This guide presents suggestions to committee chairpersons for making meetings more effective. The three broad sections of this guide address: (1) preparation of the agenda and physical arrangements for the meeting; (2) management of meetings to avoid negative outcomes; and (3) methods to overcome blocks in conflict resolution and decision making.…

School board members from a national sample read specially designed evaluation vignettes and responded to questions about informatyon needs and resources. Information needs and decision-making processes were found to vary depending upon such factors as importance of the decision, amount of conflict present, presence/absence of superintendent…

This paper begins by presenting three tests, which are included in the appendix, of one's awareness of physical risks. This exercise leads to a discussion of the differences between actual and perceived risk, why people participate in outdoor activities, and the inaccurate perception of actual risks. Complicating the issue of accurately perceiving…

Discusses the 'back-to-basics' issue, contending that conceptions of educational basics lie within three time frames (ego-time, clock-time, timelessness) and noting that educational decision-makers often defeat their own 'back-to-basics' attempts because they operate almost solely on clock-time due to their specialized training. (SB)

Discusses the concept of reflective practice developed by Donald Schon in 1983. Presents the questions explored in the five articles contained in this issue. Introduces each article and discusses the topics and recommendations provided by each article. (JS)

The role of narrative and dramatic processes in mediating and shaping both moral judgment and moral action, two processes central to moral development, is examined. The notion of the "moral audience," in which individuals seem to rehearse, review, and redefine their moral actions, is proposed and illustrated. (LB)

Two studies examined abstract conditional reasoning. Findings indicated an increase in use of formal justifications with grade, and that abstract reasoning was facilitated by realistic context. Findings supported the idea that such reasoning may represent a qualitative change in reasoning abilities and that its development relies on appropriate…

A model for fostering educational administration students' reflective thinking skills is presented in this paper. Based on a cognitive psychological framework, the reflection model is applied to a doctoral program in educational administration. Methodology involved analysis of 10 doctoral students' journals, which were year-long records of…

A study examined the effect of attitude toward capital punishment on the evaluation of evidence and the determination of guilt. Subjects were 224 undergraduate students who read a description of a murder. They then received two, four, or six items of evidence relevant to the defendant's guilt. Subjects were asked to determine a verdict and…

By structuring the manner group members use to reach a decision, managers can affect the processes and outcomes of decision making. Business administration undergraduates (N=78) were randomly assigned to three groups and told to make group decisions based on the process their manager selected, i.e., they were either to seek concurrence, debate…

Advocates an inquiry perspective in high school economics rather than concentrating on economic theory. Describes the assumptions for such an approach and discusses ways to apply them to problematic cases. Benefits of this approach would stimulate interest in economics and increase students' ability to analyze problematic situations. (GG)

Presents results of a study of English children's ability to consider the relevance of planning with regard to both good and bad deeds. Shows evidence that children are more likely to consider a reward for planning when judging good than bad deeds, reflecting children's experience of adults' views of relevance of planning. (DK)

This book shows how to use evaluation to find effective solutions. The first two chapters introduce evaluation as an administrative function at the school level. Chapter 1 draws on two kinds of literature--educational-administration literature (to survey administrative practices) and educational-evaluation literature (evaluation practiced by…

During the decade of the 1980s, rapid changes in the nature of medical practice and in patterns of health care delivery confronted medical educators with many challenges. At the Medical College of Wisconsin these challenges led to the design and implementation of the 2-year longitudinal experience called the Profession of Medicine Program (POMP)…

This paper provides a brief overview of some of the current thought on teaching problem-solving and decision-making skills and presents selected exercises that have been used successfully in a graduate course in problem-solving and decision-making strategies. In addition to learning theories that are presented in order to help learners understand…