This paper focuses on the collegial relationship between school leaders and teachers, and describes the very specific policies behind the school leader's influence on teachers' professional development. In the first phase, 39 teachers from 11 schools were interviewed regarding the teachers' perceptions of their personal professional development…

The physician can provide valuable counseling for parents of learning disabled children, medical information concerning the child's health, and suggestions for treatment to supplement or be integrated into the student's educational program. (SW)

To overcome criticisms of gifted program evaluation, a university evaluation team and a public school program worked to develop evaluation instruments and procedures. The experiences of the first year of the cooperative effort are presented to illustrate the issues, problems, and benefits of such an arrangement. (Author/SB)

Explores groups and teams from a sociological perspective, focusing on the structure of activity, the nature of interaction and interdependence, and coordination. Distinguishes between groups and teams, describes selected team sports configurations and school corollaries, and discusses dimensions of contrast and implications for leadership.…

Describes what principals can do to protect children from food-related illness in school: Forming of food-safe school teams, developing food-safety procedures, including food safety in crises-management plans, educating staff on plans and procedures, encouraging hand washing, making sure the cafeteria works properly, and encouraging the hiring of…

The article examines the roles of special educators in providing a variety of support services in mainstream settings including as support facilitator, specialist, professional peer collaborator, as part of a mainstream/teacher assistance team, and in cooperative teaching. (DB)

Six theme articles attempt to define and advocate agricultural literacy, review the status of K-8 agricultural literacy programs in states, discuss an Oklahoma study of agricultural literacy, clarify the meaning of sustainable agriculture, and describe the Future Farmers of America's Food for America program for elementary students. (SK)

When chief participants have failed to prepare adequately for negotiations, the resulting contract can be costly to the district. This article describes preparation procedures, such as developing the time table; designating the negotiations team; clarifying board role; reviewing the current contract, grievance cases, and recent legislation; and…

Describes a motivational program in the Fairfax County (Virginia) Public Schools that caused a dramatic improvement in custodial staff professionalism and school building cleanliness. The plan emphasized the importance of clean schools, teamwork, and accepting responsibility for one's work. (MLH)

The structural approach to cooperative learning is based on the creation, analysis, and systematic application of content-free ways to organize classroom interactions. Structures (outlined in a table) have differing uses in the academic, cognitive, and social domains, such as team building, communication building, mastery, and concept development.…

When contracting with private companies for support services, districts should define goals and requirements; develop requests for proposals; and create a team with legal, financial, user, and task-management expertise. Contracts should be in plain English, avoid open-ended lists, define terms, and specify service provision details. (MLH)

The learning organization learns continually and has the capacity to transform itself. This article presents a model addressing three levels of interrelated learning (individual, team, and organizational) and discusses seven action imperatives. Creating continuous learning opportunities, promoting dialog and inquiry, and building teams are vital…

Technology is allowing people with differing venues and schedules to meet and form powerful teams. To succeed, virtual teams must hold some synchronous, real-time meetings, follow a five-step continuous-improvement model, provide coaching and support, encourage face-to-face contact, and expect trial and experimentation. (MLH)

Teachers are separated by isolated classrooms and tightly packed schedules, rarely working with colleagues on matters related to teaching and learning. This paper describes benefits of collaborative team structures in schools, discusses potential pitfalls, and notes that the challenge is to develop teams with a high group IQ that can work…

Describes how one school district transformed its cleaning program to increase efficiency, improve performance, and reduce errors and training time. Equipment cost savings and other benefits experienced from the new cleaning program are revealed, as is how the district overcame worker resistance to change. (GR)