This report compares district leaders' perspectives on changes in school capacity, student outcomes and district policy over three years of implementation of Middle Start (MS), a comprehensive school reform program to demonstrate the potential for improving the effectiveness and sustainability of CSR at the school level through integrating…

The 1997 reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires states to develop state improvement plans (SIPs) that include provisions supporting the professional development of all persons who work with disabled children. The National Association of State Directors of Special Education is establishing a professional…

This paper examines interpersonal communication training in organizations from a different perspective, focusing on the interpersonal communication training offered to supervisors in modern organizations. Most of this training focuses on interpersonal communication between supervisors and their employees. The premise of this paper is that…

This book examines the broader aspects of promoting children's learning and development through the Comer Process. The Comer Process, a schoolwide intervention formulated by James P. Comer, centers on healthy child development as the keystone to academic achievement and life success. The text focuses on the Yale School Development Program (SDP), a…

The Contingencies for Learning Academic and Social Skills (CLASS) program is described. CLASS is a comprehensive, self-contained behavior management package designed for remediation of the behavior problems of disruptive, acting-out students in Kindergarten through grade 3. (Author/MH)

The Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB) offers members the AGB Board Mentor Service to assist trustees and their chief executives in conducting a workshop to assess and improve board performance. The service is one-time, maximum-impact, and designed to encourage boards to continue improving. (JMD)

Explains a teaching strategy in which students engage in hands-on activities before being introduced to new terms or reading text material. Outlines the learning cycle phases: exploration, concept introduction, and concept application using example activities. Provides guidelines and checklist for modifying lessons into this format. (RT)

Explores ways for librarians to improve search strategies in a globally networked computing environment. Discusses browsing versus more structured search strategies; thinking processes and information-seeking processes; supplementing the traditional reference interview with computer-based reference assistants; models for automating the reference…

Outlines an approach for post-secondary educators to improve the quality of electronic discussion groups. Using a template of macros constructed in Microsoft Word, the authors explain a system of coding called cognotes and discuss an evaluation method where higher order critical thinking skills are given greater value toward higher grades.…

Describes a study conducted at Illinois State University that compared the results achieved by library users searching the ERIC database on CD-ROM with the results achieved by individual and teamed skilled intermediaries. Evaluation of library services is discussed, patron search strategies are examined, and strategies for improving patron…

To close the achievement gap, the "No Child Left Behind" law calls for all students to make appropriate yearly progress. This presumably means that progress is being made by capable readers at the same time progress is being made by struggling readers. However, there appear to be unintended effects of "No Child Left Behind"…

The authors examine the promises and prospects of using student engagement data to promote success at minority-serving institutions.

A former chancellor outlines how he successfully transformed the culture of his campus to enhance retention and student success.

Minority student attrition and underachievement is a long-standing and widespread concern in higher education. It is especially acute in introductory science courses which are prerequisites for students planning to pursue science-related careers. Poor performance in these courses often results in attrition of minorities from the science fields.…

The Teaching Quality Enhancement Fund was established by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, UK, with the declared aims of enhancing the quality of teaching and learning and raising the status of teaching among higher education institutions. This paper considers the three strands of the initiative--subject, institutional, and…