Comments on the educational quality indicators projects undertaken by Alberta school districts, noting their dependence on process-product research; inclusion of social and affective aspects of education; use of provincial achievement tests as indicators; and emphases on accountability, teacher collaboration, and professional development. (SV)

Over 50 delegates from 32 states and 2 Canadian provinces attended this conference, during which 5 intensive working group sessions discussed, debated, and achieved agreement on a number of relevant issues concerning the role of educational telecomputing in school reform and restructuring. The conference proceedings begins with an overview of the…

Two sets of opinion exist regarding the control of schools. The first pertains to the freedom of parental choice in education and the right of individuals and associations to run private schools subject to minimal government controls. The second stresses the overriding need to promote greater equality of opportunity in the form of publicly…

Traces the history of Indian education in Canada through four phases: informal education, church and state efforts toward assimilation of Indian peoples, transition, and band-controlled education. Presents arguments for moving to a fifth phase: educational partnerships with provincial school boards. Outlines potential benefits to and constraints…

Issues facing higher education around the Pacific Rim are considered in 12 conference papers. Titles and authors include the following: "Developing Linkages around the Pacific Rim" (Stephen Foster); "A Cooperative Approach to Professional Development: The Canadian Connection" (Peter Murphy); "Using Film in Teaching…

This book describes two studies, the first of which is a single case study that interprets the practical knowledge of an exemplary fine arts supervisor. An analysis of ethnographic data portrays the supervisor's practical knowledge as constructed around a dialectical orientation between two constructs or landscapes of imagery: the empowerment and…

Canadian educational reform involves "top-half" provincial policy makers and "bottom-half" communities, schools, and local jurisdictions. Policy reforms in curriculum, instruction, and assessment are on the right track while those in teacher education and community development are not. Local implementation concerns are…

Scholarly writings concerning the history and philosophical goals of Canadian higher education in general, and four universities in particular, are surveyed. Recent stresses that have undermined the universities as centers of intellectual life are described, leading to a discussion of the potential these institutions have for a cooperative…

A principal of three Ontario "twinned" schools (sharing principal and services) discusses the arrangement's advantages: greater sharing of both human and technical resources and increased opportunities for broader budget negotiations between schools. The disadvantages of twinning relate to the additional stress placed on the principal…

While enrollment is declining in Ontario's elementary and secondary schools, the demands for adult education are increasing. This paper explores the possibility of integrating the two systems. The authors consider the conceptual bases for an integrated system as well as the effects of integration on administration, staff selection and training,…

Unlike many other countries of the world, the United States and Canada have yet to use distance education as a deliberate instrument of a comprehensive public policy agenda. Despite this shared failure to use distance education to advance public policy, the individual states of the United States and Canada's provinces differ widely in their…

This chapter describes the development of a set of programs called "History Comes Alive," a series of historical simulations and interactive experiences for students at heritage sites in Ontario. The programs allow students from Ontario and New York to relive the past by spending 3 days and 2 nights in a simulated historical setting. In…

Canada's National Literacy Secretariat (NLS) develops innovative partnerships to involve voluntary and national organizations, governments, business, and labor in a national effort to make Canada a more literate society. The two main objectives of the NLS are to promote a variety of opportunities for people to improve their reading and writing…

Recounts experiences of a Canadian curriculum consultant in moving from viewing small groups as a survival strategy to identifying cooperation as the key to their effectiveness and finally accepting cooperation as an orientation that moderates the teacher's output so that children can shine. (SLD)

Data for this review of Alberta, Canada's School Act by the Policy Advisory Committee for the School Act Review, included 200 written submissions from members of the public, community groups, and educational groups; oral presentations by 23 groups; discussion by committee members and others at 20 locations within Alberta; and the results of a…