Education reform has wrongly focused on teacher motivation and rewards, when the organizational system itself is at fault. Research shows that effective school management hinges on increased individual discretion and decision-making opportunities for teachers and less controlling behavior by administrators. Ten characteristics of effective…

Discusses the trend toward centralized decision making in schools brought about by state legislatures specifying curricular details. In the process, authority is shifted upwards to state level, and professionals become demoralized about changing or improving their schools' curricula. Citing Texas legislation and 11 other references, this paper…

Lists 10 premises affecting the future of teaching, including trends toward teacher shortages, declining entry standards, unattractive salaries and working conditions, and standardized curricula. Presents three scenarios: business-as-usual, two-tiered (permanent senior teacher cadres instructing temporary teachers), and a professional scenario…

While many poor people of color have not really benefited from antipoverty and antidiscrimination programs, substantial gains in educational access have been achieved. Educators need to redefine objectives to improve minority children's education, focusing on language skills and character development appropriate to a diverse, multicultural…

Student loans have become an essential ingredient of financial planning for college. The Guaranteed Student Loan Program's default rate is over 10 percent. World Bank and other international data suggest three solutions: longer repayment terms, graduated repayment schedules, and forgiveness for individuals choosing public service. (8 references)…

The education reform movement has fostered renewed interest in class size. Tennessee and Indiana experiments with smaller class size in primary grades have yielded improved student behavior and achievement scores. Tennessee's new Student-Teacher Achievement Ratio Project (STAR) is a longitudinal study furthering research on small class benefits.…

A 1985 "Weekly Reader" survey found that school children predict worsening United States and global conditions that bear no relationship to the rosy futures envisioned for themselves. To help children grasp consequences of large-scale events affecting their lives, some educators advocate using a futures wheel for charting trends and consequences.…

Describes high school students' letters written to help their teacher interpret youth culture to college professors at an upcoming seminar. Essays reflected four themes: (1) a search for family, (2) identity problems and loneliness, (3) living with rapid change, and (4) fear of failure, especially in college. (2 references) (MLH)

In 1983 the Far West Laboratory's instructional management program established Peer-Assisted Leadership (PAL), a unique professional development program for principals. No longer isolated, principals help each other develop analytical and other skills to become better instructional leaders. MLH)

To halt "white flight" to the suburbs occurring since a 1969-70 court decision imposed cross-town busing, neighborhood schools should be reinstated. The board's decision was challenged by the United States District Court, upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals (Fourth Circuit), and may become a Supreme Court case. (MLH)

Explores corruption in college athletics programs, focusing on student exploitation and well-intentioned, but unsuccessful reform efforts of the National Collegiate Athletics Association, certain college presidents, and others. Discusses Proposition 48, a controversial device to screen entering athletes. Praises Georgetown University's responsive…

Terrel Bell, U.S. Secretary of Education during four years of the Reagan Administration, describes the political forces under which he ran the Department of Education. He points out that education passed through two difficult years during Reagan's first term, but that education fared better at the federal level after the release of "A Nation at…

Outlines three ways schools are choosing to deal with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) cases in their schools. Discusses the Center for Disease Control guidelines, the legal ramifications if schools do not follow these guidelines, and the implications for the future. Includes a resource guide for more information. (MD)

Argues for the educational reform movement to include equity as an equal and serious component in the excellence movement. Describes the prevailing atmosphere of schools and school research and shows its male preference. Outlines the ways females as students, teachers, and administrators, are a gender at risk in American schools today. Includes 12…

Discusses definitions of "career" showing how the traditional concept is male oriented. Reports data from an eight-month study of women elementary school teachers that suggests the traditional ways of evaluating short- and long-term work commitments do not do justice to the reality of women's commitments. (MD)