In this paper, the author asks what education policy might look like in the United States if it was based on the experience of its most successful competitors. He relies on research conducted by a team assembled by the National Center on Education and the Economy, at the request of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD),…

In Canada and elsewhere, governments are expending considerable effort in the production of inclusive education policy texts, resources allocation models, and programs. The author notes that despite of the analytic power and the political intent of inclusive education as a counterpoint to special education, its appropriation is imminent if not…

This paper explores the deep-reform efforts of 9 secondary schools over a 3-year period. The reforms occurred in an Ontario, Canada, school district that empowered their secondary schools to develop site-specific organizational structures that deviated from the traditional subject, departmental structure. The sample for the study included all…

Explores the relationship between (Ontario) secondary-school organizational structures and implementation of legislated change initiatives. Examines the role of individuals responsible for implementing two legislated curriculum innovations: curriculum integration and performance-based assessment. Implementing whole-school or subject-based…

This report is a response to what is perceived as the need for a systematic collection of information on the effects of semestering a secondary school, particularly as those effects are felt in teaching and learning. Chapters deal with monitoring the present school organization in the areas of student course selection and credit accumulation; the…

Three articles in this special issue explore the people/school organization interrelationship in England, Canada, and the Netherlands. Two articles discuss learning organizations' change capacity. A third article examines tensions occurring when people/organization interactions clash with desired outcomes. Chaos theory and improvement programs are…

During the mid- to late-1990s, the declining economy in Nova Scotia led to a reduction in the number of school boards and the closure or amalgamation of smaller schools. This paper presents findings from the first phase of a longitudinal case study that explored the amalgamation of five elementary schools in Gold Cove, Nova Scotia. The study uses…

The promotion of educational reform by Perren Baker and the members of his Education Department in Alberta, Canada, are discussed. The important task he undertook, the upgrading of the rural educational system of Alberta, was not immediately successful but his efforts paved the way for William Aberhart, who was able to reorganize rural school…

This report describes a study that investigated the effects of "full-credit semestering" in Ontario secondary schools. In full-credit semestering, the school year is divided in half, and students receive full credit for each course completed each semester. The study also explored the effects of trimestering, half-credit semestering, and…

This paper is the third in a series of studies concerned with the effects of different forms and sources of leadership. It examines the effects of transformational leadership practices on organizational conditions and student engagement with school, taking into account the potentially large effects of family educational culture. For the study, a…

Teachers in six rural Saskatchewan schools were interviewed and observed over a four-month period during implementation of core curriculum policy. The least teacher resistance to change was found in schools with the most communication and teacher collaboration and the least direct control by principals. Contains 33 references. (SV)

Analyzes current and future directions of educational change in Quebec, highlighting major policy themes: governance and organization, teaching and learning, and human and financial resources. The necessary conditions for achieving intended reform goals may be lacking. Schools lack the capacity to engage in self-development without external…

This paper outlines, from the perspective of three school principals, the complexities involved in implementing a curriculum innovation, "4MAT," begun in Ontario in 1984. Curriculum project considerations include: leadership skills necessary; importance of support systems for principals; role of research; role of the principal; project…

Public concern about the quality of leadership in society and the quality of education have fueled the demand for educational reform, particularly in secondary schools. This paper presents preliminary findings of doctoral research that investigated how leadership is experienced and understood by students, parents, teachers, and administrators in…