Maintains that secondary schools often assign their counselors major responsibility for the gatekeeping and custodial functions associated with student scheduling. Recommends as an alternative having counselors advise students and others needing counseling while paraprofessionals and clerical personnel handle the administrative duties. (Author/PGD)

One alternate approach to school administration centers on the use of two principals, one for administration and one for instruction. This article examines the approach and offers some cautions. (Author/MLF)

First in a series of successful innovations reported by readers, the article describes the "House Group" concept at Shoreham-Wading River (New York) High School. The House Group emphasizes the individual relationship between a student and an adult adviser who serves as advocate and mature "friend." (Author/MLF)

Discusses a study undertaken to compare attitudes among children who became middle school pupils in their own junior school building and children who made the transition to a comprehensive school. Findings indicated that students moving to a comprehensive school were more likely to experience problems. (DB)

The controversy over the decentralization of schools focuses essentially on the issue of community control. This article explores the current status of decentralization and evaluates its effectiveness as a vehicle for community influence and educational reform. (Author/WD)

Offers eight steps for administrators to follow to develop cohesiveness among a school faculty and thus foster positive student attitudes toward school. The eight steps are divided among three distinct strategies: developing common goals, reexamining organizational structure, and evaluating school leadership. (Author/WD)

Compares two methods of measuring bureaucratic structure, Hall's organizational inventory and the University of Aston (England) approach, and tests them using data from 55 public high schools in New Jersey. Factor analysis reveals four underlying dimensions of school structure, including organizational control, rational specialization, system…

The analytic framework suggests that strategies employed by teachers arise within the context of the school organization. The organization provides dilemmas and imperatives, possibilities and opportunities which explain the existence of certain strategies in the classroom. (Author/KC)

Considers the concept of time in relation to teaching history and suggests that approaches should be based on Piaget's theory of the learning process in terms of space, time, and causality. Suggests that the rigid school structure runs counter to the educational objectives of the history teacher. (KC)

Accommodating a variety of wishes by establishing unique schools can help solve some of the current conflicts and also alleviate some of the pressure on school systems caused by forcing everyone to adjust to the one-school model. (MM)

Discusses the need for a common discourse about interdisciplinary needs in order to meet library users' needs. Considers why and how interdisciplinary activities emerge, what form they take, and where they are located in institutions. Also discusses knowledge representation. (Contains 78 references.) (Author/LRW)

Analyzed existing relationships between medical schools and clinical enterprises to develop models of these relationships. Four conceptual models were identified: (1) "single ownership, owned integrated system"; (2) "general partner"; (3) "limited partner"; and (4) "wholly owned, subsidiary." The advantages and disadvantages of each model are…

Explored the implementation of middle level reform components in both high- and low-performing middle schools, seeking to identify factors linked to student achievement. Found that organizational health, which includes academic focus, teacher affiliation, and resource support, more directly influences student performance than simple implementation…

To help establish clear, comprehensive communication channels with the school community, principals must recognize the primary dangers to good communication and periodically conduct teacher polls or surveys depicting the human realities of the school organization. Such surveys will not explain or improve low morale, but can serve as a springboard…

School systems might know the words to the "middle school reform rag" (preadolescent's unique learning needs), but haven't put the words to music. A Johns Hopkins study recently found that innovative programs are scarce and that middle schoolers typically receive either a warmed-over elementary education or a pseudo-high school education. (MLH)