This paper shows that policymakers and researchers have changed their views about school improvement and the role of teachers in the process, suggesting that educational reform initiatives challenge classroom teachers to make sense of new policies, ideas, programs, and their own work. It examines calls for reform, highlighting: the 1957 launch of…

This report presents a proposal to expand parental choice in Michigan education by amending the Michigan Constitution and establishing a Universal Tuition Tax Credit (UTTC). Section 1 reviews why parental choice is the most important systemic education reform and evaluates various ways to expand it. Section 2 examines Michigan's constitutional…

Discussion of the need for educational reform in elementary and secondary public schools focuses on a new masters degree program in Educational Change and Technology Innovation developed at Walden University (Minnesota) to help empower educators through distance education courses. Curriculum, courses, and admissions criteria are appended. (LRW)

Reviews of three recent Scottish teacher education texts analyze the political and pedagogical philosophies of teacher education presented in each. A commonality among the texts is a portrayal of the teacher as a "hero" fighting for emancipation, empowerment, and transformation. Also discussed are each narrative's views of the past,…

Public school decentralization has increased involvement of multiple constituencies in school governance. This study of a private school and a public school illustrates the complexities of leading teachers in the decision-making process. Both principals were transformational leaders, but teachers were not empowered enough to make changes. (34…

Summarizes trends for teacher professional-development research and standards documents. Identifies several characteristics common to science-education professional-development development programs that can be used to increase the likelihood of program implementation and success. Contains 63 references. (WRM)

Three topics are discussed: (1) the meaning of feminist research; (2) what can be learned about research practices from feminist efforts to create empowering research designs; and (3) how postmodernism presents challenges to feminist empirical work. Feminist research puts the social construction of gender at the center of one's inquiry in order to…

The systemic reform exemplified by the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990 (KERA) requires the coupling of top-down state mandates with bottom-up advocacy and leadership. This research on an Eastern Kentucky school district details the dynamics at the district's main high school, as people struggle to build both a community of learners within…

This paper addresses educational reform centering on teacher participation and leadership. Although schools have developed new mission statements and implemented strategic planning and site-based management in recent years, most schools are not set up to accept teachers in leadership roles. The literature suggests that our "new" schools…

This guide is written from the perspective of school-based efforts to help address social problems and drug use among children. Although schools are not solely responsible for the nation's drug problems, the solution will require collaborative efforts among schools, families, communities, and social institutions. No longer are schools just a…

The administrators at Earlham College wanted teachers who entered its M.A.T. program to develop a "fire in the belly" to teach, and to have the ability to confront the realities of U. S. schools, including standardized testing (which seems at odds with passionate teaching and learning). Prior to entering the Earlham College M.A.T. program,…

Do sport, exercise, and physical education (SEPE) professionals empower the people they serve and contribute to community development? Do SEPE policies, programs, and practices contribute to sustainable economic and social development, making them worthwhile governmental investments? These questions frame the ensuing analysis. Empowerment-oriented…

To make public education more democratic and to move toward greater social justice and inclusivity, it is necessary to respect diversity, and to examine difference and identity in the contexts of materiality and social class. Social theory must be built to integrate racism and sexism with class relations and illuminate how oppressive structures…

This paper reports on research conducted in Scotland as part of a 2-year European Union project, Management for Organisational and Human Development (MOHD), through which seven research centers in five countries examined strategies for whole organizational development. Work within the Scottish network of MOHD focused on the understanding of…

When schools consult with students about their educational experiences, students exhibit increased self-confidence, independence in learning, and commitment to school. Teachers become aware of students' creativity, insightfulness, and responsibility. At the school level, student consultation can change assumptions about student capabilities and…