This paper describes two recent seminars for exemplary K-12 public school teachers from North Carolina held at the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT). A discussion is presented on the program's rationale. The seminars are examined in the light of the framework of an article on four conceptions of excellence: (1)…

The Milpitas Unified School District's efforts to utilize information on school effectiveness and improvement research are reported. The first section gives a historical perspective on the district's activities in the area of implementing the school effectiveness research. This is followed by a discussion of the assessment and planning process…

Focusing upon the importance of the overall school climate, and viewing school improvement from a cultural perspective, this document presents a report on the first year of a study of culture and cultural processes involved in improving the effectiveness of high schools. The first section discusses the year's three major activities undertaken to…

A report is given of a study conducted on the nature and extent of support that local school systems in Maryland currently provide to new teachers. The study had two components: a statewide survey and case studies of promising programs. The survey polled Associate or Assistant Superintendents of Instruction in 23 of Maryland's 24 county school…

It is suggested in this paper that practical arguments can be used in teacher education and staff development programs to introduce teachers to research-based practices. Practical arguments consist of three types of premises--value, empirical, and situational--that conclude with an action, or an intention to act. Such arguments are a useful way to…

Achievements of the Building Our American Communities Program (BOAC), initiated in 1971 to provide a vehicle for Future Farmers of America members to make direct contributions to their communities and to practice good citizenship and develop leadership skills, are summarized in this 1985 annual report. the report begins with messages from…

Although useful for any community development planning team, this handbook is designed to assist Future Farmers of America chapter committees in coordinating Building Our American Communities (BOAC) projects. Ten steps for successful chapter participation in the BOAC program are outlined. These steps include selecting the BOAC committee and…

Preliminary lessons emerging from five case studies contained in a larger study on improving urban high schools are explored in this report. An eclectic approach was taken to describe the contextual influences in and around the school improvement programs. Potential variables were selected from previous research to frame the investigation and site…

The concept of a functional "we" in a school setting and the idea that people who make up a school community relate school experiences and interpret school phenomena in the form of organizational "stories" provide the theoretical bases for a model to initiate strategies for school development and improvement. The functional "we" concept refers to…

The School Improvement Model project, a total systems approach to evaluating and improving instruction, will be fully implemented by 1983-84. The project includes four components: teacher performance evaluation, administrator performance evaluation, student achievement measurement, and staff development. Five school districts in Minnesota and Iowa…

The five modules presented in this document correspond to the five major phases of a productivity management system. A system overview provides an outline of module contents. The modules cover these phases: awareness, planning and analysis, assessment and preparation, training and implementation, and evaluation and maintenance. Each module is…

The concept of staff development and continuous improvement for teachers and administrators is discussed in the context of a state-developed plan that allows teacher certification renewal only after participation in an approved local staff development program. The plan stipulates that local educational agencies identify student needs and…

A project at Bucknell University is described that was designed to: evaluate faculty teaching, conduct faculty seminars and workshops, disseminate sources of information to faculty, provide funds for the support of instructional improvement projects, develop a means of relating the quality of teaching and scholarship to a system of financial and…

THE MOST SUCCESSFUL AREA OF THE PROGRAM WAS READING. THE BOOK LEVELS INCREASED FOR THE CHILDREN. THE LONGER A CHILD WAS INVOLVED WITH THE PROJECT, THE GREATER WAS HIS RATE OF PROGRESS. IN EVALUATING THE ROLE OF THE LANGUAGE LABORATORY, IT WAS EVIDENT THAT A MEDIAN INCREASE OF SLIGHTLY MORE THAN THREE READING LEVELS WAS ACHIEVED. THROUGH THE…

CHILDREN INVOLVED IN THE PROJECT COMMUNITY INCLUDED A DIVERSITY OF ETHNIC GROUPS. NEGROES REPRESENTED THE LARGEST SINGLE GROUP, BUT INCREASING NUMBERS OF PUERTO RICAN FAMILIES WERE MOVING INTO THE NORTH CENTRAL PART OF PHILADELPHIA. THE CHILDREN OF THIS AREA WERE CHARACTERIZED BY THEIR FAILURE TO MEET PROJECTED GROWTH EXPECTANCIES IN CURRICULUM…