The Idaho State Department of Education has mandated a professional growth requirement for all certified educators and requires school districts to develop and implement a professional development plan. This handbook is designed to assist in the implementation of these requirements. The following topics are addressed: (1) professional development,…

This manual, an update of the 1979 publication, "Pennsylvania Guidelines for Student Discipline," is intended for use by Pennsylvania school districts as they review or revise their student discipline codes. It presents a structure for responses to student misconduct, which lists student misbehaviors by type and assigns appropriate…

Increasingly, taxpayers are unwilling to suport educational programs they do not understand. Based on the premise that such support comes from an enlightened public, this article proposes a carefully orchestrated citizen visiting team to examine school programs and report results to the board. Includes two references. (MLH)

Provides basic guidelines which school officials and school boards may find helpful in negotiating, establishing, and managing objectives. Discusses characteristics of good objectives, specific and directional objectives, multiple objectives, participation in setting objectives, feedback on goal process and achievement, and managing a school…

Because society is not likely to become less litigious, the best defense for a school board is to sharpen its legal awareness. Every decision has the potential for litigation, whether it is over a banned Christmas pageant or a complex case of due process. (CJH)

The "Pico v. Island Trees Union Free School District" decision affirmed students' right to receive information under the First Amendment and concluded that removing books from school libraries infringes on that right. Book removals solely to suppress ideas are open to court review in the absence of clearly established administrative…

Presents a New Jersey school board's method for revenue raising through bond approvals by the community. The key to this board's success is the involvement of citizens in the early decision-making process. (MD)

Current agendas of the California State Department of Education, the California State Board of Education, and the California State Legislature are examined. Some part of each agenda has potential for impact on the social studies area of instruction. (RM)

Describes a recent court decision in which a school board and the superintendent did not support a teacher when he came under fire from the community for teaching a controversial subject. The teacher won his case against the district because it had violated the academic freedom rule and denied the teacher due process.(MD)

A total of 942 (59 percent of the national sample) school board members, administrators, and teachers responded to a merit pay opinion survey. Factor analysis revealed six factors; as hypothesized, school board members tended to be in greater agreement with the issues than either administrators or teachers. (MLF)

Discusses court decisions in relation to the Equal Access Act and provides two sample policies for schools to follow. One limits student activities, and the second allows noncurriculum-related student meetings. (MD)

An overview of the legal obligation of public school districts to bargain with their employees. (MLF)

"Education officials need to furnish leadership in school elections.... An unsuccessful election reduces educational opportunities for students" (Kimbrough and Nunnery, 1971, p. 4). Who can argue with this simple statement? Providing effective leadership, however, is not that easy. Research and practice have yet to yield an election formula that…

This report focuses on standards for the teaching and learning of biology in the state of Mississippi. It contains sections on interpreting the Mississippi subject area score reports, an overview of the Mississippi Biology I curriculum, suggested test strategies, additional teaching strategies with sample assessment items, and skills needed for…

This report focuses on standards for the teaching and learning of algebra in the state of Mississippi. It contains sections on interpreting the Mississippi subject area score reports, an overview of the Mississippi Algebra I curriculum, suggested test strategies, and additional teaching and learning strategies with sample assessment items. (DDR)