This paper clarifies vocabulary in the area of collaboration in schools, describes characteristics of collaboration, and outlines a set of principles. Principles explain that collaboration is not a prerequisite in most school programs, may occur informally, requires time to develop, is not a panacea, and may raise ethical issues for special…

Issues are addressed concerning the speech-language assessment, management, and consultancy role of public school speech-language specialists to multicultural clients. Discussed are the reliability, validity, and relevance of assessment data; the replacement of substandard utterances; cooperation with teachers of English-as-a-Second-Language; and…

Discussion of staff development in distance education focuses on the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) for developing instructional design skills in subject experts. Contingency theories of management are examined, literature on CBAM is reviewed, and use of CBAM in a course team approach for course development is described. (22 references) (LRW)

A nurse educator specializing in diabetes recounts her own experience with vision loss resulting from diabetic retinopathy, considers the roles of rehabilitation specialists and diabetes educators, and urges the two professional groups to work together more closely. (DB)

This article discusses the need for comprehensive sexuality education for youth who are deaf or hard of hearing and calls for expanded teacher preparation at both the postsecondary level and the level of the individual school. The need for a team approach to sexuality education involving school staff, parents, and deaf adults in the community is…

Discusses potential problems with the current emphasis on various collaborative educational partnerships in early childhood education: (1) avoidance of more fundamental educational issues; (2) pretense that collaboration comes at no cost; and (3) diversion from the primary task. Presents examples of effective collaboration and one in which…

This commentary discusses the limitations of traditional research and the benefits of participatory action research (PAR) that changes the stance of the researcher from dispassionate observer to that of friend, ally, and colleague of the "subject". The use of PAR in helping researchers, parents, and advocates work together in promoting…

One first-grade teacher integrated character education into the existing curriculum. She used a job chart to teach responsibility and teamwork, and helped the class develop a constitution. Her framework was based on the Character Counts! Coalition's crucial character traits: respect, responsibility, trustworthiness, fairness, caring, and…

When the Ronald Yuill was told by his administration that there were not enough aides to help the special education students in the classes, he suggested placing all the students requiring special assistance into one class. His idea was to teach all of the special education children at the same time with the assistance of an aide or two. However,…

Educators often overlook the largest body of evidence of student performance: student work. With careful and deliberate examination of various sources of student work, teachers can gather a wealth of information about student achievement and about their own instructional practices. Examining student work is not about grading or scoring papers. It…

The first section of this monograph shows how, by analyzing the language of personality descriptors, researchers have identified five correlated groups of behaviors. It finds that the most popular formulation of the Five-Factor Model (FFM) is that of Costa and McCrae (1992) and that their nomenclature can be adapted to come up with a version for…

Approaches to managing conflict in the collaborative process are discussed, along with the need for collaboration in schools. Collaboration by teachers, administrators, parents, and others can help identify problems, consider relevant data, plan and implement interventions, and evaluate results. However, the knowledge, experience, and values of…

With the continuing shift toward more decentralized, team-based work structures, efforts to improve quality are often linked to efforts to improve productivity. This ongoing restructuring of the workplace has important implications for technical education. Educators need to have an understanding of how and why organizations are pursuing these…

In recent years, interest in teamwork in the workplace has increased noticeably. For technical educators, the implications of this emphasis on employee involvement and cooperation are clear: they should begin developing the requisite skills in their students before they enter the work force. The skill sets that are needed--in effective…

Many of the theories about communicating effectively in corporate structures as well as the accompanying pedagogy do not pertain to changes in corporate structure and communication brought about by Total Quality Management (TQM). TQM creates a work environment in which employees need problem-solving skills and interpersonal skills that allow them…