The Chicago School Reform Act mandated that schools develop and implement their own school improvement plans (SIPs) to meet systemwide goals and expected outcomes. This paper examines the implementation of SIP initiatives in 14 Chicago public schools. Data were derived from interviews with principals and advisory committee chairpersons and from…

Findings of a study that examined teaching culture patterns in two Ontario secondary schools are presented in this paper, with attention given to the outcomes of "balkanization." In this form of the teachers' organizational culture, teachers work in smaller subgroups within the school community. The two schools were drawn from a study of…

Issues in the national school choice debate are examined in this paper. Proponents of school choice have included the last two Republican Presidents, the Education Commission of the States, and many state governors and business community leaders. Gallup polls conducted during 1989-91 indicate that school choice (among public schools) is a popular…

This book lays the groundwork for rethinking school finance in the context of new educational policy directions for the 1990s. Proposed educational reforms have created several school finance issues: (1) the linkage between the basic school finance structure, educational goals, and the cost of effective schoolwide strategies; (2) site-based…

Information about 299 schools working with the school-based management process "Onward to Excellence" (OTE) is provided in this directory. Each school entry includes a contact person and information about OTE status, school demography, and progress toward school goals and activities. A total of 176 elementary, 48 middle/junior high, 51 high, and…

Findings of a study that examined teachers' and principals' perceptions of organizational changes affecting their professional work as a result of restructuring are presented in this paper. The multiple case study of two elementary, two middle, and two high schools derived data from interviews with each principal and from questionnaires…

Practical information for businesspeople in support of fundamental, collaborative educational change is presented in this report. The first section points out that fundamental educational restructuring is necessary in a changing society with different needs and that school business partnerships are required to implement systemic change. The…

Trends and research in nongraded schooling over the past three decades are described in this paper. The 1960s and early 70s were marked by a strong interest in the nongradedness movement and the British concept of open education, followed by a declining interest in the 1970s. A nongraded revival in the 1980s was facilitated by recognition of the…

This text presents a conversation between James Comer and Ronald Edmonds, whose meeting in New Haven in 1982 was sponsored by the Danforth Foundation to describe and compare the differences in their approaches to school reform. Each developed an Effective Schools model based on the belief that all students can learn. Comer's focus, however, was on…

The kinds of school choice programs and the processes by which they became legalized in Minnesota are discussed in this paper. The first part reviews reasons for restructuring American schools. The second part describes how the Minnesota education system moved changed in the following areas: from a single delivery system to community education;…

Steps toward developing a more constructive framework for linking research with educational practice in effecting school change are presented in this paper. To understand the problem of research-based change in schools, the process is reviewed from the following perspectives: the school and its practitioners; research-based knowledge itself; and…

Findings of a case study that examined restructuring and organizational change in a California school district over a 12-year period are presented in this paper. The research draws upon the conceptual framework of "adaptive realignment," a process in which an organization continually responds to external and internal changes as they occur. Data…

Plans for the fundamental restructuring of Utah elementary-secondary education are described in this report. The plans include a shift in focus from reforming the old system to making systemic changes in order to meet students' needs. The first section outlines the mission, goals, and anticipated outcomes of Utah public education. The second…

Educational research seldom addresses the role of the practitioner who must translate the need for change into practice. Written by practicing school administrators in the state of Vermont, this book offers a cohesive rationale and philosophical direction for educational reform, identifies successful reform initiatives, and illustrates how these…

The member states in Asia and the Pacific region participating in the Asia and Pacific Programme of Educational Innovation for Development (APEID) initiated an effort to restructure secondary education. During its fifth programming cycle (1992-1996), the APEID continues its focus on restructuring secondary education. Consequently, the UNESCO…