The study expands reported here Extension education's knowledge regarding characteristics of potential change agents. Graduate students learning to become agricultural Extension educators were studied to determine their definition of a change agent. Participants' cognitive styles were assessed using Kirton's Adaptation-Innovation Inventory to…

A guide for a person attempting to construct his own synthesis for change or diffusion of innovation. (HB)

This paper on staff development proposes one dimension of the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM), Stages of Concern, as a diagnostic tool for use by counselors, administrators, staff developers and other change facilitators who are responsible for the timing and delivery of staff development experiences. A rationale for staff development, the…

Full institutionalization of experiential learning programs remains a major challenge for educators. Their reasons for resistance to change and strategies for overcoming it are discussed. A checklist for change agents is provided. (MLW)

Describes the background, setting, materials, controls, and a sample of a simulation game on the task of diffusion in a school setting. (CMV)

Presents a mathematical metaphor for the birth and decline of historical eras. Identifies conditions necessary for transition from one era to the next. Argues that each era is characterized by sigmoidal growth that declines to saturation. Suggests that only synergetic, innovative people can open new areas and criteria to issue in a new era. (DK)

Proceedings of a conference designed to provide a group of teachers, administrators and university professors with an opportunity to share information on initiating and sustaining innovative programs in education are summarized in this paper. The participants represented 21 exemplary programs in mathematics, science, and/or computer education as…

Discusses a planning, management, and evaluation system, an objective-based planning process, research databases, analytical reports, and transactional data as state-of-the-art tools available to generate data which link research directly to planning for institutional renewal. (RC)

Describes how school media specialists may function as change facilitators through indirect leadership, operating on the basis of expertise rather than organizational position, and illustrates four communication strategies used to accomplish this function. (CLB)

This guide focuses on ways that professional development may be used to assist educators in transforming their schools to more futuristic structures where vocational and academic education integration flourishes. Although the guide centers on integration, information presented should be of value to anyone who plans and organizes comprehensive…

Reviews the history and conclusions of school effectiveness research, which focuses on student achievement, and of school improvement research, which emphasizes educational innovation per se; analyzes the methodologies of these two lines of inquiry. Distills from both bodies of literature seven school characteristics that constitute excellence.…

Through an evaluative review of literature in management science and social psychology, this study analyzes causes of difficulties experienced when introducing technological change to library and its employees. Nature of problems (technological, organizational, behavioral), alternative solutions, selection of course of action, and assessment of…

This paper summarizes some of the main conclusions of the Study of Dissemination Efforts Supporting School Improvement, specifically those regarding the process of innovation implementation. The focus is on the contributions of potential assisters to various implementation outcomes, from which implications for policy and practice are derived. The…

A high school teacher and four students restructured the curriculum for a shop math class based on Foxfire practices. The students, former underachievers, gained support and raised monies for building a gyroplane by writing grants, meeting with school administrators, and taking part in community speaking engagements. (LP)

This book examines the emerging roles of teachers whose classrooms reflect a rapidly changing society. Teachers are seen as needing to: be expert in both content and pedagogy; be committed to professional behavior; facilitate conditions for student learning; challenge students' thinking through appropriate questioning strategies; extend the…