This paper provides an overview of policy issues regarding staff development programs and incentives in order to increase motivation and productivity in educational programs. (Author)

Community reaction to an address by a speaker for Gay Liberation at Schroeder High School, Webster, New York is described. (DE)

This article examines the New York City decentralization program and its implications for ultimate exclusion of those groups for which the original design intended mainstream decision making powers. (JC)

Examines the procedural due process challenge to short-term suspensions. (Author)

Disciplinary violations, the violations of school rules, are rightfully censured solely by school district employees. Crimes, however, represent violations of federal, state, or local laws and concern law enforcement agencies as well as school system officials. Since the mid-1970s, there has been a refining of police-school roles; interagency…

This guide to policy concerning parent involvement in Kentucky's Chapter 1 programs was prepared in an effort to help local districts develop a policy that complies with state legislation. While the parameters of Kentucky's P.L. 100-297 are clear, the procedures for preparing a parent participation policy are complicated. The guide includes an…

This Digest reviews the historical background on grade retention and promotion and examines research, criteria, and policies concerning these options. The historical overview points out changes in attitudes toward mastery-based promotion and social promotion practices in the schools. Valid and invalid approaches to research on grade retention are…

The workings of a research group trying to implement the concept of wait time in high school classes were examined, with comparisons drawn between policy constraints on the researchers and policy constraints on the teachers who were their subjects. Focus is on the development of research ideas; the subjective meaning of the research as work to the…

School policy on teenage pregnancy must take into account a variety legal considerations. Up until recently, the favored way of dealing with pregnant pupils or pupils who are mothers was to exclude them from school. Several law cases involving instances of exclusion and segregation of pregnant pupils are cited. The 14th Amendment's guarantee of…

Although the literature points to principals' central role in enhancing school effectiveness, the demonstration of a causal relationship between their instructional leadership and student achievement is difficult. Researchers have suggested that instructional leadership can influence teaching and classroom practices through the establishment of…

Administrators need to know what control they have over student-produced publications. The first step administrators should take is to be well versed in the First Amendment and in court rulings involving the scope of student rights and school authority in regard to the student press. Step two is to make rules within the law. In general, school…

Following introduction of a reform program by the Ministry of Culture in the FRG, French has slumped in the upper level gymnasium curriculum. Reasons for this are discussed, including students' opinions. Suggests less rigid requirements and more generous grading policies. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Oregon state law requiring the establishment of competence requirements for high school graduation are described and clarified in this document issued by the Oregon Department of Education. A competence guidelist provides behavioral objectives associated with each of six broad competence areas, including reading, writing, mathematics, speaking,…