Great teachers recognize great assessments. As policy and education leaders work to make sure state tests are measuring the problem-solving, writing, and critical-thinking skills students need for success, they should convene and rely on teachers to review test quality and help answer the question: Do the questions on our state test reflect…

Background: Childhood obesity is a national epidemic that disproportionately affects Hispanic children. Evidence suggests that increased acculturation among this population adversely affects diet and other healthy lifestyle characteristics, leading to higher rates of overweight and obesity. Healthy lifestyle characteristics must be understood in…

Leal Filho, MacDermot, and Padgam (1996) contended that post-secondary institutions are well suited to take on leadership responsibilities for society's environmental protection. Higher education has the unique academic freedom to engage in critical thinking and bold experimentation in environmental sustainability (Cortese, 2003). Although…

This book, written by authors representing 12 countries and five continents, is a collection of international perspectives on distance learning and distance learning implementations in higher education. The perspectives are presented in the form of practical case studies of distance learning implementations, research studies on teaching and…

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to examine (a) ways in which elementary principals in Connecticut influenced the induction experiences of new teachers and (b) how school leaders professional backgrounds and beliefs affected their approaches to induction. Research Methods: The study included six elementary principals from three Connecticut …

Purpose: This article explores distributed leadership as it relates to two teacher teams in one public secondary school. Both situational and social aspects of distributed leadership are foci of investigation. Methods: The qualitative study used constant comparative analysis and discourse analysis to explore leadership as a distributed phenomenon.…

The display of Spanish and English communicative competence of two Hispanic children is explored in a study analyzing directive speech acts (orders, requests, suggestions, hints). The linguistic, sociolinguistic, and strategic resources of the Mexican-American children, aged 4-1/2 to 6 years, are examined qualitatively in data taken from…

Presents three different, complementary statistical models for predicting faculty tenure dynamics, using data from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (Massachusetts). The difference equation model exactly describes future behavior but requires complete specification. The Markov-chain model can predict the full life-cycle of tenure from initial age…

Describes the evolution of distance education courses at the University of South Carolina and the results of a study of students who participated in those courses. Highlights include student performance and reactions of both students and faculty to the telecourses. (Author/CLB)

The Position Description Analysis method for assessing the discrepancy between status quo and specializations needed by institutions to meet new demands and expectations is presented using Dalhousie University (Nova Scotia) as a case study. Dramatic realignment of fields of specialization and change strategies accommodating the aging professoriate…

Experiences with leadership during periods of organizational change at Tufts University (Massachusetts) and Dean College (Massachusetts) illustrate that formal participatory planning, a favorite tool of planners, is not always appropriate. First, problems or opportunities to be addressed must be understood; then the strategies and tactics most…

A methodology to assist decision making about the relative priorities of alternative projects developed at the University of Western Ontario is described. The method identifies the principal options for information systems development and permits application of executive judgment to the strategic importance of competing projects. (Author/MSE)

The McMaster University (Canada) undergraduate medical program participated in a nine-school self-study of clinical evaluation. Comparison of top-ranked problems found lack of transmission of evaluative information from one clerkship unit to subsequent ones to be a common problem. Faculty unwillingness to record negative evaluations was exclusive…

This paper, part of a larger study on the emergence of the Joint Big Decisions Committee (JBDC) in higher education management practices, focuses on how the JBDC has functioned in light of existing organizational governance models. The paper begins with a literature review which presents and discusses various management model types. These model…

Describes the way in which Wilfrid Laurier University (Ontario), an institution that had worked hard to improve its programs and reputation, addressed a disappointing ranking in a national news magazine. In cooperation with other educators, administrators, and institutional researchers, the university undertook a successful project to have the…