Search

This paper discusses distinguishing features of site-based management, theories supporting site-based management, examples of current practices, and special education implications. Part I presents issues concerning the implementation of site-based management as a restructuring process, including obstacles in implementing site-based management, vehicles for developing and implementing campus site-based management, the principal's role, critical elements to successful implementation, theoretical basis, and useful concepts from organizational theory. Part II provides examples and makes recommendations to aid policy makers in creating programs that address special education issues in the context of site-based management. It presents the Evaluation of Phases Model as an assessment activity prior to restructuring, and then proposes the following policies, accompanied by rationale and recommendations: (1) site-based management should be supported by drastic changes in organizational structures and procedures to result in improved educational outcomes for all children; (2) site-based management should promote the inclusion of students with disabilities; (3) changes in policies and procedures are necessary to enable effective special education practices in the context of site-based management; (4) site-based management should integrate regular and special education; and (5) site-based management should result in improved quality of programming and services to students with special needs. (Contains approximately 60 references.) (JDD)

Having been schooled in the intellectual tradition of the strict separation of church and state, educational researchers have devoted little scholarly attention to how religion affects education. This paper delineates the ways in which religion and politics intersect to shape society, particularly, the impact of the intersection on education. The paper explains why the intellectual wall exists, religion's impact on society, and the relationship between religion and politics. Issues that stem from the intersection of religion, public education, and policy preferences are highlighted. The relationships between religion and political culture and between political culture and educational policy are also summarized. Research in this area is made challenging by the pluralistic nature of religion and the intangible concepts of religion and political culture. (Contains 55 references.) (LMI)

Most school districts have cautiously avoided situations in which they may violate the legal principle of church-state separation. This paper describes a few cases in which public schools found ways to legally include Christian activities for Christian students. The passage of the United States Equal Access Act in 1984 allowed religious clubs access to public secondary schools. The "Board of Education of the Westside Community Schools v. Mergens" case of 1990 ruled that high school students could participate in a prayer club at their school with a "limited open forum." The Mergens case opened the door to many student-led, Bible-club-related activities; however, the debate continues as to what constitutes a limited open forum. The "Mergens" case has also untied the hands of many Christian educators, parents, and students who want to allow Bible studies, clubs, and prayer groups on their campuses. These activities are growing rapidly. The key is that they must be organized and led by students. Two student-led organizations include the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) and Teens United in Faith (TUF) clubs. Elementary students at Gerard Elementary School in Cleburne, Texas, have also formed a Bible club with the strong support of parents, teachers, and their principal. The paper argues that the founding fathers of the United States intended freedom of religion rather than freedom from religion. (LMI)

This paper examines the use of corporal punishment in public schools. It presents a brief history of corporal-punishment practices and explains why corporal punishment remains a legal means of control in the schools of 23 states in the United States. Opponents of corporal punishment argue that it should be abolished from schools because it models violence, does not teach appropriate behaviors or problem-solving skills, and is discriminatorily applied to black males in elementary schools and those with learning/mental/behavioral disabilities. Eleven alternatives to corporal punishment are highlighted: nonacknowledgement of disruptive behavior and reinforcement of appropriate behavior, signal interference, proximity control, interest boosting, tension reduction through humor, hurdle helping, program restructuring, the use of routine to provide security, direct appeal, removal of seductive objects, and positive removal of student from the classroom. The paper also presents 14 nonaversive strategies to prevent misbehaviors and promote prosocial skills. It is recommended that teacher-education programs provide behavior-management courses and that parents and teachers investigate nonaversive discipline options. Contains a list of 5 resources and 23 references. (LMI)

This paper reports on research into the concept of mentoring from many educational perspectives, based on six papers presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association in April 1994. The paper notes that mentoring is a slippery concept, without a precise operational definition; definitions used in the six papers are discussed. The paper also discusses the absence of general agreement on concept paradigms; the exploration of expanded concepts associated with mentoring, including nurturing relationships and clinical education; problems with normative surveys as vehicles for understanding the benefits of applying the concept of mentoring in administrator or leader preparation; alternative lines of inquiry, such as carefully recorded case studies; and the role of the institution as mentor. The paper concludes that the use of classic novels and stories of mentors and their proteges would provide greater benefit over additional normative studies. (JDD)

As they work to develop integrated, community-driven service systems that meet the constellation of needs of children and families, several states are beginning to develop new governance structures at the local level. This paper describes the ways in which states are creating or supporting linkages among education, health, and human services. A conceptual framework is developed with the following themes: systemic policy change, local governance/empowerment, policy instruments, and resulting linkages. The paper uses the conceptual framework to briefly examine two state initiatives that have selected a mixture of policy instruments to create linkages among education, health, and social services. Arkansas' Families First is an initiative that loosely links the education, health, and human service systems. Kentucky's Family Resource Centers and Youth Services Centers offer a more tightly linked approach to systems integration. Finally, policy implementation can serve as an input for future policy development. (LMI)

This paper presents one approach to assessment of students with severe mental retardation, as implemented in the Harris County Department of Education in Houston, Texas. The paper views assessment as a strategic problem-solving process that acquires information vital for making programmatic suggestions. The benefits of parental involvement in the assessment process are emphasized. The bulk of the paper comprises detailed checklists for parents to complete to provide assessment information in the areas of: activities at home; activities for developing motor skills; vocational tasks; and academic skills needed for educational, domestic, community, recreation/leisure, and vocational environments. (35 references) (JDD)

Teachers perceive classroom management to be one of the most enduring and widespread problems in education. This paper presents findings of a study that continued efforts to refine the Attitudes and Beliefs on Classroom Control (ABCC) Inventory. Formerly called the Inventory of Classroom Management Style, the ABCC is an instrument designed to measure teachers' perceptions of their classroom-management beliefs and practices. The study sought to investigate differences between the classroom-management style of male and female educators. A second objective was to substantiate the construct validity of the ABCC Inventory. The ABCC and selected subscales of the 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire (16 PF) were administered to 282 teachers in the southwestern United States. Twenty-two percent of the teachers taught at the elementary level and 61 percent taught at the secondary level. Females accounted for about two-thirds of the subject pool. Male teachers scored significantly higher in the interventionist style on two of the three ABCC subscales and significantly higher on "dominance" on the 16 PF. Several correlations with ABCC subscales and selected 16 PF subscales proved significant, were both positive and negative in direction, and were consistent with the construct. Three tables are included. (Contains 21 references.) (LMI)

This paper analyzes "confused history" on the part of students and where that confusion might originate. The study is based on a modified form of content analysis of articles by R. Lederer. The articles offer a compilation of student errors in history and geography. Two major categories of errors are recognized: (1) Type I, represented by errors not necessarily representative of historical misconceptions, includes misspellings, silly sentence construction, phonetic mix-up, substitution of unknown words with known words, and transposition of similar sounding consonants; and (2) Type II, perhaps representative of deeper misconceptions, involves conceptual errors and misguided or "fuzzy logic." This second category may have a greater impact on the scholarly representation of history for the student and the teacher. Examples of each type of error are analyzed with suggestions made for correction. (EH)

What leaders encourage others to do must be congruent with the values they espouse and demonstrate through action. The educational leadership platform has recently been used as a tool to assist aspiring leaders in clarifying their personal values. This paper presents findings of a study that explored the effect of the educational leadership platform on leadership behavior. The study examined the leadership theories developed by four practicing administrators. It compared their current leadership views to those that they developed as teachers enrolled in an administrator-preparation program, and analyzed their espoused theories in relation to subordinates' perceptions of their leadership behavior. All four participants shared values for developing real-world experiences, recognizing their social responsibility, promoting shared learning, valuing personal development, and initiating change and creativity. These values are compatible with Alderfer's motivation theory and with Maslow's human-needs theory. Although the administrators held somewhat different views of their leadership role and espoused slightly different values, they remained true to their earlier views. The findings suggest that there is value in clarifying one's values through such activities as platform development. Recommendations for the use of platforms are included. Eight tables, a sample analysis sheet, and sample interview formats are included. (Contains 10 references.) (LMI)

The use of the cohort-survival method for projecting student enrollments is widely known in educational finance literature; however, the limited information provided by the model impedes planners in making future operational decisions. The cohort-survival method employs historical rates of usage to predict future patterns of usage and produces a grade-by-grade forecast for each student cohort. This paper presents a model that develops multipliers for several student-support programs to create a broad base of information. The model accommodates the number of regular public school students by grade level as well as an estimate of certain student-support programs--compensatory education, bilingual education, and 11 categories of special education. The model incorporates student-support-program requirements and adds the numbers of retained members to the next cohort, thus presenting a more accurate view of the enrollment picture. Two figures are included. (Contains nine references.) (LMI)

This paper presents findings of a study that investigated the relationship between schools and communities. Each of the 10 schools under study served predominantly low-socioeconomic Mexican-American students. Data were derived from interviews and observations conducted at 8 of the 10 schools. Findings show that the schools' relationships with their communities followed three models: the community as resource for the school; the community and school as an integrated unit; and the school as a locus for a learning community. The three schools that interacted with the community as a resource tended to serve highly fragmented communities facing such problems as gangs, poverty, unemployment, and single-parent families. The three schools were dependent on the community. Two schools were integrated with community and one school proactively initiated an extended learning environment with the community. The two integrated schools were characterized by a great degree of overlap between the schools and their surrounding culture. However, the schools' very traditional contexts are difficult to replicate in postindustrial, late-20th century communities. The proactive school viewed itself as a resource for the entire community, participated in the community, and made adult education a priority. Factors of successful school-community relationships include the provision of opportunities for participation, a collegial school administration, and constant communication. (LMI)

This brief paper offers a systematic approach to making decisions regarding the provision of assistive technology devices and services for students with disabilities. Initial questions address which students need assistive technology, what kind of technology is needed, and who is involved in making these decisions. The question about what sort of data should be collected is answered by a proposed model, the SETT framework, which raises a series of 16 questions about the Student, the Environment, the Tasks, and the Tools. A form for collecting SETT information is attached. (DB)

Educators are faced with increasingly complex ethical decisions. This paper presents findings of a study that identified similarities and differences in levels of moral development and ethical reasoning processes exhibited by school board members and superintendents. A survey of 110 superintendents and their respective school board members elicited response rates of 40 percent and 8 percent, respectively. A total of 38 usable superintendent and 50 usable board member responses were received. The survey instrument, the Ethics Opinions Survey, contained demographic questions, the Defining Issues Test, and three ethical decision vignettes. Findings indicate that board members and superintendents had lower than average levels of moral development. Both groups exhibited a strong rule- and order-orientation and did not differ significantly in their decision-making processes. The results are consistent with bureaucratic socialization theory, which holds that both groups engage in a rule-oriented socialization process. A change in principled moral reasoning and ethical decision making requires a monumental restructuring of the entire educational community and socialization process. Three tables are included. (LMI)

This paper presents findings of a study that developed, measured, and tested the Organizational/Supervisory (O/S) Model of Instructional Supervision. The six dimensions of the Organizational Supervisory Climate Inventory (OSCI)--organizational structure, professional autonomy, collaborative sharing, district supervisory climate, reflection, and centralization--served as independent variables. The dependent variables were three recognized indices of effectiveness--school effectiveness, organizational effectiveness, and school holding power. Methodology involved a survey of 7,358 professional staff (primarily teachers) and 452 administrators in 1 state and interviews with 2 randomly selected teachers and the principal in 20 of the schools that participated in the survey. Findings indicate that the OSCI instrument is a highly reliable and stable measure of the organizational/supervisory climate, which indicates that the relationship between school effectiveness and school climate can be conceptualized and measured multidimensionally. The O/S model shows the usefulness of subscribing to a richer view of school instructional supervision as a fundamentally organizational phenomenon. Appendices include information on the research-design process, the O/S Model of Instructional Supervision, and statistical data. Contains 29 references. (LMI)

This paper examines proposals to integrate regular and special education. It offers an overview of pertinent regular and special education-reform efforts, discusses recommendations for unified schools that include all students, and reviews literature on political culture theory. Elazar's (1966) theory of political culture is used as a framework for analyzing the potential micro- and macro-political effects of creating a unified education system. A conclusion is that throughout the 1980s, the reform of regular education centered on quality and excellence, whereas special-education reform advocated equity through efficient order. The unanswered question of the 1990s appears to be "Are both excellence and equity possible in the schools?" This poses dilemmas of control versus democracy and equity versus excellence. Recommendations for creating a unified school system include promoting dialogue among all stakeholders, understanding political cultures, and carefully examining the underlying values of the current educational system. (LMI)

This paper presents findings of a study that examined the role principals play as schools institute democratic governance structures. During 2.5 years, data were collected through interviews, observations, and document analysis at six schools engaged in a shared decision-making (SDM) project. Findings suggest that for principals to foster SDM in their schools, they need to do more than step back and allow others to speak up. They must support and encourage SDM through creating opportunities for community participation. In addition, school context--the economic background of student populations, the faculty and student turnover rate, and the school/district relationship--affected the school's SDM efforts. It is recommended that school improvement be undertaken at multiple levels. Principals can make a difference in promoting SDM at their individual schools, but efforts at the larger system level are needed to mitigate educational inequalities across school sites. (LMI)

Findings of a study that examined the impact of parent involvement on student performance in Catholic and public schools are presented in this paper. Methodology involved regression analysis of the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88) database, which contains information on 1,035 schools (802 public and 233 private schools) and findings of a survey and series of standardized tests administered to 24,599 eighth-graders. First, in terms of external involvement, Catholic parents were much more involved than their non-Catholic counterparts. However, Catholic parents and public school parents did not interact differently in the home. Second, a strong verbal relationship between parent and child was an important factor of student academic performance in both public and Catholic schools. Parental regulation of children's extracurricular activities appeared to contribute to improved achievement for public school children, but not for Catholic students. Finally, increased parent involvement in Catholic school activities appeared to facilitate improvements in the performance of all students in the school. The findings suggest that there may be some measurable differences in the climate of public schools compared with Catholic schools and in the association of climate with performance. Much of the differences appeared to be related to the ways parents interact with their children outside the home, in the context of the school and community. Three tables and an appendix containing 12 statistical tables are included. (LMI)

This paper examines how selected program characteristics and attributes of key players affected two school-university collaborative efforts, and how funded grants created the need for collaborative linkages between schools and universities with little or no prior experience in joint efforts. Two programs (an alternative certification program and a professional-development center) their joint planning processes, and the consequences of their joint actions are described. The alternative certification program was established to meet the perceived shortage of secondary mathematics and science teachers, and the professional-development center was created to provide teacher-preparation programs that are technology enhanced and field-based. Findings indicate that although formal structures may support cooperation, it is the individuals within organizations who make collaboration a success. The human characteristics of risk taking, commitment, tolerance for ambiguity, energy, and compassion contribute to the success of collaborative activities across institutions. Communication is the key. As trust builds through interactions and demonstrative actions, collaboration becomes a valuable byproduct of successful communication. One table and two figures are included. Contains 21 references. (LMI)

Research on the communicative competency of faculty indicates that students can be motivated to learn by competent communicators. In general, communication experts have better competency skills, (i.e., they use more effective verbal and nonverbal immediacy behaviors) than do faculty as a whole. An area much in need of development for most faculty members is skill in asking questions. Teachers skilled in questioning techniques can move students back and forth through Bloom's Taxonomy of Cognitive Objectives. Too many faculty read from their notes, heads down, eyes focused on papers, with general disregard for the audience. Communication and power are integrally related and directly affect the classroom climate and subsequently the cognitive learning experience. (A table representing a taxonomy of behavior alteration techniques and behavior alteration messages is included.) (RS)

In response to school districts' needs to improve public confidence in the schools, researchers surveyed 74 public relations directors in 147 districts in 25 states to determine the key ingredients for developing a model public relations policy. Respondents ranked 93 paired statements on both what "are" and what "ought to be" their districts' policy development processes in public relations. The statements fell into six areas, including participation in policy formation, values, goals, administrative structure, strategies, and policy assessment. Demographic and other data were also collected on the respondents and their districts. Respondents tended to be untenured staffpersons with bachelors' or masters' degrees and some experience in teaching, administration, and public relations. Their districts were mostly medium-sized and suburban with a written public relations policy. Analysis of variance on the 93 paired statements yielded 41 with significantly high rankings. Among the policy development recommendations were that educators, parents, and students should participate in determining district public relations policy; that schools and communities must have mutual trust; and that school principals should carry out their own public relations programs. (RW)

If the challenges of the 21st century are to be met successfully, education must transform its orientation from one of exclusion to inclusion. To assist in the transformation of systems, to address specific barriers to inclusion, and to offer exemplary models in educational leadership, the Texas Council of Women School Executives sponsored a pilot course called "Women in Educational Leadership." The course combined the expertise of university and public school personnel for establishing formal and informal networks. Course components addressed communication skills, projection of professionalism, definitions and controversies of leadership, force-field analysis of obstacles, and maintenance of psychological and physical health in participatory formats. Participants designed professional portfolios, wrote and updated resumes, planned for improvement of professional images, practiced interview scenarios encompassing "difficult" questions, read current professional literature on women's issues, and engaged in research on women. Pre- and post-questionnaires indicate that participants felt the course addressed their issues of concern and aided in their personal transformation. Specifically, the students reported that they developed better networking systems, learned to balance their personal and professional lives, and learned from role models. It is recommended that administrator-education programs offer similar courses or integrate such experiences into existing coursework which could benefit both women and men. Contains 10 references. (LMI)

The relationship between staff development and the integration of microcomputing into instructional practice is examined. Data were obtained from a survey of all public school districts in a midwestern state (N=427). The questionnaire elicited information about the districts' integration of microcomputers into instruction and the extent/scope of staff development related to microcomputers. The analysis is based on Joyce and Showers' model (1988) that identifies the following components of an effective staff-development program: (1) information or theory about the training topic; (2) live and mediated demonstration; (3) opportunities for practice in the training setting and work place; (4) feedback on performance; and (5) peer coaching. Findings tended to support Joyce and Showers' theory of staff development in the three ways. First, if greater student contact with microcomputers is a goal of public schools, then good staff development is related to that success. Second, good staff development may occur more readily in districts that have a lower pupil-to-computer ratio. And third, quality staff development is key in bringing about greater use of innovative technologies in instruction. Five recommendations for practice are offered. Twenty-two tables are included. Contains 31 references. (LMI)

This paper examines change and change facilitators as they affect full use of adaptive and assistive technology (AAT) in special education, and compares qualitative versus quantitative methods of researching the change process. Four administrators and two teachers from a rural school district completed the Stages of Concern Questionnaire, which locates participant attitudes about change or innovation on a seven-stage continuum, and the Academic Administrator Grid, which assesses leadership styles of educational professionals. Researchers then interviewed the participants using the Facilitating Change with Adaptive and Assistive Technology Questionnaire, which aims to discover underlying barriers to the use of AAT. Results show that the district was in the Level-1 Stage of Concern of a seven-stage model of change, indicating that it was still at the information-gathering stage concerning AAT. The majority of participants rated themselves as "Team Administrators," a style of leadership conducive to change. Participants expressed financial concerns about AAT, and did not agree on specific policies. Findings indicate that both quantitative and qualitative research methods are necessary for this complex issue. (KS)

Special education is experiencing the effects of educational reform. Examples include rethinking of service delivery, collaborative versus authoritarian leadership, teambuilding and inclusionary practices replace exclusionary practices, and diversity issues. These changes are creating ethical and moral dilemmas for school administrators. In forming moral judgements, two voices are distinguishable: the voice of care, connection, protection from harm, and response; and the voice of justice, equality, reciprocity, and rights. Women tend to choose a care orientation while men tend to choose a justice orientation. The competence of caring and intuition has just as much importance as that of justice, and needs to be assimilated into the leadership and organizational theories for educational administration. This approach can be applied to special education service delivery and administrative practice through consideration of such issues as placement of minority students, services to individuals with disabilities as well as their caregivers, shared educational responsibility, participatory opportunities for parents, and the impact of Outcome Based Education. (Contains 35 references.) (JDD)

Issues related to achieving adequate national norms are reviewed, and a new methodology is proposed that would work to provide a true measure of national achievement levels on an annual basis and would enable reporting results in current-year norms. Statistical methodology and technology could combine to create a national norming process that would publish an annual national norm soon after test users complete their regular annual testing programs. This approach would be supplemented by a small national normative sample and adjusted by a factor to reduce the influence of users. This approach would also include almost immediate turnaround of the current-year norms to allow schools to report their annual scores using those norms. Schools already giving a test would transmit their data electronically to a central location. Schools in the normative sample would test and transmit their data. A current year norm table could then be produced. This type of norming procedure would probably require a national center for test norming, as well as cooperation among test publishers. Cooperation from school districts would be secured by the fact that they could have national norms within weeks of transmitting their raw data. It should ultimately be possible to establish a national educational achievement indicator to rival Scholastic Aptitude Test scores--an indicator with the simplicity of the Dow Jones average or the Consumer Price Index. Nine figures illustrate the discussion. (SLD)

Teacher training is examined from two viewpoints: (1) how bilingual teacher education has evolved over the years; and (2) what all teachers, especially bilingual and English-as-a-Second-Language teachers, should know and be able to do when working with language minority, culturally different students. The first part of the paper describes the state of the art in bilingual teacher education from a historical perspective, including linguistic, cognitive, cultural, and social dimensions. The second part describes the needed teaching competencies based on a redefinition of the student population. More than 60 specific attitude, knowledge, and skill competencies are identified for two categories: cultural/linguistic incorporation and community participation. Skills related to curriculum, methodology, classroom management, and assessment are also presented. Contains 55 references. (LB)

The University Council for Educational Administration's (UCEA) response to the National Policy Board's agenda is reviewed in this address. Recommendations for action include: reassessment of the organizational mission; initiation of assertive interaction with critics; and collaboration among all professional groups. Examples of the UCEA's actions fulfilling each recommendation are presented. (21 references) (LMI)

These two related papers provide information on teacher attitudes toward black dialect use in the classroom and the measurement of such attitudes. The first paper reports on data from 176 administrators, counselors, teachers, and student teachers, revealing significant relationships between a teacher's definition of black dialect, attitudes toward black dialect, and race of teacher. The second paper describes the steps taken to refine and improve a language attitude inventory (LAI) so that it could be used to describe and to make inferences about teachers' attitudes toward the use of black dialect in the classroom. The two versions of the LAI and a bibliography on teacher attitudes and dialects are provided. (RL)

This paper describes an in-service workshop on writing, which begins by having teachers air negative feelings and false conceptions about the writing process, involves the teachers in writing and introduces the writing process concept. A sentence completion activity, integrated with the viewing of a videotape, helps teachers examine their assumptions and misconceptions about the writing process. This self-assessment uncovers negative attitudes and anxieties about writing, reveals background knowledge of composition and related terminology, identifies individual problem areas in expectations of self and students, and releases fears and negative feelings as well as shared personal concerns. Finally, it involves teachers in writing, writing about writing, and writing to learn. A major part of the paper consists of sentence completion exercises. (EL)

This paper is designed to help educational leaders improve their decision making strategies (and correspondingly educational practice) by evaluating their own strategy in concert with a model proposed in the paper. The proposed model provides educational leaders with an enhanced context within which one can effectively analyze and evaluate policies and procedures, critical issues, and decision making processes, and determine educational practices that will result in more effective schools. The model serves as a framework for analysis and evaluation and includes the following components: (1) the foundations of education (historical, philosophical, sociological, political and organizational) and how these perspectives should be considered in the decision making process and their relationship to administrative behavior and the decision setting; (2) the functions of management and their role in the decision making process; (3) the implications of policy development related to the decision and the policy's ensuing procedures with emphasis on the appropriate level of policy/procedure development and how a policy can be integrated into the life of an organization; and (4) the use of the attributes/findings of the more effective schools research as a criterion for analyzing, evaluating and implementing policies and procedures to carry out the decision. (Author/DF)

This paper discusses an effective model of systematic staff development focusing on prevention and intervention strategies used with at-risk students. The following are key elements: (1) matching of the purposes of training to the goals of the school districts; (2) multiple and integrated activities; (3) participants' thorough orientation to the purpose and content of the development activities; (4) opportunities for collaboration among school staff such as information sharing, observing, mentoring, peer coaching, and planning; (5) ongoing opportunities for practice and information sharing; and (6) follow-up support and assistance between training sessions. The characteristics of effective training sessions and the contextual factors are briefly described. To address the unmet educational needs of the at-risk student population, the in-service training plan should be: (1) comprehensive, including detailed teachers' manuals, curriculum materials, lesson guides, and supportive material; (2) intensive, using one-to-one tutoring or individually-adapted computer-assisted instruction; (3) flexible, using student progress assessments to modify groupings or instructional content; and (4) preventive, emphasizing that students learn to read the first time they are taught. Schools can develop feasible programs to ensure that every child learns, but it will take effective in-service training that is individually tailored to meet those program goals. This paper contains 10 references. (ALL)

Responding to the mandates of the Educational Reform Bill in Texas, new emphasis has been placed on the role and responsibilities of substitute teachers. This paper describes a 5-hour substitute teacher seminar that all substitute teachers and aide applicants are required to attend. The 2-day seminar focuses on the contents of the "Substitute Teacher Handbook" and also includes presentations by regular elementary and secondary teachers on the practical problems faced in a "real-life" classroom. Excerpts from the handbook cover general instructions for substitute teachers, the substitute teacher's responsibilities to the schools, the responsibilities of the regular classroom teacher, and how a substitute teacher can contribute to the school district's public relations. (JD)

The system discussed in this paper was successfully used to track approximately 17,000 students participating in various educational programs and to measure their gains through achievement test results. It was developed for a school district with twelve supplementary instruction programs, and has been in use since the 1975-76 school year. The evaluation method was used to fulfill federal reporting requirements and to conduct longitudinal studies in measuring the impact of instructional programs. Programs in which kindergarten through high school students were tracked included: Title I, Title VII, State Bilingual, Migrant, and Experimental Schools. Inservice training was conducted to familiarize teachers and counselors with the materials required in the process. Greater speed in reporting test results, and increased specificity of scores for each student helped to alleviate teacher resistance to the extra record keeping involved. Appendices include a list of references, examples of scoring sheets, program code numbers, a list of the scoring codes, their corresponding programs, and the matching design. (FG)

To gain insight into the nature of cooperative and collaborative processes and to contribute information to those considering similar research, an effort was initiated by a school district and a research center to work together in a "collaborative" mode. It was anticipated that the needs of the school district would be addressed, that the goals of the research center would be met, and that a descriptive model for collaboration would emerge. This paper presents a brief sampling of the literature on such joint efforts, a narrative of the context and events of the case study, an analysis and identification of the components and relationships required for both cooperation and collaboration, and descriptive models of cooperation and collaboration with predicted outcomes of each. Although the attempt at collaboration failed, it provided insight into the natures of collaboration and cooperation. Interinstitutional cooperation is a model wherein one institution is primarily involved in the task and the results fill that organization's needs. In contrast, collaboration involves both institutions in a shared task and provides mutually rewarding gains. Additional benefits also accrue in collaborative relationships. (Author/IRT)

When a school system chooses to buy into modern computer technology as the way to solve some existing problems and to meet pressing needs, a myriad of new problems and issues are created. However, the new problems are worth solving to allow the system to benefit from the new technology. In other words, the conversion to using the latest computer resources is accompanied by many growing pains, but the end result promises to be sufficiently more efficient and productive to justify the costs. This paper explores seven of the issues which are encountered when a school system implements modern computer technology. (Author)

Major roles, relationships, and responsibilities of key individuals involved in supervising bilingual teacher and student teacher training are explored in this paper. The instructional team concept is explained as the basis for developing a program which requires that all individuals involved in the training of bilingual personnel possess a common understanding of bilingual program goals. Clinical supervision (focusing on what and how teachers teach) and developmental supervision (based on individual stages of concern about innovation) are offered as means by which all personnel involved in bilingual education can move through a series of stages to higher degrees of competency. Detailed discussions are presented on the role, responsibility, and required competencies of instructional team members: (1) university supervisor; (2) cooperating teacher; (3) bilingual student teacher; (4) bilingual program director; (5) bilingual supervisor or resource leaders; (6) bilingual teacher; and (7) school principal. Appended is an overview of the clinical supervision cycle, a listing of bilingual education teacher competencies, and samples of forms used in developing this framework for improving bilingual education. (JD)

The focus of this paper will be to argue for an effective and concise evaluation of special education programs serving bilingual or limited English proficient (LEP) students. Although Public Law 94-142 specifies that all children be provided with free appropriate education according to their individual needs, ensuring compliance with these requirements has been problematic, particularly in the provision and evaluation of appropriate programs and services to bilingual children. The future success of special education programs serving LEP students will largely depend on the ability to evaluate and communicate the ultimate successes and failures of such programs. In addition, while defining the overall worth of these programs, exemplary services and programs can be identified for dissemination. Advocates of special education for LEP students must engage in evaluation activity for the future of this population. Special educators must realize that evaluation is a requisite in the process of planning and delivering special education services to all populations. (Author)

This conference paper provides examples of reading comprehension strategies that can be used with students with learning disabilities or reading comprehension difficulties. Before reading, during reading, and after reading strategies are presented. The before reading strategies, which activate the students' background knowledge and attention, include brainstorming, structured questions, a pre-reading plan that assists students in accessing knowledge related to the major concepts presented in a passage, and a strategy called "K-W-L" (What I Know, What I Want to Learn, What I Did Learn), TELLS (study title, examine pages and find what story is about, look for important words, look for hard words, identify setting) Fact or Fiction, and advance organizers. During reading strategies include using reciprocal questioning techniques (ReQuest), self-questioning, visual imagery in which students develop their own pictures for the story, and story mapping. Post-reading strategies that are presented include story retelling, paraphrasing, and using a strategy called "Question-Answer Relationship" to teach students to become aware of the different types of questions asked in stories. (Contains 26 references.) (CR)

This paper reports on a study undertaken to discover what instruments were available for use in career assessment. The study population was all sources of information that listed or described career assessment instruments. To identify those instruments used with special populations, a survey was sent to all regional service centers in Texas for distribution to school districts. Instruments were classified into the seven categories used by Kapes and Mastie (1988): multiple aptitudes, interests, work values, career development/maturity, combined assessment, personality, and special populations. Results from all sources identified 302 instruments in the seven categories. Following the six-page report, 10 tables are attached. Table 1 reports results of the three studies previously conducted to determine the most used career assessment instruments. Table 2 is an alphabetical listing of the 169 instruments reviewed or briefly described by Kapes and Mastie with category and level of use. Table 3 represents 92 instruments added to the original list. It includes the category, test name, and publisher. Table 4 lists 41 instruments added from all other sources, with category, significant publisher information, and comments. Tables 5-8 report survey results and list instruments used in the categories of aptitude, interest, combination, and work samples. Tables 9 and 10 report instruments most used along with opinions about their use. (YLB)

School districts have primarily stressed the instructional management aspect of the principal's role, while research has focused on principal effectiveness as a factor for increased student achievement. A synthesis of effective school characteristics identified by the literature is the first objective of this paper. A second purpose is the development of a research instrument to assess the perceived training needs of various administrators. A third goal is the identification of the leadership training needs of different administrative populations. A pilot test of the survey instrument was administered to 442 administrators. Findings indicate that all groups identified the principalship, problem solving, and staff development as their areas of greatest concern. Personal awareness and school organization received the lowest overall rankings. Findings also suggest that administrators require knowledge of task dimensions and the necessary skills to implement them. An extensive bibliography and tables of need indices by groups are included. (LMI)

Educational administration has been shaped by the metaphor of organization. From organizational and management theory, and from economics, the parent of organizational theory, educational administration has borrowed definitions of quality, productivity, and efficiency; strategies to achieve them; and theories of human nature and motivation. Schools as formal organizations seek legitimacy by appearing "rational," emphasizing accountability and control of both students and teachers. In organizations there are assumptions that hierarchy equals expertise and moral superiority, that the ties among people are contractual, and that motivation is external and driven by self-interest. Metaphors have a way of creating reality. Changing the metaphor for the school from organization to community changes what is true about how schools should be organized and run, what motivates teachers and students, and what leadership is and how it should be practiced. In communities, connections among people and between people and purpose are based on commitments, felt interdependencies, and shared beliefs and values. Control relies naturally on these interrelationships, as does responsibility and collegiality. Building community in our schools requires the invention of a practice of community, which, in turn, requires a new theory and practice of educational administration. This shift in theory and practice is discussed in terms of Tonnies' concepts of gemeinschaft and gesellschaft and Parsons' pattern variables. Building the school community entails substituting moral and professional authority for bureaucratic authority, decreasing school size, changing school structures, and inventing new standards of quality and strategies for accountability. (SV)

Microcomputer technology can assist students in two important phases of basic skills instruction--acquisition and application. Providing interactive practice with immediate feedback in a way that most students find motivating, microcomputers can help students build a solid foundation in such basic skills as punctuation use. In addition, word processing software offers students a holistic method of implementing basic language arts skills instruction. When used with the language experience approach to teaching reading, for example, microcomputers can easily record, store, and print student stories. Both increasing student awareness of the manipulative quality of language and facilitating revision, microcomputers can be used in creative or structured writing activities and instruction in writing technique. Word processing programs can guide sentence combining activities. Although an effective instructional tool, microcomputers can neither teach nor evaluate writing content--teachers and students must work on that together. When selecting word processing programs, teachers should consider the clarity of instructions, the availability of directions, and the functions performed, such as making additions, deletions, insertions, word searches, and text movements. (A list of word processing programs, with their publishers' addresses and machines used are appended.) (MM)

Research on classroom teaching is discussed within the conceptual framework of the analysis of student classroom tasks. Three types of learning tasks are illustrated: understanding; memory; and routine problem-solving according to an algorithm. It is contended that most classroom research projects study teachers' and students' actions, rather than learning tasks; it is assumed that learning is taking place as a result of these actions. Furthermore, there is more emphasis on how much is learned than on what is learned. Two important questions concerning teaching models are discussed: what are the actual tasks posed for students and teachers in classrooms?, and why do these tasks exist? After discussions of classroom task goals, ambiguity and risk concerning task accomplishment, and the role of students and teachers, three conclusions are presented: (1) there is not a direct cause-and-effect relationship between specific teacher behavior and student achievement, rather, teacher behavior is shaped by interaction with students; (2) learning tasks directly shape achievement; and (3) learning tasks do not always take place in the classroom. (GDC)

A study to determine the nature, effectiveness, and level of funding of social studies programs funded under Title IV, Part C of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, is reported. Part C provides funding for innovative programs and projects that adopt the validated programs of other cost effective educational projects. Questionnaires were sent to state social studies specialists requesting information on the nature of social studies programs, the location of these activities, and the level of monetary support. Projects reported include citizenship, consumer, environmental, law, and multi-ethnic education; social studies and reading; global education; racial awareness; and oral history. Findings indicate that few projects directly involved students; evaluation components revealed little direct student performance measures; and implementation strategies involved little teacher input. Also, although curriculum materials developed under this act have proven to be important supplements to texts, most material is difficult to obtain. The variety of programs reflects the areas of most concern to both state and local educators. Finally, the average percent of Title IV monies spent on social studies is 5.9 of total available funds. The conclusion is that since social studies is currently not among the high priority funding items of Title IV C, it may have to ally itself with other curriculum areas and look for other sources of funding. (KC)

Research into the needs of small school administrators and effective ways to help meet those needs through inservice education projects was conducted over a period of two years by means of a needs assessment and two small-scale workshops. The purpose of the workshops was to try out a basic format and some techniques perceived to be potentially more beneficial to the participants than the typical convention or meeting. A basic position taken in developing the format and materials for the workshops was that efforts to change educational practices, either in larger or smaller schools, have tended in the past to emphasize what should be changed, rather than how change might best occur. A review of literature revealed that recent experience in bringing about change in organizations has tended to indicate that the process, or change strategy, is more important than the identification of product or change desired. The format for the inservice workshops was designed to provide simulated experience in a change process that could be used with teachers and other school personnel. (Author)

Annotations of 16 documents, derived from a search of doctoral dissertations and the ERIC system, discuss the skills and competencies needed by principals or other administrators of bilingual schools or programs. A brief introduction lists the seven categories of competencies identified by the documents, comprising change promotion, conflict resolution, human relations, community involvement, instructional staff selection and development, comprehensive planning, and acquisition of other cultures. An attached list of references includes the ten articles and six dissertations annotated as well as several other relevant documents. (RW)

A statewide survey of elementary and secondary teachers in Texas indicates that little attention is currently given to direct teaching about aging or to integrating this content area into the school curriculum. The following questions were asked: (1) To what extent is aging incorporated into the public school curricula? (2) Would increased involvement in teaching about aging be achieved if instructional materials were available? (3) Have efforts in teaching aging been perceived as successful by those who do teach this content area? and (4) What is the likelihood that teachers would become involved in short-term inservice training to prepare them to deal with aging issues? Results indicated that, if instructional materials were available, many teachers would teach concepts of aging. A majority of respondents indicated interest in inservice programs relating to aging. (JD)

The research effort focused on the communication needs of school professionals and parents of handicapped children. The research sample, drawn from a 20 county area of North Central Texas, was comprised of 447 parents/advocates of the handicapped and 606 school professionals (special teachers and mainstream teachers) serving the handicapped in classroom settings. Participants were asked to respond to separate questionnaires containing rating scales which were designed to assess: (1) respondents' perceptions of the services being delivered to special learners; (2) their degree of involvement and attitudes pertaining to parent-teacher coordination of educational services; and (3) their perceptions of what they need to know in order to communicate more effectively in the course of planning for the child's program. For additional comparisons, a sample of 143 parents of handicapped children were asked to complete a separate questionnaire which contained items similar to those on the parents/advocates questionnaires. Data relative to the responses made by each group of survey participants are presented, along with a comparison of all responses and a summary of the major findings. (Author)

The study evaluated the emotional stability of 465 children (grades 2 through 12) in special education programs for the gifted compared to that of 329 children attending regular classroom programs. Two anxiety scales were used in the study: the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale and the Trait Scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children. The gifted sample consistently displayed lower levels of anxiety than their nongifted peers. It is concluded that, if heightened anxiety levels are indicators of emotional difficulties, the gifted sample demonstrates a higher level of general emotional mental health than their nongifted peers. A table with statistical data is included. (Author/SB)