"Educating Gifted Students in Middle School: A Practical Guide" (3rd ed.) helps educators with the challenging task of understanding and meeting the needs of gifted students in middle school. This revised and updated third edition: (1) Provides a rationale and framework that middle schools can use to fill the service gap for gifted and…

A blueprint for structuring the school environment around teacher learning and collaboration as a foundation for equitable learning and student engagement. In "Learning Together," Elham Kazemi, Jessica Calabrese, Teresa Lind, Becca Lewis, Alison Fox Resnick, and Lynsey K. Gibbons share findings from their decade of experience in…

"The Creative Classroom" presents an original, compelling vision of schools where teaching and learning are centered on creativity. Drawing on the latest research as well as his studies of jazz and improvised theater, Sawyer describes curricula and classroom practices that will help educators get started with a new style of teaching,…

This practical resource highlights the critical importance of diagnosis and design in the work of leading and managing for school improvement. The authors maintain that today's school leaders and managers, under intense pressure to improve student learning, cannot simply adopt and implement pre-packaged reforms manufactured outside the school.…

After her school wins the coveted United States National Secondary Education Award, a school principal embarks upon an educational odyssey. The principal discovers that the reasons for winning the award are a sham! As her school falls apart, she begins to reflect on the stagnant school organization and the ineffective prescriptions for…

Effective organizational communication begins with employees, who should be communications ambassadors for a district. From administrators to teachers to school bus drivers to custodians, employees set the tone for a district. The informal conversations they have at church, the bowling alley, the barbershop and other venues can make or break the…

This article aims to examine the predictive relationships of self-evaluation capacity and staff competency on the effect of strategic planning in aided secondary schools in Hong Kong. A quantitative questionnaire survey was compiled to collect data from principals of the participating schools. Confirmatory factor analysis and reliability tests…

Assessing an organization's effectiveness involves not only determining how successfully the organization achieves its stated objectives, but also ascertaining how thoroughly the needs of the individuals involved are met and how readily the organization can change to address the needs of both the organization and the individuals who compose it.…

Adopting a seven-period school day can help ease problems caused by declining enrollment in the following areas: teaching load, retention of electives, reduction of pupil-teacher ratio, utilization of facilities, graduation requirements and student interest, length of periods, and availability of time for noninstructional uses. (PGD)

This book is a survival guide as well as a valuable tool for making our schools more effective and appropriate places for students to learn and achieve. Exploring the often complex, multifaceted, and co-occurring problems in the education system, the book addresses specific problems, discusses the real reasons they developed and persist, describes…

Discussed are three themes related to changes taking place in secondary school education in Great Britain. The themes considered are curriculum, assessment, and school organization. (RH)

Because of enrollment decline, seven of the 31 Eugene, Oregon, elementary schools were closed during the past four years. Criteria for closing, present conditions, and uses of the facilities are described. (MLF)

Repudiates Herbert Walberg's recent review article touting homework's beneficial effects on achievement scores. Presents evidence showing that good learning environments, interactive situations, and less restricted access to community and school resources (including new technologies) were of greater significance. Faults schools' organizational…

This publication introduces and presents an Effective Schools Checklist that can serve as a broad guide for administrators comparing their schools to the profile of an effective school. The categories assessed are school climate, institutional organization, the curriculum, instruction, training and development, and evaluation and assessment. (PGD)

Vague goals, unmanaged technology, minimal accountability, and little contact among staff members are characteristics that many schools share with other loosely coupled organizations. Effective schools do not share these characteristics. Some strategies for eliminating these traits are suggested. (PGD)