Faculty development practices vary greatly among the four geographical regions of the United States, according to the results of a national survey of school districts during the 1985-86 academic year. Of the 353 districts sent questionnaires (all identified by state departments of education as having outstanding staff development programs), 267…

Recently, the traditional school structure has been harshly scrutinized for several key defects, including bureaucratic rules and regulations, professional isolation of teaching staff, evaluation systems irrelevant to instructional improvement, low teacher participation in decision making, and noncooperation between teachers and administrators.…

The interaction between computer/information technology and the teaching professoriate is considered. Based on a model introduced in 1984, the first encounter with computing is viewed as an alien culture into which the novice must be socialized. Three distinct stages occur in socialization: reality shock, confusion, and attempts at control. To…

Results of a survey of college students to determine attitude change toward the Third World as a result of their participation in classes taught by faculty members involved in a Third World Faculty Development Seminar are discussed. Faculty from many disciplines participated in the seminar and then integrated Third World materials into their…

When the traditional opportunities for professional renewal do not seem adequate or appropriate to teachers of English as a second language (ESL), one means of professional development is self-initiated, naturalistic research in curriculum and instructional development. However, individual action research has the limitations of one person's time,…

American higher education has isolated the enterprise of basic research and relegated it to the university, while simultaneously insulating the craft of teaching from the scholarship that nourishes it by identifying certain colleges, community colleges in particular, as "teaching" institutions. From the start, community colleges have not required…

Focusing primarily on library, information service, and archive school faculty, this paper discusses the significant implications of preparing the trainers in the information professions for performance commensurate with the demands of the field. Topics discussed include: (1) particular needs that must be met in preparing information…

The purpose of this forum was the assessment of how well current research is meeting the needs of rural educators. Individual papers presented at the forum are "Learning To Find the 'Niches': Rural Education and Vitalizing Rural Communities" by Daryl Hobbs with commentary by Richard Tulikangas; "Effective Rural Schools: Where Are We? Where Are We…

This paper reviews staff development research related to rural schools. Only a limited number of studies have described, or evaluated the effects of, particular staff development programs in rural schools, or have assessed the perceived needs of rural faculty and administrators for inservice training. However, rural educators can draw implications…

Problems that threaten the future careers of faculty and the quality of education at colleges and universities are reviewed, based on a literature review. It is suggested that new federalism, decreased revenue, declining enrollments, increased state and federal regulations, and public demand for accountability have threatened the ability of higher…

Compiled as a resource guide for faculty development programs, this manual presents a collection of ideas, materials, and resources designed to increase the effectiveness of adjunct staff members in postsecondary occupational education. After a statement of the manual's purpose, the next section provides a perspective on disadvantages facing…

The North West Oklahoma In-Service Cooperative (NWOIC), established in 1980, encourages, promotes, and channels faculty development and needs in the rural northwestern quadrant of Oklahoma. Its objectives are: (1) to aid northwestern Oklahoma school districts in the structure and administration of local faculty development plans; (2) to develop…

Sex differences in faculty members' use of and evaluation of sabbaticals and leaves taken at a large research university were examined. Attention was directed to sex differences in two faculty programs: a competitive leave program, established in 1954, which awards faculty a leave for one quarter at full pay; and a noncompetitive sabbatical…

A study sought to determine factors and conditions which distinguish effective and less effective staff inservice training. Over 1000 teachers and administrators, who participated in 112 staff inservice projects, were the study subjects. Data was gather by pre- and post-workshop questionnaires. This report presents a summary of the findings on:…

Recent research has focused not only on trying to explain the low rate of diffusion and adoption of innovative programs, but also on the lack of use of "knowledge," more broadly defined to include ideas, information, craft skills, materials, experience, and the like. It is widely acknowledged that disproportionally more educational…