Interviews with four teachers, one parent, one assistant, and two ancillary helpers found that classroom teams possess little structure with minimal role definition. Participants erect defenses against the lack of definition and use a process termed "fraternity" to get along with one another and camouflage uncertainties and tensions. (SK)

Research management strategies used effectively in a large-scale clinical trial to determine the health effects of exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam are discussed, including pre-project planning, organization according to strategy, attention to scheduling, a team approach, emphasis on guest relations, cross-training of personnel, and preparing…

This paper clarifies vocabulary in the area of collaboration in schools, describes characteristics of collaboration, and outlines a set of principles. Principles explain that collaboration is not a prerequisite in most school programs, may occur informally, requires time to develop, is not a panacea, and may raise ethical issues for special…

This article describes efforts in Colorado to develop collaborative relationships among educators to better meet needs of students with disabilities. The article stresses the importance of developing common understanding, developing a full array of services within the delivery system, and addressing school scheduling issues. (JDD)

Surveys of academic and vocational faculty at Lewis-Clark State College (Idaho) showed that academic faculty viewed vocational faculty more positively than was commonly assumed. The shift in attitudes signals the potential for the cooperation and teamwork essential for the success of tech prep. (SK)

Contrasts the realities of instructional leadership with the ideal, examining the overlap of instructional leadership and supervision. By reviewing instructional leadership depicted in three studies on the work life of principals, readers get a view through the schoolhouse window. Solutions to the problems of fragmentation and change are…

Describes an Illinois elementary principal's efforts to work with teachers to reshape her school's culture, curriculum, and organization into a model stressing collegiality and greater teacher involvement. A staff development calendar and action plan are presented to illustrate the patchwork quilting analogy. (four references) (MLH)

Special education reform has targeted placement of children with disabilities. Terms such as "mainstreaming,""least restrictive environment," and "full inclusion" describe various reform stages. This article briefly reviews the history of special education reform, discusses current ideas related to best practice, and…

This article describes techniques, used in a family-centered early intervention project, that both assist in accomplishing the goals of the Individualized Family Service Plan process and create opportunities for families to display their present competencies and acquire new ones to meet the needs of their children with communication disorders.…

As one Brooklyn high school discovered, quality improvement begins with administrator commitment and participants' immersion in the literature. Other key elements include ongoing training of personnel involved in the quality-improvement process, tools such as the Deming Cycle (plan-do-check-act), voluntary and goal-oriented teamwork, and a worthy…

A survey investigated the interprofessional perceptions of 75 therapeutic recreation and 80 occupational therapy practitioners. Results show significant differences in interprofessional perceptions and interdisciplinary cooperation between practitioners of these two disciplines. (GLR)

The University of Arizona's experience with a small-scale fund-raising project to establish a memorial scholarship illustrates that the development office's efforts in guiding a motivated group of donors can pay off. Planning elements included establishing a team, delegating tasks, handling mail and telephone calls, generating enthusiasm, and…

Issues are addressed concerning the speech-language assessment, management, and consultancy role of public school speech-language specialists to multicultural clients. Discussed are the reliability, validity, and relevance of assessment data; the replacement of substandard utterances; cooperation with teachers of English-as-a-Second-Language; and…

Discussion of staff development in distance education focuses on the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) for developing instructional design skills in subject experts. Contingency theories of management are examined, literature on CBAM is reviewed, and use of CBAM in a course team approach for course development is described. (22 references) (LRW)

In Monroe County (Indiana), an innovative new state program, Technology Preparation, ensures that high school students' coursework offers practical applications of academic concepts to real-life situations. The 4MAT model helped teachers build the Tech Prep program by sensitizing them to individual learning styles, including their own. (MLH)