, that explains how the Big6 process for information-based problem-solving can be used to address the challenges educators face related to the No Child Left Behind legislation. Highlights include the need for teamwork between principals, library media specialists, teachers, and…

Describes a professional learning effort in Victoria, Australia, designed to help principals process and learn from their experiences with recent school reforms. Principals reported that learning to reflect helped them do their jobs more effectively, challenged their conventional ways of thinking and acting, helped them be more proactive, and…

Suggests many quick, easy and inexpensive ways to help make staff members of student publications feel valued and keep staff motivation levels high. Includes additional articles that describe how an editor can support efforts to motivate, suggest that staff retreats lead to success, note how banquets serve as reward, and suggest some favorite…

To address shortages of health professional human resources and overcome cultural barriers, interdisciplinary health care teams in most northern Canadian aboriginal communities include paraprofessionals recruited locally. This paper identifies factors fundamental to effective team functioning, arguing for an extension of the information on…

Hierarchical regression and structural equation modeling of data from 440 accountants found that social interaction in work teams fosters individual, organizational, and team learning. Organizational and personal learning mediated the relationship between team social interaction processes and the attitudinal outcomes, but team learning did not.…

A business school reorganized using self-directed teams based on a matrix of services and functions: faculty scholarship/service development, curriculum content/evaluation, instructional development/resources, and student activities. The mission statement focused on creation of a market-sensitive, flexible learning environment. (SK)

A survey of 584 Australian companies investigated the impact of 5 management practices (total quality management, teamwork, lean production, reengineering, learning organizations) in relation to 8 training practices. New management practices had significant but differing effects on the organization of training: total quality management had the…

Case studies of three Finnish companies (involved in manufacturing, Internet catalogs, and municipal government services) were used to investigate the nature of organizational change. Significant differences among organizational types were apparent in team formation, pay systems, recruitment, and forms of control. Organization differences reflect…

Effective use of cooperative learning groups requires the following: attention to group formation, orientation that sets clear expectations and guidelines, activities to develop teamwork skills, peer evaluation, and other assessments that recognize and measure individual effort on group projects. (SK)

Correlational analyses of data from 126 Chinese business students in 32 learning groups showed that groups with cooperative goals engaged in more constructive controversy. Those with competitive or independent goals had fewer open discussions. Groups engaged in constructive controversy rated themselves as more innovative and loyal. (Contains 31…

One measure of a school executive is the ability to put together a winning administrative team. Offers tips for building teamwork. (MLF)

Increasingly, school boards are using consultants to help them hire the right superintendents for their school systems. Proposes extending the consultants' contracts to coaching both board and superintendents on developing an effective working relationship. (MLF)

Sportscasters, in conjunction with educators and others, could form a unique partnership aimed at encouraging young people to stay in school and prepare for the future. (MLH)

The survey of projects concerned with placing secondary students with mental handicaps into competitive employment studied 24 matched pairs of successfully/unsuccessfully employed students. Results showed that successful programs were characterized by team effort, employer support, employment supervision, and a sensitive match of student and job.…

High school principals assume direct responsibility for selected instructional leadership functions, but must delegate partial or full responsibility for other functions. The Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale helps shift principals' attention to the most appropriate areas. The key component is a systematically developed leadership…