The principal of a large Boston elementary school encountered 10 barriers to high student achievement. Examines why he and his staff struggled with those barriers for most of his 15-year tenure at the school. Believes the turning point came when Massachusetts mandated high-stakes tests. (MLF)

Based on a two-year study of four elementary schools in a poor, crime-ridden section of Chicago, this article finds the public school an island of relative safety in an ocean of danger. Community-wide approaches are needed to stop lawlessness and fear in innercity schools. Includes seven references. (MLH)

Describes several reasons, based largely on dissatisfaction with New York City bureaucracy, why principal of International High School in Queens decided to accept invitation to become a charter school: Student selection challenges; need for school-based staffing; scheduling, financial, and purchasing rigidities; and state assessment requirements.…

Imagine a school that offers its students a safe environment, a rigorous college-prep curriculum, high expectations for student responsibility, and individualized attention. In this article, the author describes such a school, but it is not an elite private school for the wealthy. It is the Street Academy in Oakland, California, which serves a…

At this point in his long and varied career in public education, Joe Nathan, the author of this article is beginning to doubt some of his previous stances about the principles under which public schools should operate. He remains, however, a staunch supporter of public charter schools. As he reads Frederick Hess' argument that we need to…

Education is an integral part of the urban crisis. The shape of urban education in the 1980s will be determined by the extent to which education planners and decision makers relate their activities to other facets of "the larger urban problems." (Author)

Teachers for Chicago is a graduate-level program addressing the need to select, train, and retain talented, dedicated newcomers for urban schools. It was conceived as a teacher preparation program combining robust academic preparation, an internship, support from experienced mentors, and employment incentives. A second-year evaluation survey…

Over an 11-year period, Community School District in New York City amassed a strong record of successful school improvement in a diverse urban setting. Nesting learning communities and cognitive apprenticeships are keys to success. Principals are responsible for establishing a pervasive culture of learning and teaching in each school. (MLH)

Educational philosophy, land economics, cost benefit, environmental strategy, and decentralization reinforce the evolution of the small school as the educational shape of today. (Author/DW)

In reviewing a study of elementary urban school teachers, the author points out how the bureaucracy of education stifles teachers' ability to develop an internalized locus of control and leads to disenchantment and alienation. Giving teachers authority to act in their areas of expertise while decentralizing the educational power structure will…

Our highly technological society requires that all students be empowered to use mathematics to defend their rights and see behind political control agendas. Situations (such as computer-modeling decisions) are often "mathematicized" to stifle those unable to construct their own mathematically based arguments. African-American students…

Urban education reformers are now abandoning basic skills instruction and emphasizing critical thinking, problem solving, and creativity. An autocratic "pedagogy of poverty" undermines reform efforts by forcing compliance without involving students in learning and self-discipline. Good teaching is happening whenever students are actively involved…

Recent studies show that urban school boards are inadequate policymakers and reform catalysts. Lay school boards are not structurally suited to govern effectively in an increasingly divisive society facing unprecedented economic and social challenges. States are chiefly responsible for current local governance problems and should lead reform…

Argues that we must stop our crisis-oriented approach to urban education, sets forth three major goals for urban schools, and lists six policy guidelines for the future. (Author/WD)

Although the physical separation of school-age children is less common since "Brown v. the Board of Education," the number of students attending racially isolated schools is increasing. Several factors are shaping resistance to true desegregation, including the limitations set by racism, legally mandated change, court focus, demographics, and…