This program description of Project ORDER outlines the design of the reorganization of the B. C. Elmore Middle School in the North Forest Independent School District, Houston, Texas. The school is located in a low economic, predominantly black neighborhood. Prior to Project ORDER, the school experienced a fairly high incidence of disorderly…

The Governors' Task Force on Leadership and Management created an action agenda to develop policies that strengthen school leadership, encourage school renewal, and determine broad educational goals. Suggested improvements include provision of proper training and certification programs for principals, effective inservice management development…

Dicusses the Staples Governing Board which was instituted at Staples High School, Westport, Connecticut, in order to give all members of the school community - students, teachers, and administrators, decision making powers. (DR)

Explores possibilities for critical, resistance-based approaches to school leadership. Compares Marx's, Habermas's, Baudrillard's, and Foucault's views of human regulation, along with other individual/group theories. Assesses theories' utility for critical leadership in education. Individuals can resist oppressive school practices by pursuing…

A study by a charter school advocacy group found the most common reason for charter school closure was mismanagement, followed by financial difficulties, inability to find a suitable facility, and failure to meet the academic goals of their charter. Vignettes of charter schools in Alaska and Oregon illustrate these problems and offer advice for…

This paper compares two Australian educational administration texts published in 1963 to reflect critically on the radical changes that have occurred in educational administration in Australia since then. The books are "Headmasters for Better Schools," by Bassett, Crane, and Walker; and "Training the Administrator," by…

Using participant observation, interviews, and other ethnographic methods, the author examined organizational structures and administrative processes and behavior in an innovative senior high school located in a large urban area and known for its implementation of individually guided education. Data analysis yielded theories grounded in the…

This extensive assessment project report focuses on the Rural Secondary Schools (RSS) Project in Thailand. The background, design, rationale and objectives of the assessment are described, as are the eight phases of the study: reconnaissance; proposals; basic planning and pre-testing; data collection; analysis; academic review; final report; and…

Provided is a frame of reference for considering the potential impact of Public Law 94-142, The Education of All Handicapped Children Act, on school administrators. It is explained that Public Law 94-142 may reshape three traditional aspects of existing school environments: first, it might be anticipated that the underlying approaches used to…

This document presents the recommendations for equal educational opportunities prepared in 1962 by a citizens group appointed by the Board of Education in Detroit, Michigan. Also included are the Board's action on each recommendation, and comments by the staff of the Board. Covered are such areas as curriculum and guidance, organization and…

The nature of direct and indirect effects of local management of schools (school-based management) on learning outcomes for students has remained elusive. The findings from a 5-year longitudinal study of the "Schools of the Future" reform in Victoria, Australia, are reported in this paper. The Victoria system is the largest public school…

Addresses the need of school districts in many states to decide on an appropriate mingling of centralization and decentralization in the operation of activity funds. Argues for analysis of activity fund operation through a breakdown into such major components as policy, the accounting system, and reporting and auditing. (JBM)

Questions what attributes and approaches are most effective and essential for a primary school to achieve their mission. Identifies three attributes: (1) success (defined here as establishing the primary mission as the successful development of the child); (2) wonder (referring to techniques that inspire this response); and (3) confidence. (MJP)

Compares the restructuring of educational governance using school-based management/shared decision making (SBM/SDM) to restructuring of Soviet government under the "perestroika" program. Reviews the other six articles in the theme issue. (FMW)

Descriptive findings concerning organization and management practices in 16 urban high schools across the United States are reported in this paper. The findings are based on data from the as yet incomplete 3-year District/Secondary School Study. This research effort involved urban comprehensive high schools without special admissions requirements…