This paper presents findings of a study that examined how teachers restructuring schools came to understand the meaning of the term "unity of purpose." Fourteen Louisiana schools, comprised primarily of high-risk student populations, implemented the accelerated-schools model of restructuring. The accelerated school model is based on…

The need to restructure the relationship between bilingual education and special education is examined. Common criticisms of special education and changing assumptions underlying it are outlined. Models that have been proposed to explain minority failure in school as something other than inherent disability are analyzed; these models focus on…

The less commonly taught languages (LCTLs) have entered mainstream foreign language teaching only in the last decade. The LCTLs include all languages other than French, German, and Spanish and can be divided into several subgroups, including "truly foreign languages" (TFLs) that are not cognate to English. While TFLs have never been very visible…

This paper describes the initial stages and activities associated with establishing professional development school (PDS) partnerships. Efforts to formulate working groups to develop PDSs began in 1987, and this discussion shares reflections on three years' work. PDSs generally begin when members of the college of education and local school…

This collection of papers focuses on how adults communicate with children in institutional settings such as public schools and day care centers, and how professionals in the field of communication disorders communicate among themselves. Papers include: "Introduction: Linguistic Theories and Language Interaction" (Madeline M. Maxwell); "Inuit…

A professional development model is proposed that is based on learning outcomes derived from Bloom's Taxonomy of Intellectual Inquiry. Professional development is depicted as a sequence of learning components: (1) broadened knowledge and comprehension; (2) improved application of that knowledge; and (3) an analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of…

This study examined the various reasons that motivated district superintendents to leave their 1987-88 positions. The analysis was drawn from a survey of 27 superintendents who had resigned from their current positions. Respondents (N=24) indicated a moderate to high degree of pressure from school boards. All respondents, except one, did not…

This document examines how Ministries/Departments of Education in Canada and the United States build community-ownership of schools. Common and novel strategies for building educational communities are also discussed using Eisler's "gylanic" society paradigm. Individuals within governmental agencies that work at developing collaborative…

Teams in an organization are more than cooperative working groups. Advantages of group work, as opposed to individual work, include producing a better end result, providing satisfaction for the individual and the organization, and assisting the organization through coordination and work allocation. Disadvantages of group work include producing a…

Two Connecticut programs designed to support beginning teachers, the Beginning Educator Support and Training Program (BEST) and the Cooperating Teacher Program (CT), are grounded in the collaborative leadership concept. A working partnership between principals and mentor teachers shares responsibility with a state assessment team to support and…

This paper describes the positive changes in the organizational climate and the role of the principal in one high school during four years of implementing the Spencerport (New York) Effective Schools/Teaching Project. A gradual increase in the building level commitment of the project has led to a redefinition of leadership to include the Building…

One year after the 1982 school board elections in the Ottawa-Carleton (Ontario) region, an indepth followup study was conducted of the 25 new board members to determine: (1) the nature of their election strategies; (2) the degree of their success in implementing election promises; (3) the degree of their socialization during the first year in…

Academic alliances between secondary school teachers and postsecondary faculty are discussed. Teachers and faculty who teach the same subject in the same geographical area voluntarily meet regularly to examine the quality of teaching and learning in their discipline at the local level. School and college faculty together develop some common ground…

This brochure provides brief descriptions of 11 recent documents and journal articles selected from the ERIC database by the ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Management (University of Oregon), all on the broad topic of teacher collegiality. The works reviewed are as follows: "A New Model for Professionalizing Teacher Evaluation," by…

Collaborative strategies were used for the conduct of research on two topics: preservice teacher education for elementary school teachers, and preservice and inservice education for secondary school mathematics teachers. The collaborative arrangements were the same for both projects, but the tasks differed. The intent of the elementary school…