Principals set the tone and create visions for innovation and change. Mounting research about the brain tempered with cautions of over interpretations can aid the principals to provide leadership in implementing more brain compatible schools. Practical strategies encompass the emotional environment of the school, policies, and procedures that…

Changing demographics have a major impact on schools and societies. This report is a study of how three New Zealand primary schools are working with student populations that are becoming more diverse and increasingly multi-ethnic in nature. One major theme that emerged from interviews with 25 teachers and school leaders was the concept and…

In an effort to support the contention that the levels of student achievement and discipline depend more on administrative style and school ethos than on inner city location and/or social class, race, or IQ of students, an investigation was conducted of a single midwestern urban high school. The procedure consisted of observation and interviews of…

VARIOUS EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHIES AND CHANGES IN AMERICAN SOCIETY HAVE INFLUENCED HOMEWORK PRACTICES. AT ONE TIME, HOMEWORK WAS THOUGHT TO BE AN IMPORTANT MEANS OF DISCIPLINING A STUDENT'S MIND AND FILLING IT WITH LARGE AMOUNTS OF KNOWLEDGE. A PERIOD OF CRITICISM OF THE EXCESSES AND MISUSES OF HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS FOLLOWED. THIS VIEW WAS SUCCEEDED…

The emerging middle school movement throughout the United States today is in part an effort to rediscover, redefine, revamp, and reintroduce the basic pedagogical principles of adolescent learning upon which the junior high school was established almost seventy years ago. Proponents of the middle school support the rationale that children 10 to 14…

New information on the characteristics of elementary school principals is included in the most recent Schools and Staffing Survey conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics. The results show that the number of public elementary school principals grew from 54,000 in 1993-1994 to 61,000 in 2003-2004. This roughly corresponds to the…

This appendix accompanies "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better. A Large-Scale Study of Middle Grades Practices and Student Outcomes. Initial Research Report." This appendix focuses on the findings and domain comparisons of the study. This appendix contains the following: (1) Decision Rules; (2) Full Set of…

In light of research findings on how calculators can enhance mathematics learning, this study investigated the uses of hand held, non-programmable, scientific calculators in secondary mathematics education throughout the Mid-Hudson Valley (New York). The study gathered data from 18 high school principals and 25 mathematics teachers in 32 school…

To identify school-level policies and practices and to see if they reinforced mastery and performance goals for students, interviews were conducted with five principals in schools participating in a collaborative effort to move selected classrooms toward a focus on mastery and learning. Interviews were designed to help understand how principals'…

A survey of public high school principals asked which policies, programs, and practices designed to improve learning were currently in operation at their schools, and whether these policies were instituted or substantially strengthened in the past 5 years. These policies reflect the school-level recommendations for education reform made in "A…

A survey of administrators and contact personnel responsible for PASS Programs in California schools was conducted to determine what policies are followed for evaluating and granting student credits. Questionnaire forms were sent to 91 school sites. The return rate was 86.8% for principals and 90.1% for contact people. Questions covered staff…

This report analyzes the national 2000 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), which surveyed 2,270 regular public K-12 schools regarding school crime and safety. The study asked school principals about the characteristics of school policies, school violence prevention programs and practices, violent deaths at school and elsewhere, frequency of…

As states have pushed to adopt high-stakes assessments, critics say the number of cheating incidents among educators has risen dramatically. Tying improvements to cash bonuses has not helped. Stretching rules to show improvement can become the norm, if superintendents don't promulgate zero-tolerance cheating policies. (MLH)

In this article, the author discusses how the municipal authorities eliminate the names of all schools in eastern Berlin in 1990 to formalize the spontaneous purge of school identities. She added, that the renaming of primary and secondary schools at this historical juncture provides a unique vantage point for examining what the democratic turning…

The primary goal of the School Improvement Project (SIP), administered by the central office of New York City (New York) Public Schools, is to improve academic achievement through school-based planning. A planning committee representing the various school constituencies is responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive plan to effect…