Students who neither cause problems nor display giftedness tend to receive little attention in high schools. Research findings from thousands of observations in fifteen high schools suggest that the varied curricula that support special students allow average students to drift through school. Schools must be restructured to motivate average…

Describes the implementation in fourteen schools of an organizational development strategy aimed at maintaining or improving school effectiveness. Covers classification of the schools, their characteristics, the steps followed in implementing the development strategy, program outcomes, and the program's rationale. The program pays particular…

Education in the United States has expanded over the years in the pursuit of two goals: individual growth and societal development. Pursuing these goals simultaneously creates problems in setting educational standards, identifying objectives, and integrating students from varied backgrounds, but continued efforts to reach both goals must be made.…

Reviews the first twenty years of the Education Commission of the States, covering aspects of organization, administration, and activities (including the operation of the National Assessment of Educational Progress from 1969 to 1983). Describes recent changes in the commission's organization and focus, and considers changing expectations for the…

Critical thinking programs should explore both practical and academic problems, including problems without "correct" answers. The year-long "Intelligence Applied" program avoids common critical thinking program pitfalls and covers intelligence theories, intellectual and experiential skills, techniques for everyday application, and methods for…

Drawing on a national study of working women, this article discusses some significant differences between the women educators who had suffered from midlife crises (two-thirds of those responding) and those who had not, and provided clues about how such crises can be reduced in severity. (PGD)

Studies conducted by the Center for Women in Educational Leadership at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill provide the data for this overview of how female educational administrators feel about the relationship between their careers and their roles as women. (PGD)

Findings from a Montana study suggest that female public school administrators will function most effectively in their dual roles as females and administrators if their behavior is appropriate to specific situations rather than being based on sex-linked expectations. A typical profile is presented, illustrated by examples from the study. (PGD)

Describes a training program conducted in Arizona from 1979 to 1983 that measurably increased the number of female principals in Arizona and markedly improved attitudes toward women as school administrators. Covers the program's antecedents, outcomes, participant recruitment and selection process, use of consultants, and workshop agendas. (PGD)

Reviews the situation facing female applicants for administrative positions in Canada's public education system. Explores women's reluctance to apply for such positions and educational bodies' reluctance to hire them. Discusses recent decreases in the numbers of female administrators and quotes several women principals from Alberta concerning…

Australia's cultural background is surprisingly similar to that of the United States, and the two countries' attitudes toward education reflect this similarity. Both countries encourage multicultural education, equal education for women, and responsiveness to minority needs. A major difference is the greater role played by private education in…

Playing "dumb" can earn students easier classes, lower expectations, reduced pressure, and individual attention. Schools can stop rewarding failure by making remedial classes difficult, backing up homework policies with unappealing alternatives, providing penalties for attendance violations, and deglamorizing alternatives to regular programs. (PGD)

A short short story illustrates the concept that traditional classroom instructional methods can be less satisfying or motivating to students than hands-on activity. (PGD)

Considers two approaches to individualizing instruction: describes Team-Assisted Individualization, a program that individualizes instruction with minimal additional support while maintaining teacher responsibility and encouraging student interaction; and reviews analyses of adaptive instruction, noting requirements for success, similarities with…

Reviews "Bethel School District vs. Fraser," a case in which a student was suspended for presenting an "indecent" speech to his school's student body. Lower courts found the student's First Amendment rights violated, but the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to hear the case suggests these rights may be reexamined. (PGD)