Beliefs underlying underlying education reform movements are reviewed in the context of three common principles of need: option, probability, and possibility. The causes of problem behavior, the idea that schools will improve when students' individual needs are met, and pressures from the community are explored. The reality is that student needs…

Dedicated educators, struggling with the mandates of "No Child Left Behind" will immediately identify with the hero of this allegory. Horace is a small frog, who has a passion for gardening, and watching flowers bloom. As soon as he comes of age, Horace decides to pursue his great love of nurturing tender blooming things. He studies, diligently,…

In recent years, governments worldwide have increased their use of standardized tests and other forms of external tests to measure and report on student achievement in selected academic subjects. That trend, responding to public pressure on decision-makers to make school systems more transparent and accountable, is often colored by criticisms of…

This paper discusses several issues involved in educating at-risk students and particularly emphasizes school-university partnerships as a strategy for educational change. It proposes that educators move beyond the symbolic theory, the theory of resource dependence, or the theory of resource exchange and embrace school-university partnerships…