As the staff and students of Littleton (Colorado) High School have found, talking about restructured educational programs is easier than implementing them. Participants redesigning graduation requirements encountered seven realities, namely the need for sacrifice, adequate funding, discussion time, outside perspectives, ways to dispel fear and…

A study of the proportion of recommendations made in nine areas of program evaluation for two-year colleges found that most were in the area of instruction. Six areas were implemented most frequently. Direct supervisor support facilitated implementation, but insufficient staff time was a barrier. (JOW)

Issues are discussed that arose in the training and implementation of the Advanced Learning Environments Model (an approach to restructuring educational services to accommodate full-time mainstreaming of most mildly handicapped elementary students) at two sites. A brief description of the model and sites is followed by specific issues. (Author/PB)

Confronted by lack of congruence among supervisors' identification of teachers' needs, teachers' identification of their own needs, and in-service training, East Brunswick (New Jersey) High School developed a comprehensive staff development program based on videotaped lessons provided by teachers and reformulated teaching behavior descriptions…

Previous research on program implementation is integrated and extended to form a participatory approach to evaluating program implementation. This method focuses on the continuous active involvement of program developers, managers, and staff in the evaluation process. The methodology is applied to an actual program to highlight the steps involved.…

Looks at a study of 36 extension officers that found that 89% of the agents had specific plans, but only 8% of the programs were implemented as specified. Suggests reasons for the discrepancy and suggests a flexible planning model for more effective programming. (JOW)

A study examined vocational/academic integration (VAI) in four Illinois secondary sites, assuming that why schools or teachers choose to integrate will affect how they go about it. The case studies revealed the process of VAI in two different lights: as a highly formalized, documented, and administered procedure; and as an informal collection of…

Surveys the history of elementary-school technology education from the establishment of industrial arts in the progressive era through the 1990s. Considers repeated patterns of historical impediments to its widespread implementation and identifies failure to resolve recurring issues in the field. (JOW)

Differences in theories of actions may be a source of considerable conflict in education reform. An analysis of the first two years of the ATLAS Communities Project shows how different theories of action contributed to significant disagreement over issues on the process of change, nature of curriculum, and personal and organizational development.…

New superintendents' most common mistakes include extolling a previous district's way of doing things, assuming they are the only experts, having answers before knowing the questions, developing person-specific rules, having either an open- or closed-door policy, redecorating, and being a conspicuous consumer. Avoidance strategies are outlined.…

Reviews relevant literature in the areas of communication and innovation and explores how efforts toward innovative practices are directly related to globalism and business strategy. Focuses on issues associated with national culture, corporate culture, and professional culture that are relevant to strategies for researching business communication…

A North Carolina district that launched a differentiation program for gifted students discovered that all students benefit. Interested districts should start by offering staff development to a small, interested group of teachers; build on teachers' existing practices; target resources; and support teacher collaboration. (MLH)

A Minnesota high school used a consultant to evaluate operations in the principal's office, guidance office, media center, and technology services department. Staff will focus on recommendations concerning communications, process improvement and evaluation, technology implementation, performance and behavior coaching, active listening, customer…

After refining its teacher standards, a California school district implemented professional standards for administrators, a goal-setting and assessment system, and a professional- development support model. Principals are responsible for providing effective school, community and instructional leadership; creating and maintaining a positive…

Drawing on prior research, focuses on the intervention approaches primary and secondary schools take as they formulate and apply improvement efforts. Describes conceptualization, intervention impact, redefinition of the problem, and impact evaluation as stages of improvement and identifies essential conditions that indicate a school staff that…