Describes and compares the legislative strategies adopted for school-based management reform, using the Chicago school district as the basis for comparison with New Zealand. Two major elements of reform analyzed are the organization and control of local school policy and administration and changes in school finance policy. (18 references) (MLF)

Relates the story of the thwarted efforts of a group of educators in Albemarle County, Virginia, to change their professional lives and the lives of their students. Describes the attempted changes in three areas: teacher interaction with students; teacher interaction with central office staff; and teacher interaction with each other. (HB)

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…

Asserts that the country's current education system, comprised of local school boards, is fragmented and unfair. Proposes a national education congress to provide direction, promote a more unified effort, and ensure that the education system is responding to the best interests and needs of the American people. (EV)

This report summarizes input from a communication panel of four State Directors of Special Education and one state staff member who helped develop an instrument for determining to what extent administrative, discretionary, and flow-through funds of Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act were being used to support school reform…

When the Ohio State Board of Education began developing legislative recommendations for the 1992-93 biennium, the state's economic outlook was more positive. However, conditions changed dramatically and the state faced a budget deficit. While recognizing these economic limitations, the board proposed that the education system must move toward…

The Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) of 1990 was adopted after the Kentucky Supreme Court declared the state's system of schools unconstitutional. The purpose of this study was to identify the sources of information about KERA and to describe community attitudes toward KERA in rural Kentucky school districts during the first few months the law…

Acknowledging major reform reports that name reading, writing, speaking, and listening as the most essential skills in the work of any school, this brochure discusses important first steps for school boards pursuing excellence in the language arts. These concrete suggestions are grouped under five broad directives: (1) declare that the highly…

A transformation of public attitudes on the environment has resulted in more stringent standards on almost all school programs for hazardous waste management, air quality, groundwater, and emergency planning and response. A comprehensive environmental risk reduction and management policy should highlight the potential for environmental risks in…

Conducted by the State Office of Education in cooperation with IBM Corporation, this study was designed to examine the uses of technology in Utah schools and how the implementation of technology could greatly assist the educational process. Six objectives are specified in Section I: (1) design state-of-the-art technological models to be offered by…

This paper argues that computers in education on the Quebec (Canada), New York, and Vermont borders reflect different styles of education and cultural ethos. This paper examines a 6-month period of this educational innovation from October 1984 to April 1985. In Quebec, the Ministry of Education is involved in the purchase of computers, teacher…

This report documents the impact of current educational reform movements and fiscal conservatism on urban school districts and profiles district operations and activities using survey results from 61 urban school districts constituting 84% of the National School Boards Association Council of Urban Boards of Education. The statistical data falls…

This case study examines the development and implementation of secondary education policy in Ontario as defined in "Ontario Schools: Intermediate and Senior Divisions (OSIS)--1984." Data were gathered for the period from 1980 when the Secondary Education Review Project (SERP) was initiated, to 1984 when the policy outlined in OSIS was to…

This report of the Advisory Committee on Decentralization examines the status of school decentralization in New York City, particularly the progress of three demonstration projects, IS 201 in East Harlem, Two-Bridges in the Lower East Side, and JHS 271 and IS 55 in the Ocean Hill-Brownsville section of Brooklyn. Because it is felt that the degree…

The implementation of appropriate planning strategies can increase the probability that local school districts will successfully cope with change and meet the expectations of their communities. But educational planning does not guarantee that everyone will agree on the qualitative nature of the educational services provided. This paper outlines…