Proposes a method for evaluating courseware as an integral part of curriculum, based both on "curriculum commonplaces" (the curriculum content and all that surrounds it) and on educational values and beliefs; an evaluative matrix is offered, with the commonplaces arrayed along one axis, values and beliefs along the other. (MCG)

Discusses the use of coaching to establish a communal learning effort among teachers and reinforce skills introduced through inservice. Issues examined include the length of coaching, who should coach, training coaches, coaching's effects, the relationships of evaluation and supervision to coaching, the principal's role, and implementation. (MCG)

As an example of successful training in teacher coaching, this article describes a program conducted by the Santa Clara County, California, Educational Development Center. Aspects of the program discussed are its design, the selection of participants, the training process, the program's results, and the program's future. (MCG)

Describes Research In Teacher Education (RITE), a staff development model that uses school district staff to train teachers and that identifies effective teaching and staff development practices. Information is presented on the model's characteristics and implementation, research contributing to the model, a field test, and San Diego's adoption of…

A new staff development model postulates that teachers' beliefs and attitudes change as a result of changes in learning results, which in turn stem from changed classroom practices. Evidence supporting this model is summarized, and implications for staff development practice are discussed. (MCG)

Describes the 4Mat System, an instructional plan adapted to diverse learning styles, and suggests ways for teachers to use the system. Includes seven recommendations for staff development. (MCG)

Research identifies two interrelated memories--one that retains facts and symbols and one that retains motor and problem-solving skills. These and other findings challenge educators to determine what students should memorize, to help them move from random memorization to creating useful concepts, and to teach students to use memory in problem…

A synthesis of 15 empirical studies shows that homework consistently benefits elementary and secondary students' achievement and attitudes, especially if it is commented upon or graded. (MCG)

Presents four rules for successful parent involvement programs, based on the Home and School Institute's 20 years' experience in promoting parent involvement in education. (MCG)

Draws parallels between a supervisor helping troubled teachers and a teacher helping troubled students, using a fictionalized example. Recommends that supervisors use both professional methods and personal relationships to help teachers become more effective. (MCG)

Discusses insights gained through the production of a videotape entitled "School Improvement Through Staff Development" by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Addresses both the tape's subject matter and methods of communicating that matter. Second article in series; for part I, see EA 518 619 (Educational Leadership, March…

The availability of several effective teaching models that allow the teaching of thinking skills and subject matter simultaneously proves that intellectual processes and content are not incompatible subjects for instruction. These models differ significantly from traditional models, and adequate training in them will require a thorough commitment…

Each of the five principal goals of education--cultural literacy, understanding, synthesis, mastery, and involvement--is best achieved using teaching strategies that develop thinking skills appropriate to the curriculum objectives associated with the goal in question. The specific strategy selected depends on learner readiness and content…

Effective teaching practices identified through research stress the search for meaning and can therefore serve as a foundation for teaching thinking, despite grade-level and subject matter differences in content, teacher role, engagement time, and outcomes sought. Effective teaching is structured, interactive, and conducted in a positive learning…

By focusing on students' abilities to apply knowledge to achieve long-term, real-world goals rather than on students' achievement of basic skills, teachers can develop a framework of experiential, multi-task activities supported by direct instruction, thus promoting the sharing of educational responsibility by both students and teachers. (PGD)