The University Council for Educational Administration's (UCEA) response to the National Policy Board's agenda is reviewed in this address. Recommendations for action include: reassessment of the organizational mission; initiation of assertive interaction with critics; and collaboration among all professional groups. Examples of the UCEA's actions…

Chapter 6 of a revised volume on school leadership, this chapter defines and explains management teams and describes several successful examples of team management. Superintendents have come to rely on their management team's expertise to resolve increasingly complex policy, administrative, and instructional issues. Although team management has…

The starting point of an effective school safety program is the development of a written policy statement that reflects the school board's belief in safety for its students and that is widely publicized to the staff and community. A sample safety/security policy is provided that lists, first, the superintendent's responsibilities in establishing a…

Since the approval of the Basic Skills Improvement Policy in 1978, the Massachusetts Department of Education has been developing tests and alternative forms for the assessment of student achievement in five basic skills content areas: reading, writing, mathematics, listening, and speaking. Because of the lack of previous research on which to draw…

This chapter summarizes and discusses the findings of a longitudinal comparative study of school board communication and decision-making in 11 selected school districts in the United States and Canada. The discussion focuses on patterns of communication and patterns of influence among school board members, school district administrators, and…

Designed for writers of state and local career education plans and projects who are required to make statements of policy when applying for funds, this model policy statement contains eight major justifications for career education. Career education is defined as the totality of experiences through which one learns about and prepares to engage in…

The issue of control over entry into the teaching profession is discussed from the viewpoint of "the profession," i.e., the term used by the National Education Association (NEA) to describe its membership. "The profession" includes primarily classroom teachers in grades K-12, but rarely administrators or higher education…

Current dissatisfaction with operations of the New York City school system calls for policy proposals based on a better understanding of the system, rather than on economic issues. Any policy proposals aimed at reform must describe the goals of suggested programs and indicate how they relate to the goals of other programs. An evaluation of student…

While members of a college's board of trustees expect the president to provide them with accurate and timely information, individual trustees also have a responsibility to help the president do an effective job. The board should understand that the president is the one college administrator with an overview of the enterprise as a whole; his/her…

This document reports the results of a year-long study of the processes used successfully to manage policy in a medium-sized school district in Ontario, Canada. The study was subjective and qualitative, and involved three techniques: observing meetings and people at work, conducting interviews, and examining documentary material. The researchers…

One of the most frequently-voiced concerns in the growing debate over education finance reform involves the issue of autonomy of local school groups. Academics, school district superintendents, legislators, parents' groups, and teachers have all expressed the view that increased State aid to education inevitably will bring Statewide regulations…

Eighty-eight of the State's school districts were surveyed to discover (1) the reasons that prompted district school boards to organize a middle school, and (2) the characteristics of middle schools implemented in the Pennsylvania middle schools. The response to the study revealed that the reasons for initiating a middle school are…

Curriculum policy in Ontario reflects concern for local curriculum development and a return to "the basics" and also (1) developing confidence and self-worth in the individual child, (2) raising proficiencies in the skills fundamental to future learning, (3) preparing for participation in society, and (4) inculcating moral and…

Under Secretary of State Thomas Johnston's leadership, the Council considered seven wide-ranging issues in education and produced a series of exemplary reports directed at reforms capable of speedy translation into practice. In the post-war period, the Council lost its influence and the Scottish Education Department returned to its traditional…

Developments in Australia's system of higher education and institutional and policy control in the last 20 years are compared with Great Britain's. It is concluded that the current Australian arrangement of authority between state and commonwealth has helped regulate higher education, but some improvements should be made before adaptation in…