DOCUMENT RESUME ED 361 876 AUTHOR Cotton, Kathleen; …p25: Building Positive Student Self-Concept - Stevenson-Carson School District, Stevenson, WA #22: Using School Time Productively

DOCUMENT RESUME

ED 361 876 EA 025 257

AUTHOR Cotton, Kathleen; And Others-TITLE School Improvement Research-Series: Series VII,

1992-93.INSTITUTION Northwest Regional Educational Lab., Portland,

Oreg.SPONS AGENC: Office of Educational Research and Improvement (ED),

Washington, DC.PUB DATE Apr 93CONTRACT RP91002001NOTE 83p.; For 1987-88 series, see ED 349 704.AVAILABLE FROM Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 101 S.W.

Main Street, Suite 500, Portland, OR 97402 ($24.95library rate, includes postage and handling).

PUB TYPE Reference Materials Bibliographies (131)Information Analyses (070) Reports Descriptive(141)

EDRS PRICE MF01/PC04 Plus Postage.DESCRIPTOR:* Computer Assisted Instruction; *Educational

Improvement; Elementary Secondary Education; Empathy;High Risk Students; Instructional Innovation;Mathematics Instruction; Multicultural Education;Nongraced Instructional Grouping; Public Schools;*Research and Development; School Based Management;School Restructuring; Self Concept; *TeachingMethods; *Theory Practice Relationship

ABSTRACT

This loose-leaf compendium includes three types ofbrief research summaries: "topical synthesis," "close-ups," and"snapshots." The single topical synthesis is entitled "School-BasedManagement" (Kathleen Cotton). Close-ups consist of brief definitionsand essential research findings on the following topics: "DevelopingEmpathy in Children and Youth" and "Nongraded Primary Education"(Kathleen Cotton). Four snapshots describe effective practicescurrently in place at various school districts throughout thecountry: "Building Positive Student Self-Concept" (Kathleen Cotton);"Achieving Success in Mathematics Through Innovative Programming" (AlFitzpatrick); "Success for At-Risk Students Through Computer-AssistedInstruction" (Kathleen Cotton); and "Restructuring in a MultiethnicEnvironment" (Barbara K. Hernandez). Annotated bibliographies areappended to the topical synthesis and close-ups. (MLF)

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Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be madefrom the original document.

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NorthwestRegionalEducationalLaboratory

101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500 Portland, Oregon 97204-3297(503) 275-9500 GTE: NWREL.LAB FAX: (503) 275-9489

Writer's Direct Dial Number

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT RESEARCH SERIES

SERIES VII1992-93

1 TOPICAL SYNTHESIS #6 School-Based Management

2. CLOSE-UP 413 Developing.Empathy in Children and Youth

3. CLOSE-UP 414 Nongraded Primary Education

4. SNAPSHOT 425 Building Positive Student Self-Concept

c. SNAPSHOT 426 Achieving Success in Mathematics ThroughInnovative Programming

6. SNAPSHOT 427 Success for At-Risk Students ThroughComputer-Assisted Instruction

7. SNAPSHOT 428 Restructuring in a Multiethnic Environment

U S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONOffice 04 Educartonel Research and Imptonement

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATIONCENTER (ERIC)

iTnis document has been reproduced astecented horn the person or organization0,.ginating it

2 Minor changes have aen 'nods to improvereptoduction Quality

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SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT RESEARCH SERIES"Research You Can Use"

Topical Synthesis #6

School-Based Management

Kathleen Cotton

The ultimate power to change isandhas always beenin the heads, hands,and hearts of the educators who workin the schools.

Sirotnik and Clark, 1988

IntroductionThe history of American public education ischaracterized by periodic alternationsbetween centralization and decentralization ofpower and authority (Cuban 1990; Darling-Hammond 1988; Lindelow and Heynderickx1989; and Mojkowski and Fleming 1988). Intimes of greater centralized authority, largeadministrative structures, such as states,school districts, and school boards, maintaincontrol wer decisions regarding educationalpolicy, budget, and operations. When thependulum swings toward decentralization,much of this control shifts to smaller adminis-trative unitssmaller school boards, forexample, and, more recently, individualschools.

During the past several years, the educationalsystem in the United States has been evolvingfrom largely centralized structures to moredecentralized ones; and although the mainexpression of this trend goes by many differ-ent names, it is often called school-basedmanagement.

To its proponents, however, contemporaryschool-based management is considerablymore than a new name for an old and recur-ring phenomenon. They argue that, unlikeprevious approaches to decentralizing educa-tion, school-based management invokes funda-mental changes. As described by White(1989):

Previous attempts to decentralizewere aimed at shifting authority froma large, central board of education tosmaller, local boards...replacing oneform of bureaucracy with another.Past reforms avoided a transfer ofpower to the school site....SBM isdifferentit changes the entiresystem of district and school organiza-tion and restructures most roles in thedistrict (p. 2).

A great many school-based managementprograms have been launched and are cur-rently in operation in districts around thecountry, and new ones continue to be imple-mented. Associated with these developmentsis the appearance, during recent years, of agreat many articles on school-based manage-ment in both technical and popular educa-tional publications. This proliferation ofprograms and accompanying literature raisesprovocative questions about the concept and

Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500Portland, Oregon 97204Telephone (503) 275-9500

5

os

School Improvement Progr4

practice of schoOl-based managementquestions such as:

_

What are the terms used to denote theschool-based management concept?

How is school-based management defined?

What kinds of variation does one seeamong school-based management efforts?

What is the history of and rationale forimplementing this type of organization?

How do the roles of board, central office,and school personnel change under school-based management?

What obstacles to success are commonlyencountered during attempts to imple-ment and operate school-based manage-ment?

What attitudes toward school-based man-agement are held by those who areinvolved in school-based managementefforts?

Does school-based management lead toimproved student performance or otherdesirabie schooling attributes?

Do the findings about school-based man-agement lead to any recommendations forthose considering implementation of thisapproach? If so, what are they?

The present review represents an attempt toanswer these questions, drawing upon find-ings from recent research and other educa-tional literature.

Sixty-nine documentsbooks, monographs,journal articles, conference papers, etc.werereviewed in preparation for this report. Ofthese, 42 provide findings from research onthe nature and outcomes of school-basedmanagement efforts and are cited in the KeyReferences. The General References sectioncites another 27 documentsopinion papers,project descriptions, theoretical essays, andother writings of interest.

PAGE 2

Terms and Definitions

To desighate the kind of arrangementwhereby increased authority moves from thedistrict central office and school board to theindividual school, the term school-basedmanagement has been and will continue to beused in this review. It is important to pointout, however, that many other terms are alsocommonly used to specify such an arrange-ment. In making this point, Arterbury andHord (1991) identify:

such terms as decentralization,restructuring, site-based management,school-based management, participa-tory decision-making, school-basedautonomyto name a few (p. 2).

To name a few more, educational writers alsodesignate the school-based managementconcept by the terms decentralized manage-ment, shared decision making, school empow-erment, shared governance, decentralizedauthority, school-site autonomy, school-baseddecision making, school-site management,responsible autonomy, the autonomous schoolconcept, administrative decentralization, andschool-based governance (Ceperley 1991;Cistone, Fernandez, and Tornillo 1989;Johnston and Germinario 1985; and Lewis1989).

This plethora of terms can produce confusionuntil one realizes that they all point in thesame direction and that:

the name is not as important as theshifts in authority that are takingplace....No matter what the term...theschool takes center stage in today'seducation reform scene (Lewis 1989,pp. 173-174).

Turning to the matter of definitions, one againencounters considerable variation: dozens ofdefinitions for the school-based managementconcept are offered in the literature on thistopic. These definitional differences areunderstandable, reflecting as they do the realvariations in structure and operations foundin different school-based management pro-grams. Many writers have remarked, how-ever, on the difficulties these disparities poseto those seeking to understand, evaluate, orcompare school-based management efforts.

TOPICAL SYNTHESIS #6

Commenting on the profusion of terms anddefinitions, Kolsti (1991) writes:

School districts, sCholars, and legisla-tors repeat these various terms, butfew state clearly what they mean orwhat they expecthow their use ofthese terms may differ from thatintended by previous literature (p. 1).

Lindquist (1989) concurs, noting that:

Variations of the SBM concept haveemerged [and] the result seems ta beconfusion and misunderstandingconcerning these vague and sometimesconflicting definitions (p. 404).

"A generic term for diverse activities," and "anambiguous concept that defies definition,"write Malen, Ogawa, and Kranz of school-based management (1990b, p. 298-299), fur-ther underscoring the lack of a specific mean-ing attached to this concept.

Researchers call attention to the many combi-nations of program features observable indifferent school-based management programs.As White (1989) puts it:

...there are numerous variationswithin districts and schools regardingthe levels of authority, the actorsinvolved, and the areas of control(p. 1).

For example:

Increased autonomythe latitude tofunction independently to a considerabledegreemay or may not accompany theincrease in authority at the school site.

Increased school-site accountability islikewise a feature of some school-basedmanagement efforts but not others.

The power to establish policy may ormay not accompany the increase in theschool's power to make other kinds ofdecisions.

Decision-making domains differenormously among different school-basedmanagement arrangements. Districts andboards may extend decision-makingauthority to the school in the major areas


of budget and/or staffing and/or curricu-lum, as well as other domains.

The extent of decision-making author-ity within domains also differs. Forexample, two districts implementingschool-based management structures mayboth allow their schools to make decisionsin the area of curriculum, but one maypermit substantive decisions to be madeand implemented, while the other allowsonly relatively trivial ones.

The distribution of authority at schoolsites shows considerable variation as well.In some school-based management efforts,virtually all the increased decision-makingauthority extended to the site by thedistrict remains in the hands of the princi-pal. In others, teachersbut not otherstakeholdersjoin the principal in mak-ing decisions. In most cases, however,decision-making authority is delegated tocouncils which might be made up ofnoncertified school staff and/or parentsand/or community members and/or stu-dents, as well as the principal and theteachers.

Another difference across sites is thedegree of real power held by thecouncils. That is, the presence of abroad-based decision-making body repre-senting all major stakeholder groups doesnot necessarily guarantee that the inter-ests of all groups are truly represented.Some principals assemble such groups andthen either occupy their time with pettymatters or retain veto power over theirdecisions.

Council members themselves sometimescontribute to excessive retention ofpowerby the principal (or by the principal plusthe teachers). Uncertainty about theextent of their authority or sheer unfamili-arity with assuming control Iver decision-making processes sometimes keepscouncils from exercising as much author-ity as they have been delegated.

There are other variations as well, but thisoverview should serve to account for some ofthe confusion about what school-based man-agement really means and the contradictoryfindings about the results it produces.

PAGE 3

Given all this, what common denominators, ifany, can be identified across the differentdefinitions of school-based management?

For all their areas of disagreement, those whohave generated definitions and descriptions doseem to concur with one another that school-based management:

Is a form of district organization

Alters the governance of education

Represents a shift of authority towarddecentralization

Identifies the school as the primary unit ofeducational change

Moves increased decision-making power tothe local school site.

History and Rationale

To set a context for examining the relation-ship between school-based managementapproaches and other schooling variables, thefollowing is a brief review of the centraliza-tion-decentralization cycle in U. S. educationalhistory and the arguments for school-basedmanagement which characterize the currentdecentralization movement.

Larry Cuban, in his 1990 article on thecyclical nature of educational reform efforts,points out that school systems at the turn ofthe century were, for the most part, small andlocally operated. Unfortunately, these provin-cial structures spawned considerable favorit-ism, nepotism, and corruption, leading reform-ers to call for consolidation of small districtsinto larger, centrally controlled boards.

This trend continued until the 1960s, at whichtime civil rights activists and others called foreducational decentralization, so that localschools could be more responsive to the needsof their communities. Though not a nation-wide phenomenon, considerable decentraliza-tion did occur in response to these pressures.

The mid-1970s and early 1980s saw a large-scale effort to bring about educationalimprovements through federal and state legis-lationanother swing toward centralized, top-down organization. This desire to stimulate

PAGE 4

reform and betterment through increasinglycentralized, bureaucratic arrangements waswell-intentioned enough. Like centralizedarrangements generally, it was "intended tofoster equal and uniform treatment of clients,standardization of products or services, and toprevent arbitrary or capricious decisionmaking" (Darling-Hammond 1988, p. 11).

The problem, as is now widely recognized, isthat highly centralized educational systemssimply do not engender the desired outcomes.For one thing, they tendlike bureaucraciesgenerallyto be impersonal and maddeninglyslow moving. English's 1989 comments aretypical of observations made about thesedrawbacks:

Highly centralized systems are easilyclogged with trivia. The result isinertia, pessimism, inefficiency,cynicism, and long delays for decisionsof any kind on the smallest of matters.School-based management is anexcellent antidote to bureaucracy (p. 2).

An equally significant concern is the repeatedfailure of centralized structures to inspire inschool personnel the prerequisite attitudesand behaviors for bringing about educationalimprovements. Mojkowski and Fleming(1988) echo the findings of many otherresearchers and writers, noting that:

...a school improvement impetus andauthority emanating from outside theschool does not produce the responsi-bility and commitment necessary tosustain consequential improvement(p. 2).

The contemporary rationale for decentralizedschoolingand particularly school-based man-agementhas been developed partly inrecognition of these problems and partly inresponse to research findings about morepromising arrangements for improving educa-tion. The following assertions, which arecommonly offered as the rationale for imple-menting school-based management, are drawnfrom the work of Arnundson (1988); Burns andHowes (1988); David and Peterson (1984);English (1989); Levine and Eubanks (1989);Lindelow and Heynderickx (1989); Malen,Ogawa, and Kranz (1990a,b); Marburger(1985); Mojkowski and Fleming (1988);Peterson (1991); and White (1989).

3TOPICAL SYNTHESIS #6

The school is the primary unit of change.

Those who work directly with studentshave the most informed and credibleopinions as to what educational arrange-ments will be most beneficial to those stu-dents.

Significant and lasting improvement takesconsiderable time, and local schools are inthe best position to sustain improvementefforts over time.

The school principal is a key figure inschool improvement.

Significant change is brought about bystaff and community participation inproject planning and implementation.

School-based management supports theprofessionalization of the teaching profes-sion and vice versa, which can lead tomore desirable schooling outcomes.

School-based management structures keepthe focus of schooling where it belongsonachievement and other student outcomes.

Alignment between budgets and instruc-tional priorities improves under school-based management.

Role Changes UnderSchool-Based Management

What happens when a school system elects toimplement school-based management in someor all of its schools? According to the growingbody of implementation research, the majorimpact is that the roles of all educationalstakeholderssuperintendents, other centraloffice personnel, board members, principals,teachers, other school staff, and often parents,community members and studentsareprofoundly affected. Indeed, as Mutchler(1990) reports following an extensive school-based management survey:

...school-based management andshared decision making strategiesdirectly challenge and seek to changethe complex and well-entrenchedpatterns of institutional and individ-ual behavior that...have remaineduntouched by top-down reforms (p. 4).


Those studying and commenting on these rolechanges include Amundson (1988); Arterbury-and Hord (1991); Caldwell and Wood (1888);Ceperley (1991); Clune and White (1988);Conley (1990); Duttweiler (1989); Harrison,Killion, and Mitchell (1989); Hord (1992); Kol-sti (1991); Lewis (1989); Malen, Ogawa, andKranz (1990a,b); Marburger (1985); andMutchler (1990). Their findings are as fol-lows.

The district. "It is virtually impossible,"notes Ceperley in her 1991 review and recom-mendations article, "to change significantlythe role of school-level personnel withoutchanging the traditional district administra-tive roles" (p. 7). Many writers have pre-sented specific findings about these changes.

Superintendents. "Experience indistricts that have tried school-based man-agement has shown that strong supportfrom the superintendent is absolutely nec-essary for its proper implementation,"writes Duttweiler (1989, p. 3), and virtu-ally all writers on the subject af school-based management concur with thisconclusion.

Superintendents communicate to thecommunity what school-based man-agement is and why it is desirable inorder to foster shared understandingand support.

When school-based managementbegins to /replace centralized admini-stration, the superintendent's rolechanges from deliverer of top-downmandates to team member whoencourages bottom-up change.

Instead of pushing for as much stan-dardization as possible, thesuperintendent's new role calls forsupporting the differences and unique-nesses among different schools'approaches to change and improve-ment.

Direct support to principals underSBM includes: (1) increased accessibil-ity, (2) mutual development of growthplans with and for principals,(3) allocation of resources for planningand training at the school level,(4) arranging for training and develop-

PAGE 5

ment activities based on jointlyidentified needs, and (5) assessing

- progress and providing follow-upassistance as needed.

Central office staff. The role of thesepersonnel shifts from a primary focus ongiving directives and monitoring compli-ance to serving as resources for and facili-tators of school-level change efforts.

Functions typically include: (1) facilitatingthe development of student and sta.ffperformance standards, (2) offeringtechnical assistance to the schools,(3) locating and providing resourcesmaterials, (4) establishing funding formu-las, and (5) carrying out systemwideplanning, monitoring, and evaluation.

The school. Under school-based manage-mentand particularly in those settingswhere school-based management is accomp.:.nied by broad-based decision makingtheroles of all school personnel undergo signifi-cant changes.

Principals. Under SBM, it is the role ofthe principal that is subject to the greatestdegree of change:

This change is sometimes expressed asreconceptualizing the principal's rolefrom that of "boss" to that of "chiefexecutive officer."

Instead of enforcing policies madeelsewhere, which inevitably sets him/her apart from the staff, the principalworks collegially with staff, sharingauthority with them.

The principal typically moves closer tothe educational process, serving as aninstructional manager.

The principal moves higher in the dis-trict chain of command, because of theincreased authority and accountabilitythat shifts to the school.

Assistant principals and departmentheads. The role of these people evolvestoward serving as advocates with princi-pals on behalf of teachers.

PAGE 6

Teachers. Teachers have often beenisolated from involvement in significantdecision making and from frequent andmeaningful contact with one another.SBM arrangements tend to increase theirinvolvement in these areas, often to a sig-nificant degree.

As previously noted, the decision-makingdomains in which teachers are invited tobecome involved and the degree of realpower they have to make decisions differacross SBM sites. Even so, a transition toSBM typically means that teachers'involvement in decision making willbroaden considerably.

Students. Students have traditionallybeen isolated from operational and policydecisions. Under SBM, studentsparticu-larly older onesoften have influence inthese areas by giving advice and input.

Parents and community members. Par-ents and comMunity representatives havegenerally been relatively uninformed andunderutilized regarding decisions and opera-tions. Many SBM structures not only makeuse of increased parent/community input, butalso provide training to help them becomemore capable participants in the school'splanning and decision-making efforts.

The school board. Board members continueto provide general direction for the district byestablishing goals and policy statements, allo-cating resources, and monitoring progress. Inparticular, the board's clear message ofsupport for school-based management lendscredibility and fosters positive communityattitudes toward SBM projects. The board'srole does not change as dramatically as that ofsome stakeholders, but its support remainsvital.

As might be expected, role changes as numer-ous and profound as those outlined above arenot likely to happen effortlessly or painlessly.School-based management problems related tochanges in peoples' roles are commonplace;these are detailed in the following section,along with other difficulties encountered inimplementing and operating SBM programs.


Obstacles to Success

Much of the literature on school-based man-agement is concerned with the problemsdistricts and schools have experienced with it.Some of these are implementation problems,some arise in connection with operating SBMstructures, and still others have to do with thefailure of many SBM arrangements to bringabout the results desired by school anddistrict personnel and other stakeholders.

Considerable analytical effort has gone intoidentifying and describing the obstacles tosuccess with school-based management, andfindings appear in the work of Amundson(1988); Ceperley (1991); Cistone (1989); Cluneand White (1988); Gomez (1989); Hendersonand Marburger (1990); Jenni (1991); Levineand Eubanks (1989); Lindquist (1989); Malen,Ogawa, and Kranz (1990a,b); Marburger(1985); Mutchler (1989, 1990); Valesky,Forsythe, and Hall (1992); and White (1989).

Time. "The greatest source of trouble istime," says Ceperley (1991, P. 8). The activi-ties associated with school-based management"require school staff to devote additional hourseach day on top of an already hectic schedule."The stress produced by these extra timedemands has led to pessimism and burnout insome settings, particularly on the part ofteachers.

Unrealistic expectations. Many schoolspiloting school-based management undertaketoo many projects and procedural changesduring their first year or two of operation.The research on school-based managementmakes abundantly clear that full institution-alization of a school-based managementprocess takes a long timeas long as fiveyears or more.

Insufficient support for site councils.Site councils, which are the bodies concernedwith planning and decision making in mostSBM structures, are often given extensiveresponsibilities, but lack the qualifications tocarry out those responsibilities. Typicalproblems include:

Lack of knowledge of school opera-tions. Members of newly formed coun-cilsteachers, noncertified staff, andperhaps parents and studentsgenerally


possess little knowledge of school budgets,facilities, personnel, policy issues andother matters about which they areexpected to give input and/or make deci-sions.

Lack of group process skills. Councilmembers are likewise often deficient inthe skills of group decision making,conflict resolution, problem solving, andothers required for effective group work.

Lack of clarity about their role. Is thiscouncil a decision-making body or an advi-sory one? Assuming it has decision-making authority, can it make decisionsabout all aspects of the school...or onlyabout some of them? What are the man-dates and other "givens" that will influ-ence the council's work? Surprisinglyoften, site councils are asked to functionwithout answers to these very basicquestions.

Incongruence between decisions desiredand decisions allowed. Not infrequently,teachers find themselves becoming disen-chanted with school-based management. Onecommonly occurring reason is that the kindsof decisions they are allowed to make orinfluence are not the ones about which theycare and feel knowledgeable.

Research has clearly established that teach-ers' desire to participate in decision makingcenters on the school's technical coreitscurriculum and instructional program. Unfor-tunately, districts are often unwilling todelegate real decision-making authority toschools in these areas.

This may or may not sit well with principals,but it is almost universally frustrating toteachers. For one thing, they resent beingexcluded from decision areas about which theyknow a great deal. Just as distressing, theyoften find that they are expected to use timeand energy they would ordinarily spend onactivities related to their teaching responsi-bilities for decision-making in areas theywould just as soon leave to administrators.

Thus, when researchers and others ask, "doteachers want increased decision-makingauthority regarding school policy and opera-tions?" this turns out to be the wrong ques-

PAGE 7

tion, since the answer is totally dependent onthe particular decision area under considera-tion.

Other constraints on decision making.Schools are sometimes asked to implementprograms of school-based management whilecontinuing to function within the constraintsimposed by existing federal, state, schoolboard, district, and teacher union regulations.In these situations, school personnel some-times find that there is very little left for themto manage.

Research has shown that increased flexibilityand selective waiving of these constraints isassociated with more successful school-basedmanagement efforts.

Along with insufficient time, training, and/orlatitude, another obstacle frequently encoun-tered in school-based management efforts islack of adequate financial resources. Thismay take the form of insufficient release timefor planning and/or insufficient resources toimplement plans once they are made.

At worst, these constraints can lead schoolpersonnel to view school-based managementas unrealthe "same old thing" in the guise ofan innovation. And research indicates thatthey are right. If districts and boards do notextend considerable decision-making latitudeto schools, or they fail to provide the resourcesto enable staff to carry out decision responsi-bilities, school-based management becomes:

...just another moderately helpfulpublic relations and communicationsvehicle tinkering with the peripheralissues of school governance andmanagement (Lindquist 1989, p. 414)

or, as Taylor and Levine (1991) remark evenmore succinctly, "only a cosmetic attempt toimprove the school" (p. 394).

Failure to focus on instructional pro-grams and student outcomes. Site partici-pants often fail to address subjects central totheir instructional program. note Malen,Ogawa, and Kranz (1990a) and many otherresearchers, and such changes as are proposedare frequently not implemented. Moreover,these researchers point out that school-basedmanagement can actually impede the develop-

PAGE 8

ment and implementation of instructionalimprovements in settings where it divertsattention from teaching and Laming.

The frequent failure of school-based manage-ment efforts to address the school's program ofinstruction is related to anotherand perhapsmore basicproblem. This is the tendency ofthose implementing school-based managementto forget that it is not an end in itself, butrather a means to improving student perform-ance through bringing about improvements inthe quality of schooling. Mojkowski andFleming (1988) speculate on the reason forthis loss of perspective, pointing out thatimplementing school-based management is acomplex undertaking:

Considerable time and energy will berequired to negotiate the details ofnew responsibilities and relations.There is a tendency, therefore, to placeinordinate attention on the 'technol-ogy' of school-site management andforget the goal: an improving schoolwhere students learn at their potential(p. 14).

This topic will surface again in the discussionof the relationship between school-basedmanagement and student performance.

Stakeholder AttitudesToward School-Based

Management

Several researchers addressed the subject ofthe attitudes toward school-based manage-ment held by those who have been involved inSBM efforts. Some of thesemost notably theattitudes of teachers toward certain types ofdecision-making responsibilityhave beentouched upon. Findings about attitudes arecited by Arterbury and Hord (1991); Brown(1987); Chapman (1990); Conley (1990);Malen, Ogawa, and Kranz (1990a,b); Peterson(1991); and Rosenholtz (1985).

School staff members generally perceivetheir schools as being more responsiveunder decentralized arrangemmts, withresponsiveness defined as the ability toadapt resources and procedures to studentneeds.

4.;TOPICAL SYNTHESIS #6

However, enthusiasm for SBM on the partof school staff has been shown to decline ifthe practice continues over a significantperiod of time and few or no improvementsare noted in working conditions or studentoutcomes.

Parent and student satisfaction withthe schools has been shown to increaseunder school-based management.

Surveys of principals have consistentlyshown a high degree of satisfaction withthe In ove to school-based management,even though they also say that theirworkload has increased.

Teachers, as previously noted, want to beable to make or influence decisions regard-ing curriculum and instruction and haveoften reacted negatively to participation indecision-making about organizationalmatters that bear little relationship to theclassroom.

However, teacher surveys also reveal thatthe decision areas in which teachers feelmost deprived are those that address the"strategic 1 operational interface, the inter-action between the school and theclassroom....decisions about how childrenare assigned to classes, how t.eachers areassigned to classes, and how students aredisciplined and promoted" (Conley 1990,pp. 542-543).

Site council members, whether they areteachers, noncertified staff, parents, com-munity members, or students, express re-sentment (1) if allowed to make decisionsonly about trivial matters, or (2) if theirdecisions have only very minor impact onschool policy and operations, or (3) if theyare told they are a decision-making body,but then have their decisions vetoed bythe principal.

School-Based Managementand Student Performance

The ultimate measure of the value of school-based management will be the outcomesobserved in students who attend site-managedschools. As expressed by Arterbury and Hord(1991), "site-based decision making should be

explicitly considered as a means to increasedlearner outcomes" (p. 7).

Researchers examining the relationshipbetween SBM and student performancepar-ticularly achievementinclude Arterbury andHord (1991); Collins and Hanson (1991):Malen, Ogawa, and Kranz (1990a,b);B. Peterson (1991); D. Peterson (1991); andTaylor and Levine (1991). Their reports gobeyond discussion of what they have found toinclude probable reasons for those findings.

Thus far, researchers have identified no directlinkpositive or negativebetween school-based management and student achievementor other student outcomes, such as atten-dance. In some settings, student scores (onstandardized or local tests) have improvedslightly, in others they have declined slightly,and in most settings no differences have beennoted. "In sum," noted David Peterson (1991),"research as a whole does not indicate thatsite-based management brings consistent orstable improvements in student performance"(p. 2).

Reasons identified for this lack of impact onstudent performance echo observations madeelsewhere in this review and include thefollowing:

Those reports that do claim beneficialimpacts on achievement are generallyflawed, failing to specify the order inwhich events took place or to distinguishbetween SBM and other possible causes.

Student outcomes can be most powerfullyimpacted through improvements in cur-riculum and instruction, and school-basedmanagement efforts have often failed toaddress these areas of schooling.

Improving student performance is not astated goal in most school-based manage-ment efforts, and thus decisions are oftenmade without student outcome goals inmind.

There is no standard definition of school-based management. It appears that SBMstructures which are positively related tostudent performance may be cancelled outin the research base by forms of SBMwhich are negatively related or unrelated.

TOPICAL SYNTHESIS #6 PAGE 9

Some so-called school-based managementarrangements are in reality merely vari-ations on traditional hierarchical modelsrather than an actual restructuring ofdecision-making power.

Recommendations forImplementing and Operating

School-Based ManagementEfforts in Districts and

Schools

While school-based management programs inthe aggregate have not been found to improvestudent outcomes thus far, researchers andother writers have pointed to the positivecorrelation between SBM and improvedstudent outcomes in some settings. Theycontend that some forms of SBM have greatpotential for improving student performance.

The following are research-based recommen-dations which are offered to those who areconsidering implementation of school-basedmanagement structures in their schools anddistricts. They are drawn from the work ofAmundson (1988); Arterbury and Hord (1991);Caldwell and Wood (1988); Ceperley (1991);David (1989); Duttweiler (1990); Hendersonand Marburger (1990); Jenni (1991); English(1989); Levine and Eubanks (1989); Lewis(1989); Malen and Ogawa (1988); Malen,Ogawa, and Kranz (1990a,b); Mojkowski andFleming (1988); and White (1989).

Recommendations to states. States haveconsiderable power to help school-based man-agement arrangements to succeed throughproviding real support of the concept andpractice:

Encourage districts to utilize school-basedmanagement as a means for improvingstudent performance and overall schoolingconditions.

Make clear to superintendents and centraloffice staff that schools will requireconsiderable authority and flexibility to beable to engender real improvements.

Be available to provide training, research-based information, and on-site assistance

PAGE 10

to help in the school-based managementimplementation process.

Take- advantage of opportunities to moveaway from highly regulated, compliance-driven services and accountability proc-esses.

Recommendations to school districts.School-based management structures cannotsucceed without the commitment and supportof the superintendent and central office staff.Research indicates that districts can increasethe likelihood of success of SBM by taking thefollowing actions:

Communicate to all educational stake-holders in the district what school-basedmanagement is and why it is desirable toimplement this organizational structure.

Make certain to communicate to stake-holderswhen school-based managementis implemented and continually thereaf-terthat it takes a long time for thisapproach to be fully implemented and tobegin demonstrating significant and large-scale changes in schooling outcomes.

Assess schools for climates amenable toimplementation of school-based manage-ment.

Work with schools and school communitiesto understand the ways that stakeholderroles will change and assist them to makethese changes.

Encourage schools to choose a manageablenumber of activities during the implemen-tation phase of school-based management.

Delegate real authority to schools to makedecisions and plan and carry out improve-ment activities; require that this increasedauthority be in the hands of a site councilwith representatives from all key stake-holders in the schoolprincipal, teachers,noncertified staff, parents, communityrepresentatives, and students.

Designate someone in the central office tooversee the implementation and operationof school-based management efforts. Oneof this person's responsibilities should beto assure that site councils are actually


able to exercise the authority delegated tothem, rather than being dominated by theprincipal.

Provide information and training to schoolsite councils, including:

Clear guidelines about their role andthe extent of their authority

Content knowledge about student andoverall school performance, policies,programs, budgets, facilities, person-nel, local and state regulations, andother areas in which they will beexpected to make or influence deci-sions

Skills training in group processes,such as problem solving, decision mak-ing, conflict resolution, etc.

Provide other needed resources, such asassuring time and financial support forplanning and carrying out improvementactivities.

Encourage and support norms of collegial-ity and collaboration at the school level.

Increase schools' latitude for decisionmaking through helping them to havestate and local regulations waived asappropriate.

Involve teacher union representatives inearly discussions of school-based manage-ment. When the benefits to teachers areunderstood, unions have shown willing-ness to be flexible about contract con-straints.

Assist schools to evaluate and modify theirSBM structures and school improvementplans based on continuous review of pro-gram activities and their effects.

Recommendations to schools. The waythat school-based management is supposed tofunction at the school site is usually specifiedto some degree by the district. The principalcontinues to have considerable influence overSBM operations, however, and is advised topursue a form of SBM that has the followingcomponents:


Help staff and community members tounderstand what school-based manage-ment is; emphasize that it is a means tothe end of improving student outcomesthrough improving instruction and otherschooling functions.

Become familiar with the literature onschool-based management so as to capital-ize on what is known about successfulapproaches and to avoid or minimizecommon pitfalls.

Redouble efforts to reach out to parentsand community members and seek theirinvolvement in this restructured form ofschool governance.

Communicate broadly the willingness toshare power, both nominally and in fact.Model the process of experiencing achange in one's role.

Help staff and community members tounderstand the role changes called for byschool-based management and help themto evolve into these new roles.

Have the site council function as a truedecision-making body, not merely an advi-sory one. This may already be a districtrequirement, but its reality needs to bereinforced at the school site.

Reinforce the district message that fullimplementation of school-based manage-ment and realization of change in studentoutcomes takes a long timefive years ormore. Underscore that SBM is notanother short-term project, but rather afundamental change in the way schoolsfunction. Move incrementally, seeking abalance (as Mojkowski and Fleming rec-ommend) between "revolutionary prac-tices" and "evolutionary pace" (1988,p. 13).

Involve the teaching staff in makingsubstantive decisions about the school'stechnical corethe curriculum andinstructional program.

Involve teachers in making substantivedecisions in areas at the interface betweenschool-level and classroom-level opera-tions; these include student and teacher

PAGE 11

class assignments and promotion and dis-cipline.policies and operations.

Encourage and support norms of collegial-ity and collaboration through designatingtime for group planning and learningactivities.

Researchers, theorists, and practitionersagree that an approach to school-based man-agement which places real authority in thehands of broadly representative stakeholdergroups, and then assures that those groupsreceive the training and resources they needto exercise that authority well, has immensepotential for improving schooling governance,operations, and outcomes.

In a 1988 school improvement article, Hender-son and Lezotte quote John Chubb, a seniorfellow at the Brookings Institution, whoserecent large-scale school study led to thissame conclusion. Chubb writes:

The more control a school has overthose aspects of its organization thataffect its performancethe articula-tion of its goals, the selection andmanagement of its personnel, thespecification of its policiesthe morelikely a school is to exhibit the quali-ties that have been found to promoteeffectiveness.

Key References

Arterbury, E., and Hord, S. M. "Site-BasedDecision Making: Its Potential forEnhancing Learner Outcomes."Issues...about Change 1/4 (1991): entireissue.

Cites research regarding the failure ofsome site-based management structures tobring about changes in student outcomesand discusses the kind of site-baseddecision-making approach that can bringabout improvements in student learning.

Brown, D. J. Decentralization and School-based Management. London: The FalmerPress, 1990.

PAGE 12

Reviews the conceptual literature onschool-based management and presentsfindings from research on school-basedmanagement in four Canadian districtsand in the Cleveland (Ohio) PublicSchools.

Brown, D. J. A Preliminary Inquiry intoSchool-Based Management. Ottawa, Can-ada: Social Sciences and HumanitiesResearch Council of Canada, March 1987.(ED 284 331)

Presents results of an inquiry into thenature and effects of school-based man-agement in two large Canadian schooldistricts. These SBM structures arelimited to making personnel and somebudgetary decisions, and the degreeteacher involvement in decision makingdiffers from school to school.

Burns, L. T., and Howes, J. "Handing Controlto Local Schools: Site-Based ManagementSweeps the Country." The School Admin-istrator 45/7 (1988): 8-10.

Cites research findings which lend sup-port to the practice of school site-basedmanagement and goes on to describe theprocess of implementing site-based man-agement in the Parkway School District inMissouri.

Caldwell, S. D., and Wood, F. H. "School-Based ImprovementAre We Ready9"Educational Leadership 42/2 (1988):50-53.

Draws upon policy review and interviewfindings to generate recommendations todistricts for specifying roles and managingbuilding-based improvement efforts intheir schools.

Ceperley, P. "Site-Based Decisionmaking:Policymakers Can Support It or Under-mine It." The Link 10/2 (1991): 1,7-9.

Cites key findings from the research onsite-based decision making and makesrecommendations for actions that can betaken by states to improve the likelihoodof success in site-based decision-makingefforts.


Cistone, P. J.; Fernandez, J. A.; and Tornillo,P. L., Jr. "School-Based Management/Shared Decision Making in Dade County(Miami)." Education and Urban Society21/4 (1989): 393-402.

Provides background information andfindings from a study of the implementa-tion phase of Site-Based Management/Shared Decision Making (SBM/SDM) in33 pilot schools in the Dade County(Florida) school system.

Clune, W. H., and White, P. A. School-BasedManagement: Institutional Variation,Implementation, and Issues for FurtherResearch. New Brunswick, NJ: Centerfor Policy Research in Education, RutgersUniversity, September 1988.

Reviews literature on school-based man-agement and presents findings fromtelephone interviews with personnel at 31schools using school-based managementstructures. Draws conclusions and offersrecommendations for future research.

Collins, R. A., and Hanson, M. K. School-Based Management I Shared Decision-Making Project, 1987-88 through 1989-90.Summative Evaluation Report. Miami,FL: Dade County Public Schools, Office ofEducational Accountability, January 1991.(ED 331 922)

Reports on the summative, district-levelevaluation of 33 Dade County (Fiorida)schools that participated in a three-yearpilot program, Site-based Management/Shared Decision Making (SBN/SDM).Impacts on both operations and outcomesare cited.

Conley, S. C., and Bacharach, S. B. "FromSchool-Site Management to ParticipatorySchool-Site Management." Phi DeltaKappan 71/7 (1990): 539-544.

Arguesand offers research te substanti-atethat school-site management will notbring about the improvements called for inthe reform literature unless it incorpo-rates teachers' participation in makingdecisions in areas that are important tothem.

Cuban, L. "Reforming Again, Again, andAgain." Educational Researcher 19/1(1990): 3-13.

Uses three examplesteacher- vs. stu-dent-centered instruction, academic vs.practical curriculum content, and centrali-zation vs. decentralization of local schoolgovernanceto illustrate the tendency ofreform efforts to recur in cyclical fashion.Discusses various theories about the per-sistence of these cycles.

Darling-Hammond, L. "Accountability andTeacher Professionalism." AmericanEducator 12/4 (1988): 8-13, 38-43.

Outlines a model of teacher professional-ism and cites the ways that extendinggreater authority to teachers will increaseeducation's accountability to the public,rather than decreasing it, as some criticsfear.

David, J. L., and Peterson, S. M. Can SchoolsImprove Themselves: A Study of School-Based Improvement Programs. Palo Alto,CA: Bay Area Research Group, 1984.

Reports the results of a study of six school-based improvement programs in differentlocations around the U.S. Key findingsinclude that achieving meaningful school-based change is difficult and that theschools studied had thus far concentratedon the noninstructional aspects of school-ing.

David, J. L. "Synthesis of Research on School-Based Management." Educational Lead-ership 46/8 (1989): 45-53.

Presents findings on school-based man-agement, including the motivation behinddistrict decentralization, the kinds ofincreases in authority schools typicallyassume, and the key elements of success-ful school-based management arrange-ments.

Duttweiler, P. C. "A Look at School-BasedManagement." Insights on EducationalPolicy and Practice 6 (January 1989).(ED 330 050)

Reviews literature on school-based man-agement, giving special attention to the


role and responsibility changes that areexperienced by different stakeholders in

_the educational system under SBM.

Duttweiler, P. C., and Mutchler, S. E. "Har-nessing the Energy of People to ImproveSchools." Insights on Educational Policyand Practice, Special Combined Issue(Summer 1990). (ED 329 021)

Reiterates finding:, presented in otherrecent issues of Insights regarding school-based management and shared decisionmaking. Offers recommendations for dis-tricts considering implementation of thesepractices.

Etheridge, C. P., and Hall, M. L. The Nature,Role and Effect of Competition. Coopera-tion, and Comprehension in Multiple SiteImplementation of SBDM. Paper pre-sented at the Annual Meeting of theAmerican Educational Research Associa-tion, Chicago, IL, April 1991.

Reports on a study of the relationshipbetween different principal leadershipstyles and the functioning of local schoolcouncils in the Memphis City Schools asthey implemented site-based decisionmaking.

Firestone, W. A., and Corbett, H. D. "PlannedOrganizational Change." Chapter 16 inHandbook of Research on EducationalAdministration, edited by N. J. Boyan.New York: Longman, 1988.

Examines the research on planned organ-izational change in schools for its implica-tions about how the change process shouldbe managed so as to lead to positiveresults.

Gomez, J. J. "The Path Toward School-BasedManagement Isn't Smooth, But We'reScaling the Obstacles One by One."American School Board Journal 176110(1989): 20-22.

Describes the kinds of problems encoun-tered by schools piloting school-basedmanagement in the Dade County PublicSchools in Miami and identifies the kindsof action taken to deal with these typicalproblems.

PAGE 14

Henderson, A., and Marburger, C. "TenPitfalls of School Based Improvement."NETWORK for Public Schools 15/5 (1990):3-5.

Identifies ten problems commonlyobserved in connection with school-basedmanagement efforts and offers recommen-dations that can help schools and districtsavoid or minimize these problems.

Hord, S. M. "The New Alliance of Superinten-dents and Principals: Applying theResearch to Site-Based Decision Making."Issues...about Change 2/1 (Winter 1992):entire issue.

Reviews research on the behavior ofsuperintendents in high-performing schooldistricts, particularly those engaging inschool-based management, to identify andencourage those superintendent behaviorsthat can lead to desirable schoolingoutcomes.

Jenni, R. W. "Application of the School BasedManagement Process DevelopmentModel." School Effectiveness and SchoolImprovement 212 (1991): 136-151.

Introduces and applies a model to identifyfactors which enhance or inhibit theprocess of school decentralization.Focuses on the movement toward school-based management in two Minnesotaschool districts.

Johnston, G. S., and Germinario, V. "Rela-tionship Between Teacher DecisionalStatus and Loyalty." The Journal ofEducational Administration 23/1 (1985):91-105.

Investigates teachers' levels of satisfactionwith the nature and extent of theirinvolvement in school decision making.Key findings include that the majority ofteachers would like to be more involved indecision making and that they are mostinterested in participating in those deci-sions which pertain to the teaching-learning process.

ci TOPICAL SYNTHESIS #6

.7441

Kolsti, K., and Rutherford, B. Site-BasedManagement: Definitions, Implications,and Indicators. Houston, TX: HoustonIndependent School District; Austin, TX:The University of Texas, September 1991.

Reviews literature on site-based manage-ment to clarify relationships between SBMand other school improvement concepts,outline SBM structures and roles of par-ticipants, identify implementation prac-tices and issues, and describe the evolu-tion and pocential outcomes of SBMapproaches.

Levine, D. U. "Creating Effective Schools:Findings and Implications from Researchand Practice." Phi Delta Kappan 72/5(1991): 389-393.

Draws upon the effective schoolingresearch of the 1970s and 1980s to providea set of guidelines for those interested inundertaking school improvement projects.

Levine, D. U., and Eubanks, E. E. "Site-BasedManagement: Engine for Reform orPipedream? Problems, Prospects, Pitfalls,and Prerequisites for Success." InRestructuring the Schools: Problems andPmspects, edited by J. J. Lane andE. G. Epps. Berkeley, CA: McCutchan,1992, 61-82.

Cites research findings regarding theadvantages of site-based managementover more centralized structures, prob-lems encountered in implementing SBM,outcomes of implementation efforts, prom-ising practices, and common areas ofconfusion that require greater clarifica-tion.

Lewis, A. "Meanwhile, At the School." Chap-ter IX in Restructuring America's Schools.Arlington, VA: American Association ofSchool Administrators, 1989, 173-190.

Describes the kinds of changes which takeplace during the evolution from central-ized control to school-based managementstructures. Presents results from studiesof school-based management and profilesof particular sch ools.

Lieberman, A., and Miller, L. "RestructuringSchools: What Matters and What Works."Phi Delta Kappan 71/10 (1990): 759-764.

Discusses approaches to school restructur-ing, its essential components, majorissues, and the need to achieve a balancebetween (1) students' learning needs andteachers' workplace needs and (2) takingaction and reflecting upon learnings.

Lindelow, J., and Heynderickx, J. "School-Based Management." In School Leader-ship: Handbook for Excellence, 2ndedition, edited by S. C: Smith andP. K Piele. Eugene, OR: ERIC Clearing-house on Educational Management, 1989,109-134.

Presents a brief history of centralizationand decentralization trends in U. S.education, identifies deficiencies presentin centralized structures, provides a ra-tionale for educational decentralization,and describes SBM practices and severaldistricts.

Lindquist, K M., and Mauriel, J. J. "School-Based Management: Doomed to Failure?"Education and Urban Society 21/4 (1989):403-416.

Draws upon the growing research base onschool-based management and profilesSBM structure and history in two districtsto identify reasons for the frequent failureof SBM to produce more positive out-comes.

Malen, B., and Ogawa, R. T. "Professional-Patron Influence on Site-Based Govern-ance Councils: A Confounding CaseStudy." Educatnal Evaluation andPolicy Analysis 10/4 (1988): 251-270.

Reports on case studies of the operationsof site councils in the Salt Lake City(Utah) Public Schools. Found that theexistence of structures thought to beconducive to broad-based decision makingdid not in fact lead to increases in parentand teacher influence on policy.

Malen, B.; Ogawa, R. T.; and Kranz, J. "Site-Based Management: UnfulfilledPromises." The School Administrator 47/2(1990a): 30, 32, 53-56, 59.


Presents the results of a review of approxi-mately 200 documents describing past andpresent site-based management arrange-

_ _

ments and their outcomes in the U. S.,Canada and Australia. Concludes thatSBM has generally failed to meet itsstated objectives. Also reported in Malen,et al. 1990b.

Malen, B.; Ogawa, R. T.; and Kranz, J. "WhatDo We Know About School-Based Manage-ment? A Case Study of the LiteratureACall for Research." Chapter 8 in Choiceand Control in American Education, Vol-ume 2: The Practice of Choice, Decentrali-zation and School Restructuring, edited byW. H. Clune and J. F. Witte. New York:The Falmer Press, 1990b.

Provides a detailed discussion of a litera-ture review on the nature and outcomes ofschool-based management efforts inAmerican, Canadian, and Australianschool districts. Also reported in Malen,et al. 1990a.

Mojkowski, C., and Fleming, D. School-SiteManagement: Concepts and Approaches.Andover, MA: The Regional Laboratoryfor Educational Improvement of theNortheast and Islands, 1988.

Provides the rationale for school-site man-agement, identifies its components, givesbrief descriptions of various school-sitemanagement projects around the country,and offers suggestions to those wishing toplan and implement school-site manage-ment.

Mutehler, S. E. "Eight Barriers to ChangingTraditional Behavior: Part One." Insightson Educational Policy and Practice 18(March 1990). (ED 330 058)

Cites barriers to effective school-basedmanagement and shared decision makingas identified by respondents to a 1989Southwest Educational DevelopmentLaboratory survey of educational practi-tioners.

Mutchler, S. E. "Eight Barriers to ChangingTraditional Behavior: Part Two." Insightson Educational Policy and Practice 19(April 1990). (ED 330 059)

Cites barriers to effective school-basedmanagement and shared decision makingas identified by respondents to a 1989SoutEwest Educational DevelopmentLaboratory survey of educational practi-tioners.

Mutchler, S. E. "Shared Decision Making-.Harnessing the Energy of People."Insights on Educational Policy and Prac-tice 20 (December 1989). (ED 330 070)

Reviews findings from investigations intoschool-based management and concludesthat the success of SBM depends on(1) the degree to which authority isdelegated to the school site and (2) thedistribution of that authority at the site.

Peterson, B. "How School-Based ManagementIs Faring in Miami." Education Week(June 12, 1991): 26.

Clarifies previous writings about thenature and effects of SBM in the DadeCounty Public Schools. Highlights: SBMhas brought about some improvements,but student achievement has eitherdeclined or remained unchanged. Recom-mendations are offered.

Peterson, D. "School-Based Management &Student Performance." NASSP ERICDIGEST 61 (1991): entire issue.

Summarizes recent research on the rela-tionship between the use of school site-based management structures and stu-dent achievement. Claims that thelimited research conducted thus far doesnot support SBM as a means to improvingstudents' academic performance, possiblybecause so much SBM implementation issuperficial and lacks the power to bringabout meaningful change.

Taylor, B. 0., and Levine, D. U. "EffectiveSchools Projects and School-BasedManagement." Phi Delta Kappan 72/5(1991): 394-397.

Contends that, although school-basedmanagement has potential for helpingschools to improve themselves, educatorsshould not implement site-based manage-ment for its own sake. Rather, theyshould make use of the findings from the

PAGE 16 TOPICAL SYNTHESIS #6

school effectiveness research in theirschool improvement efforts.

Valesky, T. C.; Forsythe, G.; and Hall, M. L.Principal Perceptions of School-BasedDecision Making in Tennessee Schools.Policy Practice Brief. Memphis TN: Cen-ter for Research in Educational Policy,Memphis State University, January 1992.

Presents results of a survey of 46 princi-pals in schools using schocl-based man-agement. Responses concerned the natureof decision making in schools, schoolimprovement, and problems related toSBM.

White, P. A. "An Overview of School-BasedManagement: What Does the ResearchSay?" NASSP Bulletin 73/518 (1989): 1-8.

Discusses school-based managementitsobjectives, typical structures, potentialbenefits, and limitations and offers guide-lines to those who wish to implement site-based management structures in theirschools.

General ReferencesAmundson, K. J. School-Based Management:

A Strategy for Better Learning. Arlington,VA: American Association of SchoolAdministrators; National Association ofElementary School Principals; NationalAssociation of Secondary School Princi-pals, 1988.

Provides a definition and rationale forschool-based management, along with adiscussion of the ways educators' roles canbe expected to change under SBM, recom-mendations for implementation, and adescription of frequently encounteredobstacles to success.

Aronstein, L. W.; Marlow, M.; and Desilets, B."Detours on the Road to Site-BasedManagement." Educational Leadership47/7 (1990): 61-63.

Gives examples of problems encounteredand lessons learned during a Massachu-setts middle school's evolution fromtraditional, top-down management toshared decision making.


Carr, T. A. "Second-Wave Reforms Crest atLocal Initiative." The School Administra-

- tor 45/7 (1988): 16-18.

Discusses the potential of school site-based management for improving educa-tion and outlines the approach to SBMtaken in the Richardson IndependentSchool District in suburban Dallas, Texas.

Casner-Lotto, J. "Expanding the Teacher'sRole: Hammond's School ImprovementProcess." Phi Delta Kappan 69/5 (1988):349-353.

Describes the Hammond, Indiana schooldistrict's School Improvement Process(SIP), a building-based method of schoolmanagement. Provides examples of theSIP's operation at a variety of Hammondschools and cites numerous program, role,and attitude changes as indicators ofsuccess.

Chapman, J. D., ed. School-based Decision-making and Management. London: TheFalmer Press, 1990.

Presents a series of essays on research,theory, and other aspects of school-basedmanagement and decision making, par-ticularly in relation to the educationalsystems in Australia and England.

Conley, D. T. "Lessons from Laboratories inSchool Restructuring and Site-BasedDecision-Making: Oregon's '2020' SchoolsTake Control of Their Own Reform."OSSC Bulletin 34/7 (March 1991): entireissue.

Discusses the activities engaged in byschools that are recipients of grants fromthe State of Oregon for school improve-ment and professional development in1990-91.

Conley, S. C. 'Who's on First?' SchoolReform, Teacher Participation, and theDecision-Making Process." Education andUrban Society 21/4 (1989): 366-379.

Argues that school reform efforts couldbenefit from giving greater attention totwo fundamental distinctions: (1) thedistinction between authority and influ-

PAGE 17

ence in school decision making and (2) thedistinction among different domains of

_ decision making.

Conley, S. C.; Schmid le, T.; and Shedd, J. B."Teacher Participation in the Manage-ment of School Systems." Teachers Col-lege Record 90/2 (1988): 259-280.

Discusses the rationale for increasingteacher participation in decisions regard-ing school management and outlines thevarious ways that teachers perform mana-gerial functions in schools. Argues that, toperform effectively in their jobs, boardsand administrators need teachers' partici-pation in school management.

Dreyfuss, G. "Dade County Opens Doors toSite Decisions." The School Administrator45/7 (1988): 12-15.

Describes the actions taken to bring aboutsite-based management in 32 of theschools in the Dade County Public Schoolsin Miami, Florida.

English, F. "School-Site Management." ThePractitioner 16/2 (1989): entire issue.

Offers a definition of school-site manage-ment, provides a brief history of efforts todecentralize schooling, discusses areas ofdecision making that might benefit fromdecentralization, and offers a strategy forthose wishing to implement school-sitemanagement.

Geisert, G. "Participatory Management:Panacea or Hoax? Educational Leader-ship 46/3 (1988): 56-59.

Takes issue with the recommendations ofthe report of the Carnegie Forum onEducation and the Economy, A NationPrepared: Teachers for the 21st Century.Claims that implementation of the report'srecommendations will put too much powerin the hands of teachers and will result ininefficiency.

Harrison, C. R.; Killion, J. P.; and Mitchell,J. E. "Site-Based Management: TheRealities of Implementation." EducationalLeadership 46/8 (1989): 55-58.

Provides, for the benefit of other schooldistricts seeking to decentralize theiroperations, a deseription of problemsencountered and lessons learned in theAdams County (Colorado) School Districtduring the three years since decentraliza-tion efforts began.

Hawthorne, R. D. "Analyzing School-BasedCollaborative Curriculum DecisionMaking." Journal of Curriculum andSupervision 5/3 (1990): 279-286.

Reports the results of several inquiriesinto the nature of teachers' curriculumdecision making. Findings include thatteachers think they make more decisionsthan they actually do, and that decisionsare rarely made based on a vision for thetotal curriculum.

Henderson, A., and Lezotte, L. "SBI (SchoolBased Improvement) and EffectiveSchools: A Perfect Match." NETWORKfor Public Schools 13/5 (1988): 1, 3-5.

Discusses school-based improvement,including the conviction that school-basedmanagement can foster the implementa-tion of the instructional and organiza-tional practices associated with effectiveschools.

Herzog, S. E. A New Look at Empowerment:How Educators and Communities CanEmpower Each Other. Arlington, VA:American Association of School Adminis-trators, 1990.

Details ways that key actors in the educa-tional systemcentral office staff, princi-pals, teachers, parents, communitymembers and studentscan extendgreater influence and respect to oneanother and become empowered them-selves.

Kelly, T. F. "Five Ways to Make Your SchoolsEffective." The School Administrator 47/2(1989): 26, 29.

Cites and discusses five principles whichhave been identified in relation to effectiveschools participating in New York'sComprehensive School Improvement Plan-ning process.

PAGE 18 TOPICAL SYNTHESIS #6

Lewis, J., Jr. Planning Guidelines for Imple-menting School-Based Management.Westbury, NY: J. L. Wilkerson PublishingCompany, 1989.

Uses a "facilitation module" format topresent guidelines for use by those seek-ing to plan and implement site-basedmanagement in their school settings. Its25 steps or "sections" address topics frominformation gathering through policydevelopment.

Marburger, C. L. One School at a Time:School Based ManagementA Process forChange. Columbia, MD: The NationalCommittee for Citizens in Education,1985.

Outlines the rationale for and history ofthe move towards school-based manage-ment, describes typical SBM structures,and offers guidelines for those consideringimplementing SBM in their districts.

Mitchell, J. E. "Share the Power." AmericanSchool Board Journal 177/1 (1990): 42-43.

Offers a list of experience-based recom-mendations to school board to assist themin fostering school-based managementefforts in their districts.

Mitchell, J. E. "Site-Based Management:Coaxing Staff from Cages for Site-BasedDecisions to Fly." The School Administra-tor 47/2 (1990): 23-24, 26.

Argues that the reluctance of school staffto get involved in site-based managementand decision making comes from (1) a fearof trying new things, (2) lack of training,and (3) fear that staffs ideas and propos-als will be blocked by principals, superin-tendents, boards, or others.

Moses, M. C., and Whitaker, K. S. "TenComponents for Restructuring Schools."The School Administrator 47/8 (1990):32-34.

Advises school districts consideringrestructuring to adapt ten general sugges-tions to their own local situations. Seessite-based decision making as an essentialfeature of an effectively restructuredschool.


Murphy, J. A. Improving the Education ofAt-Risk Students. A System of Checks andBalances. Upper Marlboro, MD: PrinceGeorge's County Public Schools, February1990. (ED 325 539)

Reviews the activities which have led toimproved academic outcomes for at-riskstudents in a Maryland school district. Afocus on student outcomes, staff develop-ment, school control of budgets, andadditional resources were key features.

Rosenholtz, S. J. "Effective Schools: Inter-preting the Evidence." American Journalof Education 93/3 (1985): 352-388.

Draws upon findings from many researchstudies to identify the organizational andinstructional factors which differentiateeffective inner-city schools from ineffectiveones.

Sirotnik, K. A., and Clark, R. W. "School-Cen-tered Decision Makirg and Renewal." PhiDelta Kappan 69/ (1988): 660-664.

Argues that schools should be regarded,not as targets to be acted upon, but ratheras centers of critical inquiry, in whichparticipants engage in asking questionsand pursuing activities designed to keepdiscourse alive, informed, and based onvalues.

Sparks, D. "Creating Cooperative Schools:An Interview with David and RogerJohnson." Journal of Staff Development11/1 (1990): 44-46.

Outlines the key features of "cooperativeschools"schools in which cooperativeapproaches are valued and practiced byboth staff and students.

Strauber, S. K.; Stanley, S.; andWagenknecht, C. "Site-Based Manage-ment at Central-Hower." EducationalLeadership 47/7 (1990): 64-66.

Describes the structure for decisionmaking adopted by this Akron, Ohio highschool. Major components include a Fac-ulty Senate, a Curriculum Council, andlong- and short-term goal-setting cycles.

PAGE 19

White, P. A. Resource Materials on School-Based Management. New Brunswick, NJ:

_ Center for Policy Research in Education,_

Rutgers University, September 1988.

Cites contact people, provides programdescriptions, and offers an annotatedbibliography of print resources on school-based management. Most information isfrom the 1970s and early 1980s.

This publication is based on work sponsored wholly, or in part, by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement(OERI), U.S. Department of Education, under Contract Number RP91002001. The content of this publication does not neces-sarily reflect the views of OERI, the Department, or any other agency of the U.S. Government.

December 1992

PAGE 20 TOPICAL SYNTHESIS *6


Close-Up #13

Developing Empathy in Children and Youth

Kathleen Cotton

Moral imagination is the capacity toempathize with others, i.e., not just tofeel for oneself, but to feel with and forothers. This is something that educa-tion ought to cultivate and thatcitizens ought to bring to politics.

McCollough 1992

Introduction"Do We Really Want to Produce Good People?"asks education professor, Dr. Nel Noddings, inthe title of a 1987 article. Do we concur withphilosopher Martin Buber's conviction that"education worthy of the name is essentiallyeducation of character"? Is it the business ofthe schools to seek to develop in young peoplethe character traits we associate with good-nesstraits such as kindness, generosity,compassion, and helpfulness?

These are far-reaching questions; and educa-tors, legislators and the public can be expectedto continue expressing differentand some-times heatedpoints of view about theteaching of "values" and "morals" in theschools.

The present report will not take on the fullweight of these numerous and complex issues.Instead, the intent here is to offer some

insights from the research about one aspect of"goodness" that is of particular current inter-est to educators and societythe quality ofempathy.

If we ask, "what are the characteristics of acapable, successful learner?" one view that isgaining increasing currency among educatorsis the notion that successful learners areknowledgeable, self-determined, strategic, andempathetic* (Jones 1990). That is, in additionto having (1) knowledge, including critical andcreative faculties; (2) motivation to learn andconfidence about themselves as learners; and(3) tools and strategies for acquiring, evaluat-ing, and applying knowledge; successfullearners also have (4) insight into the motives,feelings, and behavior of others and the abilityto communicate this understandingin aword, empathy.

Jones (1990) identifies some of the reasonsthat empathetic understanding is seen as animportant trait of the successful learner:

* Researchers and other writers usr, theword "empathetic" and the word "empathic" todesignate a person or response characterizedby empathy. Both are correct.

Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500Portland, Oregon 97204Telephone (503) 275-9500 School Improvement Prograni:p

Successful students often recognizethat much of their success involvestheir ability to communicate withothers...they are also able to viewthemselves and the world through theeyes of others. This means...examining beliefs and circumstancesof others, keeping in mind the goal ofenhanced understanding andappreciation....Successful studentsvalue sharing experiences with per-sons of different backgrounds asenriching their lives (p. 19).

Regardless of conflicting views about theappropriate place, if any, of "values education"in the schools, people are generally able toagree that developing this capacity to under-stand, appreciate, and communicate meaning-fully with others is an important and desir-able goal. This enables us to move away fromour differences of opinion about the specificcontent of "good character," focusing insteadon the process whereby people come to careabout one another and communicate thatcaring through their behavior.

Definition

"Unfortunately," writes Pecukonis (1990) "theliterature has been confounded by definitionalcontroversy. The essence of this disagreementis the extent to which either cognitive proc-esses or affective experiences formulate theempathic response" (p. 60). Readers of thepresent report will be spared the details ofthis controversy. Suffice it to say that most ofthe psychologists and educators whose workwas consulted in preparation for this reportagree that empathy includes both elements.As Gallo (1989) puts it:

...an empathic response is one whichcontains both a cognitive and anaffective dimension....the term empa-thy [is] used in at least two ways; tomean a predominantly cognitiveresponse, understanding how anotherfeels, or to mean an affective commun-ion with the other (p. 100).

Carl Rogers (1975) wrote:

...the state of empathy or beingempathic is to perceive the internalframe of reference of another with

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accuracy and with the emotionalcomponents and means which pertainthereto as if one were the person, butwithout ever losing the 'as if' condition(Quoted in Gallo 1989).

And The American Heritage Dictionary of theEnglish Language defines empathy as "under-standing so intimate that the feelings,thoughts and motives of one are readily com-prehended by another."

In addition to the shared feeling and accurateunderstanding dimensions of empathy, somewriters also focus on the empathetic person'scommunication of understanding to the personwhose "internal frame of reference" he or shehas grasped. Thus, some definitions includethis element, e.g., Haynes and Avery's charac-terization of empathy as:

...the ability to recognize and under-stand another person's perceptionsand feelings, and to accurately conveythat understanding through anaccepting response (p. 527).

Such a response may involve verbal confirma-tion of understanding and/or supportive looksand body language, and prosocial behaviorsuch as sharing goods or providing help.

Because different writers emphasize differentaspects of empathy, the measures of empathyused in the research include assessments ofsubjects' emotional states, their cognitiveperceptions, and/or their behavior.

The Literature on Empathy

This paper is the result of a review of fifty-eight articles, books, and other publications.Thirty-seven of these are reports of researchstudies or reviews, while twenty-one arewritings of a more general nature. Theselatter include, for example, discussions of thenature, source, and development of empathyin people and descriptions of activities de-signed to enhance empathy.

Of the research documents, thirty-two arestudies or evaluations, four are reviews ormeta-analyses, and one reports results of botha review and evaluation. Subjects of theresearch are preschoolers (six studies), ele-mentary students (fourteen), secondary

CLOSE-UP #13

students (four), elementary and secondarystudents (six), university students and otheradults (six), and the age/grade of students inone st .1:1 was not specified.

Both sexes and various racial/ethnic groupsare represented among the research subjects.Of the school-age participants, most arestudents in regular school programs, butspecial education students are also repre-sented, as are delinquent and other incarcer-ated youth. Most subjects are American,although the research base also includesstudies involving Finns, Israelis, Australians,and Canadians.

Practices and treatments whose effects wereinvestigated include empathy training (nine-teen studies), childrearing practices and otherhome factors (eight), and classroom strategiesand program designs (seven). Three studiesidentified correlations between empathy andother traits.

Looking at outcome areas, twenty-one of thereports were concerned with subjects' scoreson measures of cognitive and/or affectiveempathy. Other outcome areas include:

Prosocial behavior (e.g., sharing, helping,comforting, making reparations)nine-teen reports

Cross-racial, -ethnic, or -nationalityacceptance and respectfour reports

Additional indicators, such as schoolattendance, self-esteem, self-disclosure,self-control, and aggressionfive reports.

Research Findings

CHELDREARING PRACTICES

Researchers have identified relationshipsbetween the use of certain parental childrear-ing practices and the development of empa-thetic feelings, understanding, and socialbehavior in children:

Mothers whose behavior toward theirpreschool children is responsive,nonpunitive, and nonauthoritarianhave children who have higher levels ofaffective and cognitive empathy andprosocial behavior (Eisenberg, Lennon,

CLOSE-UP #13

and Roth 1983; Eisenberg-Berg andMussen 1978; Kestenbaum, Farber, and

_ Sroufe 1989; and Zahn-Waxler, Radke-Yarrow, and King 1979).

Reasoning with children, even quitesmall ones, about the effects of theirbehavior on others and the importance ofsharing and being kind is effective inpromoting empathy and prosocial behavior(Clarke 1984; Kohn 1991; Ladd, Lange,and Stremmel 1983; and Zahn-Waxler,Radke-Yarrow, and King 1979).

Parental modeling of empathetic,caring behavior toward childrenandtoward others in the children's presenceis strongly related to children's develop-ment of prosocial attitudes and behavior(Eisenberg-Berg and Mussen 1978; Kohn1991; McDevitt, Lennon, and Kopriva1991; and Zahn-Waxler, Radke-Yarrow,and King 1979).

When children have hurt others orotherwise caused them distress, researchsupports the practice of giving explana-tions as to why the behavior is harmfuland suggestions for how to make amends(Kohn 1991; and Zahn-Wa.xler, Radke-Yarrow, and King 1979).

Parents encouraging school-agechildren to discuss their feelings andproblems is positively related to the de-velopment of empathy in those children(Clarke 1984).

Researchers have also identified childrearingpractices which are negatively related to thedevelopment of empathy:

Threats and/or physical punishmentsmeted out in an attempt to improvechildren's behavior are counterproductive(Clarke 1984; Eisenberg-Berg and Mussen1978; Kohn 1991; and Zahn-Waxler.Radke-Yarrow, and King 1979).

Inconsistent care (e.g., inconsistency inparents' reactions to children's emotionalneeds) and parental rejection/with-drawal in times of children's emotionalneeds are both associated with low levelsof empathy on the parts of the children(Kestenbaum, Farber, and Sroufe 1989).

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Children from homes in which theirfathers physically abuse their moth-ers have low levels of empathy. Forexample, they are typically unable torecognize the emotional states of otherpeople and respond appropriately(Hinchey and Gavelek 1982).

The provision of extrinsic rewards or"bribes" to improve children's behavior iscounterproductive. As with other researchon extrinsic rewards, researchers havefound that providing payoffs for prosocialbehavior focuses attention on the rewardrather than the reason for it and that thedesired behaviors tend to lessen 0: disap-pear when the reward is withdrawn (Kohn1991).

EMPATHY TRAINING

Research supports the provision of empathytraining to enhance empathetic feelings andunderstanding and increase prosocial behav-ior. This applies to children of all ages and toadults, and characterizes both full-scaleempathy training programs and short-termtreatments. The specific components withinempathy training approaches that are associ-ated with increases in empathy include:

Training in interpersonal perceptionand empathetic responding. A cogni-tive approach, in which students learnwhat empathy is, how it develops, how torecognize different emotive states in them-selves and others, and how to respond toothers positively, enhances their empa-thetic perceptions and skills (Black andPhillips 1982; Herbek and Yammarino1990; Kalliopuska 1983; Kremer andDietzen 1991; Pecukonis 1990; and Perry,Bussey, and Freiberg 1981).

Initial focus on one's own feelings.When seeking to increase the ability ofchildren to assume another's perspective,it is most fruitful to have them focus firston their own feelingsthe different kindsof feelings they have and what feelings areassociated with what kinds of situations(Black and Phillips 1982; and Dixon 1980).

Focus on similarities between oneselfand others. Activities which focuschildren's attention on similarities

between themselves and another person(or other persons) is effective in increasingaffective and cognitive empathy (Blackand Phillips 1982; Brehm, Fletcher, andWest 1988; Clarke 1984; Dixon 1980; andHughes, Tingle, and Sawin 1981). Identi-fying these similarities is the logical nextstep following the focus on one's ownfeelings. As Brehm, Fletcher, and West(1988) point out:

Virtually all considerations of theempathic process have noted theclose connections betweenresponding empathically to an-other person and perceiving thatperson as similar to oneself (p. 8).

By way of example, Hahn (1980) foundthat cross-cultural empathy is enhanced ifclassroom activities focus first on thesimilarities between other cultures andone's own society and only later begincalling attention to differences.

Role-taking or role-playing. Activitieswhich call for children or adults to assumethe role of a real or fictional person and toimagine or act out that person's feelingsand/or behavior are effective in increasingboth affective and cognitive empathy(Barak, et al. 1987; Black and Phillips1982; Herbek and Yammarino 1990;Kremer and Dietzen 1991; Morgan 1983;and Underwood and Moore 1982).Increases in empathy are noted even whenchildren are asked to imagine the point ofview of an animal, plant, or inanimateobject.

A special case of role-taking and identifi-cation of similarities with others is acollection of activities which has been usedto increase able-bodied students' under-standing of and empathy for thephysically handicapped.

Robinson (1979) describes the content andbeneficial results of a program in whichstudents hear handicapped speakers,become familiar with prosthetics andother appliances used by the handicapped,and engage in role-taking experienceswhich approximate handicapping condi-tions. The outcome of these activities isthat participating children:

PAGE 4 CLOSE-UP #13

...began to be able to look beyondthe handicaps, realizing that thehandicap is not the person (p. 25).

Ongoing practice in imagining/per-ceiving another's perspective.Repeated practice at taking another's per-spective is more effective than one-shot orinfrequent efforts to do so (Black andPhillips 1982; Haynes and Avery 1979;Kalliopuska 1983; Kremer and Dietzen1991; and Pecukonis 1990). For manypeople, including the very young, theability to imagine and gain insight intoanother person's point of view does notcome easily. Sustained practice at role- orperspective-taking is an effective means toincreasing levels of empathy.

Exposure to emotionally arousingstimuli. Exposure to stimuli such asportrayals of misfortune, deprivation, ordistress on the part of others tends toincrease empathetic feelings and re-sponses (Barnett et al )82; Howard andBarnett 1981; Pecukonis 1990; and Perry,Bussey, and Freiberg 1981). Encourage-ment by trainers or experimenters tothink about others and their needs alsostimulates these feelings and responses.

Positive trait attribution. Positivetrait attributionor "dispositionalpraise"--refers to the practice of empha-sizing to children that the reason theyexhibit prosocial behavior is that it is theirnature to do so. Positive trait attributionhas been shown to be a powerful means ofenhancing empathetic understanding andbehavior.

For example, a teacher or experimentermight say to a child, "I'll bet you sharedwith Susie because you're a nice personwho likes to make other children happy."Researchers (e.g., Kohn 1991; Mills andGrusek 1989; and Perry, Bussey, andFreiberg 1981) have found that reinforcingto children that they have a certainpositive trait within them increases thosechildren's performance of behaviors con-gruent with that trait. Kohn (1991)writes:

...the teacher's goal should not besimply to produce a givenbehavior...but to help that child

CLOSE-UP *13

ee himself or herself as the kindof person who is responsible andcaring. From this shift in self-_concept will come lasting behaviorand values that are not contingenton the presence of someone to dis-pense threats or bribes (p. 501).

INEJdeling empathetic behavior. Justas the research on childrearing shows thatparental modeling of empathetic speechand actions enhances children's empathyand prosocial behavior, the empathy train-ing research shows that when teachers(trainers, experimenters, etc.) modeldesired values, children are more likely toadopt these than when they are merelyexhorted to behave in a certain way (Kohn1991; and Kremer and Dietzen 1991).

Studying famous empathetic persons.Learning activities which focus students'attention on the lives and achievements offamous empathetic persons have beenshown to increase children's desire to belike these people and to take on attitudesand behaviors associated with them(Dixon 1980). People who have been thefocus of such learning activities includeFlorence Nightingale, Martin LutherKing, Jr., Albert Schweitzer, and MotherTheresa.

In addition to increasing empathetic feelings,understanding, and behavior, empathytraining has also been shown to produce otherpositive outcomes. For example, empathytraining has led to increased willingness onthe part of older students to be open and self-revealing (Haynes and Avery 1979) and totake everyone's needs into account when deal-ing with conflict situations (Kohn 1991).Better teamwork and greater job satisfactionhave followed empathy training provided toadults (Herbek and Yammarino 1990).

Other and equally significant outcomes havebeen noted as a result of empathy training.Discussing these requires attention to somegeneral findings from the empathy research,as follows.

Empathy and gender. Generally speaking,females of all ages exhibit higher levels ofempathyparticularly affective empathythan do males (Barnett, et al. 1980; Borden,Karr, and Caldwell-Colbert 1988; Eisenberg-

PAGE 5

Berg and Mussen 1978; McDevitt, Lennon,and Kopriva 1991; Mills and Grusec 1989;Siega11985, etc.). While there is not a greatdeal of research on the differential effects ofchildrearing behaviors and empathy trainingon males and females, the work of someresearchers (e.g., Eisenberg-Berg and Mussen978; Haynes and Avery 1979; and Clarke1984) indicates that empathetic modeling andtraining have potential for reducing the gapbetween the empathy levels of boys/men andgirls/women.

Empathy and age. Research clearly demon-strates that adults exhibit greater degrees ofempathetic feeling, understanding, andresponsiveness than children, and that olderchildren are more empathetic and prosocialthan very young ones (Ellis 1982; Hughes,Tingle, and Sawin 1981; Kalliopuska 1983;Ladd, Lange, and Stremmel 1983; McDevitt,Lennon, and Kopriva 1991; and Underwoodand Moore 1982).

01 der youth are better able to recognizeemotive states in other people, more capableof relating to and sharing others' feelings, ableto feel empathy for more diverse kinds ofpeople, and more willing to express theirempathetic response in generosity towardothers. The developmental level of very youngchildren, by contrast, is characterized bygreater self-involvement, frequent objectifica-tion of others, and a tendency to experienceand act on empathetic feelings only towardpeople very much like themselves in age, eth-nicity, and gender.

Underwood and Moore (1982) identify role-taking capacity as the basis for the greaterlevels of empathy/prosocial behavior one seesin older children as compared with youngerones:

The developmental mechanism that isused most frequently to explain age-related increases in altruistic behavioris the increasing ability of the child totake the point of view of the otherperson (p. 144).

Despite these developmental differences,researchers have found that empathy train-ingincluding even very simple things suchas calling attention to iess fortunate childrenor pointing out to a child that he/she has thepower to make someone else happy by shar-

PAGE 6

ingcan increase young children's empathyscores and incidences of prosocial behavior.Analogous to the research finding that empa-thy training produces greater increases in theempathetic understanding and behavior ofmales than females is the finding thatyounger children's empathy levels increasemore than those of older youth followingactivities designed to increase empathy(Iannotti 1978; and Kalliopuska 1983). Inboth cases, the lower the initial scores onempathy measures, the greater the changefollowing empathy training or instructions.

Empathy and academic outcomes. One ofthe arguments against character-related edu-cational activities is that they take precioustime away from the development of basic andhigher-order cognitive skills. The research,however, shows an impressive correlationbetween students' training and skills inempathetic understanding and their academicperformance:

Researchers (e.g., Bonner and Aspy 1984)have identified significant correlationsbetween students scores on measures ofempathetic understanding and their gradepoint averages.

Program evaluation results have shownthat schools where students are involvedin programs designed to increase empathyand create "caring communities" havehigher scores than comparison schools or,measures of higher-order reading compre-hension (Kohn 1991).

Review of research related to empathytraining/instruction indicates that thisinstruction enhances both critical thinkingskills and creative thinking (Gallo 1989).Gallo writes:

...the empirical evidence estab-lishes that it is not just moral rea-soning but reasoning generallywhich benefits from empathicunderstanding (p. 100).

Gallo goes on to explain that "the attributeswhich characterize empathy correlate withthose of effective critical thinking and imagi-nation" (p. 114). She notes that role-taking, akey feature of empathy training, engendersthe kinds of mental habits we associate withastute thinking. Role-taking:

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Fosters insight into different perspectivesand promotes genuine open-mindedness

Discourages hasty and superficial problemexamination

Facilitates construction of more fullyelaboratedand frequently novelproblem models

Discourages belief rigidity

Encourages cognitive and personal flexi-bility

Practices persistent probing, engagedexamination of an issue in alternationwith flexible relinquishment and reflectivedistance (p. 112-113).

CLASSROOM STRATEGIES ANDPROGRAM DESIGNS

In addition to programs and activities specifi-cally intended to promote empathy, research-ers have also identified several classroomstrategies and program designs which tend tofoster increases in empathy and prosocialbehavior.

Cooperative learning. Over the last decadea great deal has been written about the aca-demic and social benefits of cooperativelearning. From a research perspective, themajor finding has been that organizinglearners into teams whose members differfrom one another in race/ethnicity, gender,ability level, and other attributes, results insignificantly greater prosocial interactionamong these different learners (Johnson,Johnson, and Anderson 1983; Kohn 1991; andSlavin 1985). following participation incooperative learning groups, students reportand are observed to exhibit:

More accepting and respectful attitudestoward people whose race/ethnicity,gender, ability level, socioeconomic level,ability-disability status, etc. is differentfrom one's own

Increased ability to relate to more kinds ofpeople

A more sophisticated ability to imagineother people's points of view

Greater understanding and appreciationof the different strengths that diversepeople can bring to a learning team

More and deeper cross-racial and -ethnicfriendships.

Kohn (1991) writes:

Cooperation is an essentially human-izing experience that predisposesparticipants to take a benevolent viewof others. It allows them to transcendegocentric and objectifying posturesand encourages trust, sensitivity, opencommunication and prosocial activity(p. 504).

Cross-age and peer tutoring. Students'empathetic feelings, understanding, andbehavior have been shown to increase as aresult of serving as peer or cross-age tutors(Morgan 1983; and Yogev and Ronen 1982).Following their study of the effects of secon-dary-level cross-age tutoring, Yogev andRonen conclude that it:

...significantly increases the tutors'empathy, altruism, and self-esteem...To help younger students, thetutors must develop an empathicunderstanding of the tutees, show acertain extent of self-confidence intheir relationships, and appreciate ingeneral the intrinsic benefits of helpgiving (p. 267).

Humanistic/psychoeducationalapproaches for the emotionally dis-turbed. Finally, the research on differentapproaches to educating emotionally dis-turbed children indicates that structurescongruent with the empathy-enhancing activi-ties we have been discussing are far prefer-able to other structures. For example, Morgan(1983) studied the relative effects of a human-istic/psychoeducational model and a behav-ioral/learning model. The former, character-ized by group meetings, a focus on how one'sbehavior affects others, peer tutoring, and roleplaying, was related to greater empathy,responsibility, and self-control than the latter,which featured token reinforcement for goodwork and behavior, behavioral charting, andpunishment for poor work habits and behav-ior.

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Summary

To-review, then, findings identified in theresearch base on empathy development are asfollows:

Along with knowledge, self-determination,and strategy utilization, empathy iscoming to be regarded by more and moreeducators as a key attribute of a suc-cessful learner.

Empathy is typically defined as includ-ing: (1) the affective capacity to share inanother's feelings, and (2) the cognitiveability to understand another's feelingsand perspective. Definitions sometimesalso include the ability to communicateone's empathetic feelings and understand-ing to another by verbal and/or nonverbalmeans.

Childrearing practices positively asso-ciated with the development of empa-thetic understanding and behaviorinclude:

Responsive, nonpunitive, nonauthori-tarian behavior of mothers toward theirpreschool children

Explaining to children the effects oftheir behavior on others

Pointing out to children that they havethe power to make others happy bybeing kind and generous to them

Parental modeling of empathetic,caring behavior

Explaining to children who have hurtor distressed others why their behavioris harmful and giving them suggestionsfor making amends to those hurt

Encouraging school-age children todiscuss their feelings and problemswith parents.

Childrearing practices which arenegatively relate(' to the developmentof empathetic understanding aadbehavior include:

Threats and physical punishmentsaimed at inducing children to "behaveproperly"

Inconsistent behavior toward children'sexpression of emotional needs orrejection/withdrawal in response tothose needs

Home situations in which children'smothers are physically abused by theirfathers

The provision of extrinsic rewards orbribes aimed at eliciting "good" behav-ior from children.

Empathy instructions and trainingenhance affective and cognitiveempathy in both children and adults, aswell as leading to more prosocial be-havior. Specific instructional/trainingcomponents shown to be related to thesedesirable outcomes include:

Training in interpersonal perceptionand empathetic respondingwhatempathy is, how it develops, how torecognize and respond to others'emotive states, etc.

Activities which focus initially on one'sown feelings as a point of departure forrelating to the feelings of others

Activities which focus on similaritiesbetween oneself and one's feelings andthe selves and feelings of others

Role-taking/role-playing activities inwhich one imagines and acts out therole of another

Sustained practice in imagining/per-ceiving another's perspective

Exposure to emotionally arousingstimuli, such as portrayal of misfor-tune, deprivation, or distress

Expressions of positive trait attribu-tion/dispositional praise; that is,reinforcing to children that positive,prosocial traits are part of their nature

Modeling of empathetic behavior byteachers, trainers, experimenters and

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other adults with whom the child comesin contact

Activities that focus on the lives offamous empathetic persons (e.g.,Martin Luther King, Jr., MotherTheresa).

Empathy instruction and traininghave also been shown to lead to increasesin personal openness, mindfulness ofethers' needs in conflict situations,improved teamwork, and greater jobsatisfaction.

Females exhibit higher levels of empa-thy than males; however, there is someevidence that empathy training reducesthis difference.

Empathy and prosocial behaviorincrease with age; however, empathytraining has been shown to reduce the dif-ferential in empathy between very youngchildren and older ones.

In general, the higher people's scoresare on measures of empathy andprosocial behavior, the higher theirscores on measures of critical, higher-order thinking. Role-taking, in particu-lar, enhances open-mindedness andreasoning capabilities.

Classroom strategies and programdesigns which are positively relatedto empathy and prosocial interac-tions among people in general and amongdifferent racial/ethnic groups, academicability levels, the sexes, the differentlyabled, socioeconomic groups, etc., include:

Cooperative learning structures involv-ing learning teams made up of repre-sentatives of these various groups

Cross-age and peer tutoring.

Emotionally disturbed childrenexhibit greater empathy and proso-cial behavior when taught in learningenvironments featuring componentsknown to promote these qualitiesfocus on how one's behavior affects others,role-taking, etc.

Learning environments characterized byextrinsic rewards, punishments, andbehavioral charting are negativelyrelated to the development of empa-thylprosocial behavior in emotionallydisturbed children.

Conclusion

Implementation of school-controllable factorsrelated to the development of empathy canhelp to lay the groundwork for the growth ofother positive traits, including skill in reason-ing and communication.

Attending to the development of empatheticcapabilities can also respond to this report'sopening question with an affirmative answer.One way of expressing this affirmationandthe one with which this investigation willconcludeis Alfle Kohn's comment on MartinBuber's statement regarding "education ofcharacter":

He did not mean that schools shoulddevelop a unit on values or moralreasoning and glue it onto the existingcurriculum. He did not mean thatproblem children should be taughthow to behave. He meant that thevery profession of teaching calls on usto try to produce not merely goodlearners but good people (1991,p. 497).

Key References

Barak, A.; Engle, C.; Katzir, L.; and Fisher,W. A. "Increasing the Level of EmpathicUnderstanding by Means of a Game."Simulation & Games 18/4 (1987): 458-470.

Reports the results of a &tudy to determinewhether participation in an empathytraining game would increase partici-pants' empathic understanding. Partici-pants exhibited more empathic under-standing than controls.

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Barnett, M. A.; Howard, J. A.; Melton, E. M.;and Dino, G. A. "Effect of Inducing

_Sadness about Self or Other on HelpingBehavior in High- and Low-empathicChildren." Child Development 53/2 (1982):920-923.

Compares the altruistic behavior of sixthgraders in different experimental condi-tions. One finding: highly empathic chil-dren who were invited to reflect upon asad incident involving a friend engaged insignificantly more helping behavior thanchildren in other cells of the experiment.

Barnett, M. A.; King, L. M.; Howard, J. A.;and Dino, G. A. "Empathy in YoungChildren: Relation to Parents' Empathy,Affection, and Emphasis on the Feelings ofOthers." Developmental Psychology 16/3(1980): 243-244.

Examines relationships between theempathy scores/behaviors of parents andthe empathy scores of their 4-6-year-oldchildren. A positive relationship wasfound between parents' and daughters'empathy scores.

Barnett, M. A.; Matthews, K. A.; and Howard,J. A. "Relationship Between Competitive-ness and Empathy in 6- and 7-Year-Olds."Developmental Psychology 15/2 (1979):221-222.

Tests the hypothesis that preparing firstgraders to play a game in a competitivemanner would result in lower empathyscores than orienting them to play a gamein a cooperative or neutral manner. Norelationships were observed between kindof orientation and level of empathy.

Black, H., and Phillips, S. "An InterventionProgram for the Development of Empathyin Student Teachers." The Journal ofPsychology 112 (1982): 159-168.

Describes a program designed to increasethe empathetic behavior of student teach-ers and compares the scores of programparticipants on different aspects of empa-thy with the scores of nonparticipants.Results were mixed.

Bonner, T. D., and Aspy, D. N. "A Study ofthe Relationship Between Student Empa-thy and GPA." Humanistic Education andDevelopment 2214 (1984): 149-154.

Reports on a study comparing the scores ofsecondary students on measures of empa-thy with their grade point averages. Asignificant and positive relationship wasfound.

Borden, L. A .; Karr, S. K.; and Caldwell-Colbert, A. T. "Effects of a UniversityRape Prevention Program on Attitudesand Empathy Toward Rape." Journal ofCollege Student Development 29/2 (1988):132-136.

Studies the relationship between pre- andpost-participation in a rape preventionprogram on the attitudes toward rape andlevels of empathy toward rapists andvictims held by male and female students.The only significant correlation was thatfemale students had higher empathy forrape victims than males.

Brehm, S. S.; Fletcher, B. L.; and West, V."Effects of Empathy Instructions on First-Graders' Liking of Other People." ChildStudy Journal 1111 (1981): 1-15.

Examines, in two experiments, the effectsof "empathy instructions" on the attitudesof first graders toward characters in astory tape. Results were mixed. Onefinding: empathy increased when a storycharacter experienced a negative outcome.

Clarke, P. "What Kind of Discipline is MostLikely to Lead to Empathic Behaviour inClassrooms?" History and Social ScienceTeacher 19/4 (1984): 240-241.

Reviews research on home- and school-based disciplinary practices which areassociated with greater and lesser expres-sions of empathy on the parts of childrenand older youth. Draws implications forclassroom practice based on findings aboutthe efficacy of empathy training.

Dixon, D. A. "The Caring Curriculum."School and Community 67/4 (1980):13-15.

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t") *

Describes the purpose, activities, andoutcomes of The Caring Curriculum, aprogram intended to foster the develop-ment of empathy in elementary students,following its implementation in schools inSt. Louis and in the province of Quebec.Several beneficial effects were noted.

Eisenberg, N.; Lennon, R.; and Roth, K."Prosocial Development: A LongitudinalStudy." Developmental Psychology 1916(1983): 846-855.

Looks at relationships among prosocialmoral judgment, prohibition-orientedmoral judgment, and maternal childrearing practices with children of differentages. One finding: supportive, nonpuni-tive, nonauthoritarian child rearingpractices were positively related to maturemoral judgment.

Eisenberg-Berg, N., and Mussen, P. "Empa-thy and Moral Development in Adoles-cence." Developmental Psychology 1412(1978): 185-186.

Compares the empathy ratings of 72senior high school students with theirratings on two moral development meas-ures (moral reasoning and helping) andwith parental socialization practices. Apositive relationship between empathyand moral reasoning were noted for bothsexes; and warm, supportive, nonauthori-tarian maternal behaviors were positivelyrelated with high empathy in boys.

Hahn, S. L. "Let's Try a Positive Approach."Foreign Language Annals 13/5 (1980):415-417.

Cites research indicating that students'attitudes toward foreign cultures are morepositive if classroom activities begin bystressing similarities between the nativeand foreign culture rather than focusingon differences. Identifies and describesclassroom activities that can foster cross-cultural en' pathy.

Haynes, L. A., and Avery, A. W. "TrainingAdolescents in Self-Disclosure and Empa-thy Skills." Journal of Community Psy-chology 26/6 (1979): 526-530.

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Compares scores on measures of self-disclosure and empathic understanding ofhigh school juniors who participated in atraining program in these areas with thescores of those who did not. Experimentalstudents significantly outperformedcontrols.

Herbek, T. A., and Yammarino, F. J. "Empa-thy Training for Hospital Staff Nurses."Group & Organizational Studies 15/3(1990): 279-295.

Compares the empathy-scale scores ofnurses who participated in an empathytraining course with a control group andwith their own pre-course scores. Resultsshow that the training enhanced empathy.

Hinchey, F. S., and Gavelek, J. R. "EmpathicResponding in Children of BatteredMothers." Child Abuse and Neglect 6/4(1982): 395-401.

Compares the empathic responses ofpreschoolers whose fathers physicallyabused their mothers with the responsesof children from nonabusive homes.Children of nonabusive fathers exhibitedgreater empathy on three of four meas-ures.

Howard, J. A., and Barnett, M. A. "Arousal ofEmpathy and Subsequent Generosity inYoung Children." Journal of Genetic Psy-chology.138/2 (1981): 307-308.

Compares the altruistic behavior ofchildren in preschool through secondgrade in two experimental groupsthosewho were encouraged to think about thefeelings of other, needy children and thoseto whom the other children's feelings werenot mentioned. Children who wereencouraged to think about feelings weresignificantly more generous.

Hughes, R., Jr.; Tingle, B. A.; and Sawin,D. B. "Development of Empathic Under-standing in Children." Child Development52/1 (1981): 122-128.

Compared kindergarten children withsecond graders in terms of their responsesto slide stories of children in emotion-provoking situations. One finding:younger children's understanding of the

PAGE 11

story-children's emotions was improved ifthey were first encouraged to focus ontheir own emotional responses.

Iannotti, R. J. "Effect of Role-Taking Experi-ences on Role Taking, Empathy, Altruism,and Aggression." Developmental Psychol-ogy 14/2 (1978): 119-124.

Examines the effects of role-taking experi-ences on future role taking, empathy,altruism, and aggression among boys 6and 9 years of age. The experiencesimproved the role-taking ability of boys inboth age groups. Altruism was increasedwith the 6-year-olds. Neither aggressivenor empathic behaviors was affected forany of the subjects.

Johnson, D. S.; Johnson, R.; and Anderson, D."Social Interdependence and ClassroomClimate." The Journal of Psychology 114(1983): 135-142.

Compares (1) amounts of student partici-pation in cooperative learning activitiesand (2) their attitudes toward theseactivities with their ratings on measuresof classroom climate, including percep-tions about support and caring from teach-ers and fellow students.

Kalliopuska, M. Empathy in School Students.Helsinki, Finland: Department of Psy-chology, University of Helsinki, 1983. (ED240 423)

Compares outcomes on measures ofempathy of three experimental groups anda control group of Finnish students, ages11-18. The students exhibiting the great-est empathy were those who participatedin the most intensive of three kinds of"empathy campaigns."

Kaplan, P. J., and Arbuthnot, J. "AffectiveEmpathy and Cognitive Role-Taking inDelinquent and Nondelinquent Youth."Adolescence 20/78 (1985): 323-333.

Compared adolescent, delinquent boys andgirls with nondelinquent boys and girls interms of their scores on three empathymeasures. Nondelinquents outscoreddelinquents on one of the measures; nodifferences were noted on the other two.

Kestenbaum, R.; Farber, E. A.; and Sroufe,L. A. "Individual Differences in EmpathyAmong Preschoolers: Relation to Attach-ment History." In Empathy and RelatedEmotional Responses. No. 44 in NewDirections for Child Development series,edited by N. Eisenberg. San h.ancisco:Jossey-Bass, Inc., 1989.

Looks at the responses of preschoolchildren to classmates in distress inrelation to "attachment" profiles of thosechildren when they were infants. Chil-dren who were most securely attached totheir mothers as infants later exhibitedthe greatest amounts of empathy towardpeers.

Kohn, A. "Caring Kids: The Role of theSchools." Phi Delta Kappan 72/7 (1991):496-506.

Draws upon psychological and classroomresearch to support the contention thatprosocial traits are as basic to humannature as are selfish or antisocial traits,and that prosocial classroOm managementand learning activities are beneficial toindividuals and to society.

Kremer, J. F., and Dietzen, L. L. `TwoApproaches to Teaching Accurate Empa-thy to Undergraduates: Teacher-Intensiveand Self-Directed." Journal of CollegeStudent Development 32 (1991): 69-75.

Compares the "appropriate empathy"ratings of students receiving training inempathy with the ratings of controls; alsocompared self-directed training using pro-grammed materials with teacher-directedtraining. Experimentals outperformedcontrols on both immediate and long-termassessments; training methods wereequally effective.

Ladd, G. W.; Lange, G.; and Stremmel, A."Personal and Situational Influences onChildren's Helping Behavior: FactorsThat Mediate Compliant Helping." ChildDevelopment 54/2 (1983): 488-501.

Explores, in three experiments, relation-ships among several variablesage andsex of subjects, different kinds of need forhelp, recognition of need for help, knowl-

PAGE 12 CLOSE-UP #13

edge of how to help, adult exhortations tohelp, etc. One finding: adult encourage-ment to help increased helping behavior.

McDevitt, T. M.; Lennon, R.; and Kopriva,R. J. "Adolescents' Perceptions of Moth-ers' and Fathers' Prosocial Actions andEmpathic Responses." Youth and Society22/3 (1991): 387-409.

Looks at adolescents' views regardingtheir parents' encouragement of prosocialand empathic behavior in relation to thoseadolescents' scores on measures of proso-cial behavior and empathy. Children ofhighly prosociallempathic parents werethemselves more prosocial/empathic thanother adolescents.

Mills, R. S., and Grusec, J. E. "Cognitive,Affective, and Behavioral Consequences ofPraising Altruism." Merrill-PalmerQuarterly 35/3 (1989): 299-326.

Investigates the effects of dispositionalpraise (attributing behavior to a positivetrait), nondispositional praise, and nopraise on the sharing and self-perceptionsof 8- and 9-year-olds. Dispositional praisepositively affected cognitive, affective andbehavioral outcomes; other conditions didnot. Girls were more generous than boys.

Morgan, S. R. "Development of Empathy inEmotionally Disturbed Children."Humanistic Education and Development22/2 (1983): 70-79.

Compares the behavior of elementary-level emotionally disturbed children inclassrooms utilizing a humanistic/psych-oeducational model with the behavior ofthose in classrooms utilizing a behavioral/learning model. Children in the formerexhibited significantly greater empathy,responsibility, and self-control.

Pecukonis, E. V. "A Cognitive/AffectiveEmpathy Training Program as a Functionof Ego Development in Aggressive Adoles-cent Females." Adolescence 25/97 (1990):59-76.

Examines the relationship between theego development and empathy in aggres-sive adolescent girls, then reports the

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effects of an empathy training program onthese girls' levels of empathy.

Perry, D. G.; Bussey, K; and Freiberg, K"Impact of Adults' Appeals for Sharing onthe Development of Altruistic Dispositionsin Children." Journal of ExperimentalChild Psychology 32/1 (1981): 127-138.

Compares the sharing behavior of secondand third graders after three differentkinds of appeal: a "power-assertive"appeal emphasizing punitive conse-quences, an "inductive" appeal emphasiz-ing the good feelings one gets from shar-ing, and a neutral appeal to share with nofurther commentary. The inductiveappeal produced the greatest amount ofsharing.

Siegal, M. "Mother-Child Relations and theDevelopment of Empathy: A Short-TermLongitudinal Study." Child Psychiatryand Human Development 16/2 (1985):77-86.

Examines relationships among genderconstancy (awareness that one's gender isunchanging throughout life), gender iden-tification, and empathy among children infirst grade at two points in time. Apositive correlation was noted betweenidentification with one's mother at Time 1and empathy score at Time 2 for both boysand girls.

Slavin, R. E. "Cooperative Learning: Apply-ing Contact Theory in DesegregatedSchools." Journal of Social Issues 41/3(1985): 45-62.

Reviews research on effects of cooperativelearning on cross-racial friendships anddiscusses findings in relation to GordonAllport's "contact theory," a set of prin-ciples detailing when interracial contactleads to improvea relationships and whenit does not. Cooperative learning has beenfound to enhance cross-racial friendships.

Steibe, S. C.; Bolet, D. B.; and Lee, D. C."Trainee Trait Empathy, Age, TrainerFunctioning, Client Age and TrainingTime as Discriminators of SuccessfulEmpathy Training." Canadian Counsellor14/1 (1979): 41-45.

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Examines relationships among "trait"empathy, age, and other variables in a

. study involving Roman Catholic nunstaking part in empathy training. Youngertrainees exhibited greater empathy thanolder ones, and trainees with greaternatural empathy achieved higher scoresthan those with less.

Underwood, B., and Moore, B. "Perspective-Taking and Altruism." PsychologicalBulletin 91/1 (1982): 143-173.

Presents the details and results of a meta-analysis of the research relating perspec-tive-taking (perceptual, social, empathic,and moral) to altruism in children. Over-all, a moderate but reliable positive rela-tionship was noted.

Yogev, A., and Ronen, R. "Cross-Age Tutor-ing: Effects on Tutors' Attributes." Jour-nal of Educational Research 75/5 (1982):261-268.

Compares the scores on measures ofempathy, altruism, and self-esteem ofsenior high Israeli students who served astutors of junior high students with theirown pretutoring scores and with thescores of nonparticipating schoolmates.Experienced tutors significantly outscoredboth their own previous levels and thenontutors on all measures.

Zahn-Waxler, C.; Radke-Yarrow, M.; andKing, R. A. "Child Rearing and Children'sProsocial Initiations toward Victims ofDistress." Child Development 50/2 (1979):319-330.

Investigates the behavior of small childrenin circumstances where they were eitheran observer or the cause of others' distressin relation the behaviors of their mothersin similar circumstances. Empathicparenting was positively related to altruis-tic and conciliatory behavior by children.

General References

Batson, C: D. "How Social An Animal? TheHuman Capacity for Caring." AmericanPsychologist 45/3 (1990): 336-346.

Discusses the notion underlying muchpsychological thinking and writing that nohuman behavior is ever truly selfless andaltruistic. Describes a series of experi-ments that contradict this notion bydemonstrating helping behavior in situ-ations where subjects have nothing to gainby being altruistic.

Blesius, R. "The Concept of Empathy."Psychology 26/4 (1989): 10-15.

Discusses the general concept of empathy,various definitions, and the importance ofempathy in therapeutic relationships.Provides scenarios illustrating empathicand nonempathic caregiving.

Broome, B. J. "Building Shared Meaning:Implications of a Relational Approach toEmpathy for Teaching Intercultural Com-munication." Communication Education40/3 (1991): 235-249.

Discusses the inappropriateness of apply-ing common concepts of empathy to inter-cultural communications. Promotesinstead the concept of "relational empa-thy," which allows cross-cultural commu-nicators to develop meaning and signifi-cance together rather than seeking tounderstand one another's feelings andpoint of view.

Eisenberg, N. (ed.). Empathy and RelatedEmotional Responses. No. 44 in NewDirections for Child Development series.San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Inc., 1989.

Provides a collection of research articleson the nature and development of empa-thy and other prosocial qualities in young:hildren.

Eisenberg, N., and Strayer, J. (eds.). Empathyand its Development. Cambridge: Cam-bridge University Press, 1987.

Presents a series of essays dealing withdifferent aspects of empathy: definitions,


3

historical perspectives, developmentthroughout life, empirical research find-ings, issues related to measurement, andother topics.

Ellis, P. L. "Empathy: A Factor in AntisocialBehavior." Journal of Abnormal ChildPsychology 10/1 (1982): 123-134.

Compares three subcategories of delin-quent male teenagers with each other andwith a control group to identify relation-ships among delinquency, nondelinquency,and empathy. Several correlations wereidentified.

Gallo, D. "Educating for Empathy, Reasonand Imagination." The Journal of Crea-tive Behavior 23/2 (1989): 98-115.

Argues that, although empathy is some-times thought to be an emotional responsethat is unrelated or possibly detrimentalto reasoning, empathy in fact fosters bothcreative and critical thinking, and thusdeveloping it should be adopted as animportant educational goal.

Grauerholz, E., and Scuteri, G. M. "Learningto Role-Take: A Teaching Technique toEnhance Awareness of the 'Other'."Teaching Sociology 17/4 (1989): 480-483.

Draws upon research supporting theeffectiveness ofjournal writing in a role-taking mode for increasing empathy todevelop and describe the activities andbenefits of such activities with sociologystudents.

Goldstein, A. P., and Michaels, G. Y. Empa-thy: Development, Training, and Conse-quences. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum, 1985.

Discusses various definitions of empathy,outlines its development within people,identifies its component parts. and dis-cusses its role and effects in parent-childand teacher-student relationships. Dis-cusses training approaches to increasesubjects' levIls of empathy.

Jacobs, D. "Successful Empathy Training."Journal of Humanistic Psychology 21/4(1981): 39-56.

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Reports the results of a study designed totest the author's conviction that thefailure of many short-term empathytraining programs to produce desirableincreases in "empathic understanding" islargely a result of the way that subjectsare oriented to the requirements of tasksin the studies.

Jones, B. F. "The New Definition of Learning:The First Step to School Reform."Restructuring to Promote Learning inAmerica's Schools. A Guidebook.Elmhurst, IL: North Central RegionalEducational Laboratory, 1990.

Provides a research-based definition of thesuccessful learner as one whose majorattributes include being knowledgeable,self-determined, strategic, and empa-thetic.

Kaslow, F. W. "On the Nature of Empathy."Intellect 105 (1977): 273-277.

Discusses differing views of empathyinbiological, sociological, and psychoanalytictheory. The role of empathy in therapeu-tic practice is discussed, drawing from thework of many theorists and practitioners.

McCollough, T. E. Truth and Ethics in SchoolReform. Washington, DC: Council forEducational Development and Research,1992.

Argues that discussions of school reformand restructuring need to include atten-tion to the moral and ethical dimensions ofschooling and of life in general, in order toeducate young people to be caring, contrib-uting citizens.

Noddings, N. "Do We Really Want to ProduceGood People?" Journal of Moral Educa-tion 16/3 (1987): 177-188.

Discusses differences between traditionalmale and female beliefs about goodness,arguing that feminine viewpoints havebeen underrepresented in our culturalunderstanding of moral issues. Calls forincreased attention to these viewpointsand identifies implications for education.

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Noddings, N. The Challenge to Care inSchools: An Alternative Approach to Edu-cation. Advances in Contemporary Educa-tional Thought, Volume 8. New York:Teachers College Press, 1992.

Criticizes the American approach to publiceducation, particularly what the authorbelieves to be its excessive focus on devel-oping verbal and mathematical-linearabilities. Calls for a restructuring of edu-cation focused on caring at all levelsfrom caring for the self to caring for otherpeople, other species, the planet, andintangibles such as enobling ideas.

Robinson, M. G. "Awareness Program HelpsChildren Understand Special Needs."Education Unlimited 1/2 (1979): 25-27.

Describes a program designed to increaseunderstanding of and empathy withhandicapped children on the part ofnonhandicapped children. Experientialactivities which approximate handicap-ping conditions, exposure to appliancesused by the handicapped, and opportuni-ties to meet and interact with handi-capped adults are featured.

Roe, K. V. "Early Empathy Development inChildren and the Subsequent Internaliza-tion of Moral Values." The Journal ofSocial Psychology 110 (1980): 147-148.

Explores the relationship betweenchildren's scores on an empathy measureand their scores on a measure of internali-zation of moral values three years later. Asignificant correlation was found betweenhigh empathy and high internalizationscores.

Stiff, J. B.; Dillard, J. P.; Somera, L.; Kim, H.;and Sleight, C. "Empathy, Communica-tion; and Prosocial Behavior." Communi-cation Monographs 55/2 (1988): 198-213.

Presents results of two experimentsconducted to test a model of the relation-ship among several cognitive and affectivequalities related to empathy and prosocialbehavior. Results indicated that concernfor othersrather than for oneselfmoti-vates empathic concern and prosocialbehavior.

Thomson, G. 0. B. "Educating for Responsi-bility: Some Developmental Considera-tions." Viewpoints in Teaching andLearning 57/3 (1981): 13-27.

Draws upon the work of several theoristswho have written about the nature ofmoral development and focuses on theeducational implications of their work.Devotes considerable attention to thedevelopment of empathy.

Vaughn, S. "TLCTeaching, Learning, andCaring: Teaching Interpersonal Problem-Solving Skills to Behaviorally DisorderedAdolescents." The Pointer 31/2 (1987):25-30.

Describes a program for behaviorallydisordered senior high school studentswhich teaches problem-solving skills as ameans of increasing their social compe-tence. Learning to develop and express asense of empathy is a key component ofthe program.

This publication is based on work sponsored wholly, or in part, by the Office of Educational Research and Impmvement(GERI), U.S. Department of Education, under Contract Number RP91002001. The content of this publication doep not neces-sarily reflect the views of OERI, the Department, or any other agency of the U.S. Government.

December 1992



Close-Up #14

Nongraded Primary Education

Kathleen Cotton

IntroductionKentucky: Legislative mandate calls fordevelopment of nongraded programs for allpublic school students in kindergarten throughgrade three.

British Columbia: Transition to universalnongraded primary education begins in 1991;mandate requires full implementation ofnongraded education by the year 2000.

Oregon: State House Bill 3565 includesprovisions for review of nongraded primarymodels and feasibility study for statewideimplementation of nongraded primary educa-tion.

These and similar events reflect a keencontemporary interest in educational restruc-turing to improve student achievement. Theyalso reflect a research-based conviction on thepart of child development specialists andothers that traditional graded school struc-tures are detrimental to the development ofyoung childrenand that nongraded arrange-ments are much more in keeping with the waythese children grow and learn.

DefinitionNongraded education is the practice ofteaching children of different ages andability levels together in the sameclassroom, without dividing them orthe curriculum into steps labeled by"grade" designations (Gaustad 1992a,p.2).

Within these structures, children progressalong a continuum of simple through morecomplex material at their own rates, makingcontinuous progress rather than being "pro-moted" to the next grade at the end of a schoolyear. Children in nongraded programs typi-cally stay with the same teacher (or, prefer-ably, teaching team) for two or three years.With the beginning of each new school year,one-half to two-thirds of the students from theprevious year's class remain together as well,with only the oldest students entering newclasses.

While students of any age can be grouped innongraded clusters, it is nongraded primaryinstruction that is the focus of most currentinterest and activity. This is because researchon young children (those eight years old andyounger) has revealed that the educationalpractices most beneficial to these children can

Northwest Regional Educational Laboratoiy101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500Portland, Oregon 97204Telephone (503) 275-9500

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best be deliveredand in some cases, can onlybe deliveredin nongraded structures.

Although nongraded education has been partof the American educational scene since thebeginning of the republic, many people remainconfused about what it means. To some, theterm "nongraded" has suggested programs inwhich letter grades are not given. To clarifythe matter, some writers (e.g., Gaustad 1992a)have pointed out that, while alternativemethods of assessing and reporting studentprogress are frequently used in nongradedprograms, this is not the primary meaning ofthe term.

Further confusion has resulted from the manydifferent terms used to designate more or lessthe same concept, e.g., ungraded, non-age-graded, multiage grouping, mixed-age group-ing, heterogeneous grouping, open education,vertical grouping, and family grouping(Gaustad 1992a; Katz, Evangelou, and Hart-man 1990; and Milburn 1981).

One also encounters the terms multi-grade (or-graded), mixed grade, and split-grade, butthese generally refer to structures in whichstudents -)f different ages are taught in thesame classroom, but with grade-level designa-tions maintained and separate curricula usedfor students in each grade. Moreover, as Craigand McLellan (1987) point out:

Split-grade classes...respond to imbal-ances in pupil-teacher ratios, age-group placements, enrollment fluctua-tions, and budget constraints. [They]are an administrative necessity ratherthan a philosophical preference (p. 5).

BackgroundNONGRADED TO GRADED SCHOOLS

In the U.S., nongraded education was the ruleuntil the beginning of this centurynot just forprunary children, but for students in general(Connell 1987). Then, factors such as in-creased industrial development, the large-scalemovement of people to urban centers, and theinflux of large numbers of immiants, putnew pressures on the schools. Miller (1989)writes, "the ideal of mass public educationtook root and the practice of graded schoolsbegan in earnest" (p. ix). Miller goes on:

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The graded school system was drivenby a need for managing large numbersof students rather than for meetingindividual students' needs [and] thegraded school has survived as thedominant organizational structuresince its emergence 150 years ago(p. ix).

DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATEPRACTICE AND NONGRADEDEDUCATION

The rationale for nongraded primary program-ming rests heavily on the concept of develop-mentally appropriate educational practice, asthis concept has emerged from the work ofchild psychologists and other child develop-ment specialists (Bredekamp 1987; Gaustad1992a). Before discussing contemporarythinking about developmentally appropriatepractice, however, it may be worthwhile toprovide a brief summary of historical ideasabout children's development and learning,and the way those ideas have been translatedinto practice.

Prior to the 18th century, Western writers andmembers of the upper classes tended to viewchildren of five or six and older as "miniatureadults" and expected them to learn in thesame ways that adults do. The writings ofRousseau represented a departure from thisnotion, characterizing young children asmoving through a succession of developmentalstages, each of which governed the way thatchildren perceive the world and learn about it(Williams 1987).

From that tHe forward, the approaches takento educating young children in Europe andAmerica have undergone considerable evolu-tion, influenced by the work of such keyfigures as John Dewey, Maria Montessori, andJean Piaget. Though these and other thinkersdiffered from one another in many respects,they all held to the idea that young children'sways of learning are different from those ofolder children or adults and that learningactivities need to be responsive to thechildren's changing developmental needs.

In the U.S. in the late 1950s and early 1960s,major changes in our approach to educatingyoung children began to occur. Distress overthe low achievement of poor children, togetherwith the push to "keep up with the Russians"

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after the launching of the Sputnik satellite in1957, led the federal government to intervenein early childhood educational practices inways that continue to exert considerableinfluence to the present day (Williams 1987).

In the interest of improving the quality of U.S.education, many program funders and develop-ers moved away from developmentally ori-ented curricula for young children and beganto focus more and more on an academicallyoriented one. The push for young children toacquire specific skills was characterized by anincreased focus on preacademic skill building,teacl.er-directed activity, and the introductionof abstract conceptsin other words, the kindof learning activities typically used with olderchildren and youth. Later, and in the samespirit, the trend toward all-day kindergartenbrought with it increased preacademic,cognitively oriented work for kindergartenchildren.

Today, there is a strong movementinvolvingmany child development specialists, psycholo-gists, researchers, educators, legislators, andotherscalling for a return to a developmen-tally oriented curriculum which includesnongraded learning arrangements for primarychildren.

Just what is developmentally appropriatepractice as it applies to the education ofprimary-age children? Sue Bredekamp,articulating the research-based position of theNational Association for the Education ofYoung Children writes:

The concept of developmental appropriate-ness has two dimensions: age appropriate-ness and individual appropriateness.

1. Age appropriateness. Humandevelopment research indicates thatthere are universal, predictablesequences of growth and change thatoccur in children during the first 9years of life. These...occur in alldomains of developmentphysical,emotional, social, and cognitive.Knowledge of typical development ofchildren within the age span served bythe program provides a frameworkfrom which teachers prepare thelearning environment and plan appro-priate experiences.

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2. Individual appropriateness. Eachchild is a unique person with anindividual pattern and timing ofgrowth, as well as individual personal-ity, learning style, and family back-ground. Both the curriculum andadults' interactions with childrenshould be responsive to individualdifferences (Bredekamp 1987, p. 2)-

Many volumes have been written citingspecific practices and activities that aredevelopmentally appropriate for primary-agechildren, and it is outside the scope of thisreport to detail these here. Instead, thefollowing list (drawn from Bredekamp 1987)identifies general characteristics of develop-mentally appropriate schools and programs forthese children:

Curriculum goals include (1) developingchildren's knowledge and skills in all areas(physical, social, emotional, and intellec-tual); (2) developing children's self-esteemand positive feelings about learning; and(3) being responsive to individual differ-ences in developmental stage, ability, andinterests.

Different levels of ability, development,and learning styles are expected, accepted,and used to design curriculum.

Curriculum is integrated so thatchildren's learning in all traditional subjectareas occurs primarily through projectsand learning centers that are organizedaround themes and that reflect children'sinterests and suggestions.

Teachers plan and prepare the envi-ronment so children can learn throughactive involvement with materials andwith each other, with adults, and witholder children serving as informal tutors.

Individual children or small groupsare expected to work and play coopera-tively, collaboratively, or alone in learningcenters and on projects that they mayselect themselves or be guided to by theteacher(s). Centers are changed fre-quently.

Learning materials and activities areconcrete, real, and relevant to children'slives.

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Teachers promote prosocial behaviorthrough offering stimulating activities andfacilitating choices.

Teachers involve parents throughconferences, invitations to help in class-rooms, and the provision of home-basedactivities for parents to engage in withtheir children.

Progress is assessed primarily throughobservation and recording at regularintervals; comparisons are made only withthe child's own past performance, not withothers. Children are actively involved inassessing their products and progress.

Children are neither promoted norretained; instead, they continually workto acquire competence in all areas.

Finally, and most relevant to the presenttopic, Bredekamp writes:

Developmentally appropriate schoolsare also flexible in how they groupchildren. Rigid adherence to chrono-logical age/grade groupings or abilitygroupings is inappropriate....Combina-tion classrooms or ungraded primaryschools provide a vehicle for preserv-ing heterogeneous groups while alsoproviding more time for children todevelop at their own pace and acquireearly literacy and mathematical skills(p. 66).

THE RATIONALE FOR NONGRADEDPRIMARY PROGRAMS

With the concept of developmentally appropri-ate practice as the backdrop, then, manyresearchers and other educators are currentlycalling for the use of nongraded primary schoolstructures. The rationale (drawn from thework of Davis 1992; Hunter 1992; Milburn1981; Calkins 1992; Miller 1992; Elkind 1989:and Purdom 1992) includes the followingcomponents:

Chronological age and mental age do notalways correspond.

A child may excel in one curricular areaand simultaneously have difficulty inanother.

Children are able to work at differentdevelopmental levels without obviousremediation, thus avoiding the social oremotional damage typically caused byretention.

Students stay with their teacher(s) formore than one year; thus teachers get toknow students well and provide for conti-nuity in their learning, and children avoidthe trauma of adjusting to new teachersannually.

Children have more time to assimilate andconsolidate learnings in a familiar environ-ment.

Age and achievement differences areaccepted as normal by children.

Nongraded arrangements lend themselvesto integrated curriculum.

Nongraded grouping lends itself to the useof validated practices such as cooperativelearning and cross-age tutoring.

The increasing diversity of contemporarysociety is more easily accommodated bynongraded programs.

Research shows that nongraded groupingleads to more positive student attitudesand behavior than graded structures andthat achievement outcomes are similar.

The team teaching and family-like atmo-sphere typical of nongraded Programsleads to increased job satisfaction forteachers.

In addition, proponents note that nongradedprogramming is more in keeping with the waychildren in naturalistic settings spontaneouslygroup themselves for play and projects.Researchers (such as Day and Hunt 1975;Ellis. Rogoff, and Croner 1981; Gaustad 1992a;and Pratt 1986), have found that, given theopportunity, children will select friends,playmates, and groupmates of a wide agerange and interact with them more success-fully than they do with peers in same-agegroups.

In citing the benefits of nongraded prbgrams,proponents also point to the drawbacks of

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graded structures. Some of these, such as theaffective damage caused by retention in grade,have been referenced. Connell (1987) writesfurther of the poor fit between graded pro-grams and the reality of children's develop-mental differences:

In most American schools today, bythird grade most classroom rosters willreveal a spread of 3 years, not 12months. Along the way some childrenhave been retained, and some acceler-ated. Both decisions result in traumafor the individuals involved (p. 37).

In a stirring call for educational redesign tomeet the real needs of real children, Cuban( 1989) writes:

One of the most inflexible of thestructures of schooling is the gradedschool. The graded school categorizes,segregates, and, as a last resort,eliminates those whose performanceand behavior deviate too sharply fromthe norm....The implicit theory under-lying the graded school is that educa-tional quality comes through unifor-mity.

...the graded school unintentionallyworsens Ethel social disadvantages [ofpoverty and racism] by brandingstudents for the duration of theircareers through the mechanisms ofseparate classes and programs (p. 782).

And Good lad and Anderson (1987) summarizethe drawbacks of the graded school structure,stating that:

The simple fact is that a literallygraded approach to instruction doesnot work, and teachers and adminis-trators must constantly subvert it inorder to deal with the realities ofindividual differences. Compromise,invention, adaptation, and thoughtfuldisregard for grade-level standards areinvariably practiced in graded schools,even though many teachers probablydo not realize fully how unfaithful togradedness they find it necessary to bein their daily work with children(p. xxvi).

The Research LiteratureNATURE OF THE RESEARCH

The rationale for implementing nongradedprimary education comes largely from tworesearch bases: (1) the research on childdevelopment and learning, which we havebeen discussing; and (2) the empirical researchon the effects on children of graded andnongraded structures, which is detailed in thissection.

This report is the result of an analysis of forty-six documents, many of which address morethan one topic. Nine of them discuss theresearch on child development and learning,and eleven focus on related matters, such ascritiques of graded programs, descriptions ofnongraded programs, guidelines for programplanning and operation, and resistance/obstacles to implementing nongraded pro-grams. Twenty-six of the documents reportthe results of empirical research on the effectsof nongraded grouping.

The general observation has been made thatempirical research supports the use of non-graded programs. The specific nature andweight of the research evidence is detailed inthe following paragraphs.

Of the twenty-six reports of research on theeffects of nongraded grouping, fifteen arestudies, nine are reviews, one presents theresults of both a review and a series of casestudies, and one is described as a "best evi-dence synthesis." Twenty-one of the reportsfocus on the effects of nongraded grouping,while five are concerned with mixed gradestructures.

The subjects of the research include childrenof preschool/kindergarten ages (two reports),primary school ages (five), primary and olderelementary ages (sixteen), and the entireelementary-secondary range (three). Thesubjects represent a wide range of racial/ethnic and socioeconomic groups in the U.S.and Canada.

Nearly all of the reports are concerned withthe comparative effects of graded and non-graded structures on children's achievementand/or attitudes and/or social behavior.

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Eighteen of the reports focus on children'sacademic achievement in the two kinds ofsettings, as measured by standardized tests,local tests, or school grades.

Effects on student attitudes were examined ineleven of the research documents; specifically,these reports focused on attitudes towardschool, self as a learner, and classmates.Other attitudinal areas of concern in theresearch are general self-esteem, futureaspirations, and level of anxiety.

Behavioral outcomes were investigated in nineof the research reports; these variables includesocial and leadership skill development,interaction with other-age peers, prosocialbehavior, attendance, and dropout rate.

Other outcome areas examined are retention,teacher-student relations, and parent atti-tudes.

RESEARCH FINDINGS

Achievement. Some investigationsandparticularly recent ones (e.g., Gutierrez andSlavin 1992; Anderson and Pavan 1992)favornongraded grouping, and a few favor gradedarrangements. Most of the research reviewedin preparation for this report, however, revealno significant achievement differences. Thisfinding was obtained regardless of the kind ofachievement measures used and in variouscontent areasreading, vocabulary develop-ment and other language arts, mathematics,and science. (Brown and Martin 1989; Eames1989; Johnson, et al. 1985; Katz, Evangelou,and Hartman 1990; KEA/AEL 1991; Milburn1981; Miller 1990; Mobley 1976; Pratt 1986;Rule 1983; Schrankler 1976; and Way 1981)

Way writes:

Multiage grouping skeptics havegenerally expressed concern thatachievement would suffer if children ofdifferent ages were to be grouped in amultiage classroom. The results fromboth this study and previous studiesindicate tnat such concern may beunwarranted. Achievement in multi-age classrooms appears to be nodifferent from achievement in single-age classrooms (1981, p. 74).

Attitudes. Research overwhelmingly favorsnongraded grouping because of its positiveeffects on:__

Attitude toward school (Ander 3on andPavan 1992; Ford 1977; KEA/AEL 1991;Milburn 1981; Miller 1990; Pavan 1977,1992; Pratt 1986; Schrankler 1976)

Self-concept as a learner (Anderson andPavan 1992; Ford 1977; Johnson, et al.1985; KEA/AEL 1991; Miller 1990; Mobley1976; Pavan 1977, 1992; Pratt 1986;Schrankler 1976; Way 1981)

Classmates (KEA/AEL 1991; Miller 1990;Pavan 1977)

Self-esteem (Anderson and Pavan 1992;Johnson, et al. 1985; KEA/AEL 1991;Pavan 1992)

Anxiety ( Papay, et al. 1975; Katz,Evangelou, and Hartman 1990)

Future aspirations (Ford 1977).

Pavan's analyses of longitudinal data alsorevealed that the longer students are innongradet. programs, the more positive theirschool-related attitudes become.

Behavior. Compared with children in gradedsettings, those in nongraded programs exhib-ited more positive outcomes in the followingareas:

Social skill development, particularlyimprovements in social skills on the partsof socially withdrawn older children innongraded settings (Furman, Rahe, andHatrup 1979; Katz, Evangelou, andHartman 1990; Pratt 1986; Winsler andEspinosa 1990)

Furman. Rahe, and Hatrup (1979) foundthat:

Improvement among the isolatechildren who were exposed toyounger children was so markedthat posttreatment interaction wasalmost twice as frequent as pre-treatment interactionessentiallyat the same level as the socialinteraction of the nonisolatechildren (p. 920).

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Leadership skill development of olderchildren (Katz, Evangelou, and Hartman1990; Furman, Rahe, and Hatrup 1979)

Frequency of interaction with other-age peers (Day and Hunt 1975; Ellis,Rogoff, and Cromer 1981; Way 1979;Wins ler and Espinosa 1990)

Researchers note, however, that teacherssometimes interfere with cross-age inter-actions, either by conducting too manyteacher-directed activities or by puttingchildren in age-similar groups too much ofthe time.

Prosocial behaviors/reduced aggres-sion among students, such as giving,sharing, taking turns, giving praise andreassurance, etc. (Katz, Evangelou, andHartman 1990; Katz and McClellan 1991;KEA/AEL 1991; Pratt 1986; Roopnarineand Johnson 1984; Wins ler and Espinosa1990)

Pratt writes:

Children's friendships, both inclassrooms and in naturalisticsettings, have been one theme ofthe multiage research. Thegeneral picture that emerges fromthese studies is one of increasedcompetition and aggression withinsame-age groups and increasedharmony and nurturance withinmultiage groups (1986, p. 112).

Attendance (Pavan 1977; Schranlder1976).

Other Outcomes. Nongraded programs leadto more positive outcomes regarding:

RetentionChildren educated in non-graded settings move through the curricu-lum more expediently (KEA/AEL 1991;Pavan 1977, 1992)

Teacher-student interactions (KEA/AEL 1991; Winsler and Espinosa 1990)

Parent attitudes toward school and theirchildren's learning (KEA/AEL 1991; Katz,Evangelou, and Hartman 1990; Schrankler1976).

Obstacles to the Transitionto Nongraded Primary

Programs"In view of the advantages to ungraded in-struction cited in the literature, the readermay wonder why more school districts havenot moved to ungraded organization sooner."This observation, made in a 1991 collaborativereport by the Kentucky Education Associationand the Appalachia Educational Laboratory,concerns many researchers and educators.These investigators (e.g., Gaustad 1992; Cuban1989; writers of the KEA/AEL report, etc.)have identified the following barriers to theimplementation of nongraded programs:

From a strictly organizational and logisti-cal point of view, graded structures arerelatively efficient and inexpensive.

Because they work well for some students,many people believe that gradedprograms are effective in general.

Parents and community membersfrequently lack understanding of thenongraded education concept and itsadvantages.

Teachers are normally trained only inmethods for teaching single-grade classesand are resistant to change.

Teachers often fear that teachingnongraded classes will require morepreparation time and a larger reper-toire of instructional methods andmaterials than teaching single-gradeclasses.

Lack of administrative support hasfrequently thwarted attempts to move tonongraded structures.

The textbook industry structures itswares for use in traditional, single-gradeclasses. In addition, textbook content istypically aimed at the lowest commondenominator, and as such, it encouragesconformity and is unresponsive to theranges of abilities found in groups ofchildren.

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Standardized testing methods are alsodesigned for use with students educated insingle-grade arrangements.

The "back-to-basics" movement of the1970s and 1980s led to greater rigidity ineducation.

Some researchers (e.g., Gaustad 1992a) pointout that some of the resistance to nongradedprograms must be laid at the door of previous,poorly handled attempts to implement them.Many of the "open education" programs of the1960s and early 1970s were said to be non-graded, but were not true nongraded struc-tures. In addition, these approaches were notclearly explained to parents and communitymembers, who often perceived them nega-tively. Attempts to implement nongradedprograms without providing either theoreticalunderstanding or practical training for teach-ers have also led to program failure in thepast.

Current proponents argue that Americanpublic education is now in a much betterposition to move toward nongraded program-ming than at any time in the past. This, theysay, is because:

We have a much more extensive re-search base than ever before on childdevelopment/learning and on the benefitsof nongraded programs.

Research findings regarding cooperativelearning, peer tutoring, ability tracking,an3 grade retention all point to thesuperiority of nongraded over gradededucational settings.

There is more widespread understand-ing of the conceptual model of develop-mentally appropriate practice.

We understand more about the changeprocess and have better ways to supportschool people as change is being imple-mented.

Nongraded programs are appropriate andperhaps even essential for responding tothe increasing diversity in the U. S.population.

Educators and the public have becomemore open to the concept of non-gradedness. Good lad and Anderson(1987) write:

The aggressive advocacy of theself-contained classroom thatwas common several decadesago is much less in evidencetoday (p. xxvii).

RecommendationsIn view of the overwhelming research evi-dence in support of nongraded primary educa-tion, virtually every writer whose work wasconsulted in preparation of this report advo-cates widespread implementation of thispractice. Specific information to assist schoolstaffs with planning and implementation arecited below and are drawn from the work ofDavis (1992); Gaustad (1992a, b); Hunter(1992); Katz, Evangelou, and Hartman (1990);KEA/AEL (1991); Bredekamp (1987); andElkind (1989).

Planners (at all levels). Planners shouldexamine a variety of different nongradedprograms and select from them theelements best suited to the needs of theirparticular school and community.

State legislators. These lawmakersshould take action to remove impedimentsto implementing and operating nongradedprogramsimpediments such as requiringthe use of standardized testing and text-book series organized on a grade-levelbasis.

District administrators. Central officestaff should take action to reduce thepressure exerted by grade-level textbooksand standardized testing procedures, solong as these remain in force.

Principals. Principals and other school-level administrators should providesupport for the nongraded program con-cept by allowing time for planning, deci-sion making, and the ongoing preparationneeds of teachers under this time-inten-sive arrangement.

Teachers. Teachers should be providedwith training and support for understi. nd-

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ing developmentally appropriate educa-tional practices and in implementingnongraded programs.

Parents and community members.Parents and community should be in-formed about the benefits of nongradedprimary programs so as to engage theirinterest and support. Including parentsand community representatives in pro-gram planning from the beginning willfacilitate communication and build good-will.

Implementation. Implementationshould be gradual but continuous.Gaustad (1992b, p. 5) speaks for propo-nents of nongradedness in general whenshe writes, "Adding a few new elements ata time generally works better than at-tempting to change the entire structure atonce." On the other hand, if changeshappen too slowly, momentum will be lostand full transition to nongradedness maynever happen.

Class composition. There is no one bestway to mix ages. Currently used arrange-ments include K-2 and 1-3, K-3, andoverlapping groups. Some settings deliber-ately mix by ability, race/ethnicity, gender,special/regular education, etc. Others mixby random assignment.

Team teaching. Experts on nongradedprimary programming strongly recom-mend the use of teaching teams. Researchshows that children benefit greatly fromexperiencing the strengths of multipleteachers.

Classroom organization/materials."The concepts of active, hands-on learningand flexible grouping determine thephysical organization of the nongradedclassroom," writes Gaustad (1992a, p. 23).Basic elements include learning centers,tables of manipulatives, library corner,sand table, etc. Textbooks such as basalreaders may be used, but they are notcentral to the program.

Flexible grouping. "Even the greatestsupporters of mixed-age and mixed-abilitygrouping agree some curricula are mosteffectively taught to children of similar

experience and achievement" (Gaustad1992a, p. 24). Basic reading and arithmeticsubskills are principal examples. Coopera-tive projects lend themselves to heteroge-neous grouping.

Integrated curriculum. Organizingtraditional learning content aroundthemes and utilizing whole-languageapproaches are most in keeping with thedevelopmental levels of primary children.Learning should take place in a contextmeaningful to children; be relevant totheir lives; and allow them to take activeroles, engage in many self-selected activi-ties, and utilize multiple mind/bodyfunctions.

Assessmentlevaluation. Narrativedescriptions of student progress, collec-tions (portfolios) of children's work,conferences with parents and children, andcomparing progress with general norms(not other students) are appropriateassessment methods. To a man orwoman, early childhood specialists recom-mend against overreliance on standardizedtest results.

With these research findings and guidelines tosupport their work, legislators, educators, andthe general public can undertake a meaningfultransition from traditional age/grade struc-tures to nongraded arrangements for primarychildren. The reasoning behind such a transi-tion is simple and compelling. As expressed byPratt (1986, p. 112):

The evidence on multiage groupingappears to confirm the basic principlethat diversity enriches and uniformityimpoverishes.

Key References

Anderson, R. H., and Pavan, B. N.Nongradedness: Helping It to Happen.Lancaster, PA: Technomic PublishingCompany, Inc., 1992.

Defines and cites research in support ofnongraded grouping, followed by a detaileddiscussion of curriculum, instructionalpractices, and assessment methods congru-ent with nongradedness. Details the roles

CLOSE-UP #14 PAGE 9d

of educational personnel, parents, andcommunity members, and offers guidelinesfor making the transition to nongradedschool organization.

Brown, K. S., and Martin, A. G. "StudentAchievement in Multigrade and SingleGrade Classes." Education Canada 29/2(1989): 10-13, 47.

Compares the achievement of students inmulti-grade and single-grade classes ineight elementary schools in NewBrunswick, Canada. No significant differ-ences were found.

Day, B., and Hunt, G. H. "Multiage Class-rooms: An Analysis of Verbal Communica-tion." The Elementary School Journal 75/7 (1975): 458-464.

Analyzes the patterns and frequency ofinteraction across age groups among four-to seven-year-olds in four early childhoodeducation settings. Major finding: mostcross-age interaction occurred whenteachers were not present; teacher-directed learning activities tended tosegregate children by age.

Eames, F. H. A Study of the Effectiveness ofInstruction in Multi-Age Grading vs.Traditional Single-Grade Organization onthe Reading Achievement of FourthGraders. Danbury, CT: Western Con-necticut State University, 1989. (ED 309388)

Compares the reading achievement scoresof fourth graders instructed in a tradi-tional, single-grade setting with those in acombined fourth and fifth grade class inwhich grouping cut across age and gradelevels. No significant differences werefound.

Ellis, S.; Rogoff, B.; and Cromer, C. C. "AgeSegregation in Children's Social Interac-tions." Dev , opmental Psychology 17/4(1981): 39-407.

Reports the results of an observationalstudy undertaken to determine what agesof companions children one to twelve yearsold select for play and other spontaneoussocial interaction. When the childrenwere not by themselves or with adults,

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they were with older or younger childrenduring 55 percent of the observations andwith same-age peers during only 6 percent.

Ford, B. E. "Multiage Grouping in the Elem-entary School and Children's AffectiveDevelopment: A Review of Recent Re-search." The Elementary School Journal78/2(1977): 149-159.

Reviews research on the effects of multi-age grouping on such affective variables asattitude toward school, self-concept as alearner, and self-esteem. Findings indi-cate that multiage grouping produces morepositive affective outcomes than traditionalsingle-age grouping.

Furman, W.; Rahe, D. F.; and Hatrup, W. W."Rehabilitation of Socially WithdrawnPreschool Children through Mixed-Age andSame-Age Socialization." Child Develop-ment 50/4 (1979): 915-922.

Compares the incidence of positive socialinteraction on the part of socially with-drawn preschoolers as a result of playsessions with a same-age partner, with ayounger partner, or no treatment. Experi-mental children paired with a youngerpartner exhibited significantly higherlevels of social interaction following thesessions; others did not.

Gaustad, J. "Nongraded Education: Mixed-Age, Integrated, and DevelopmentallyAppropriate Education for Primary Chil-dren." OSSC Bulletin 35/7 (March 1992):entire issue.

Provides definitional and historical infor-mation about nongraded education prac-tices, cites drawbacks to graded structures,summarizes research on graded andnongraded programs, and provides sugges-tions for those wishing to implementnongraded primary programs.

Gutierrez, R., and Slavin, R. E. "AchievementEffects of the Nongraded ElementarySchool: A Best-Evidence Synthesis."Review of Educational Research 6214(1992): 333-376.

Uses the "best-evidence synthesis" methodto analyze 57 studies of the achievement

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effects produced by nongraded elementaryprograms. Beneficial effects were notedfor single-subject and comprehensivemultiage arrangements, but individualizedprograms showed inconsistent effects.

Johnson, D. W.; Johnson, R.; Pierson, W. T.;and Lyons, V. "Controversy VersusConcurrence Seeking in Multi-Grade andSingle-Grade Learning Groups." Journalof Research in Science Teaching 22/9(1985): 835-848.

Studies the effects of kind of grouping andstructure of learning activity on variousoutcomes for fourth, fifth, and sixthgraders. Among the findings: students inmulti-age settings had higher learning self-efficacy scores and motivation; no differ-ences in achievement or interpersonalrelations were noted.

Katz, L.; Evangelou, D.; and Hartman, J . TheCase for Mixed-Age Grouping in EarlyEducation. Washington, DC: NationalAssociation for the Education of YoungChildren, 1990.

Argues that both the nature of childdevelopment and the evidence fromanthropological study support mixed-agegrouping for early child education. Re-views research on the achievement andparticularly affective outcomes of mixed-age grouping, and discusses cross-agetutoring and cooperative learning aseffective strategies for mixed-age groups.

Kentucky Education Association and Appala-chia Educational Laboratory. UngradedPrimary Programs: Steps Toward Devel-opmentally Appropriate Instruction.Washington, DC: CEDaR, April 1991.

Presents findings from a literature reviewon ungraded primary instruction followedby findings emerging from case studies of10 such programs in the state of Kentucky.Also cites obstacles to the implementationof ungraded primary programs and offersrecommendations to those consideringbeginning these programs.

Milburn, D. "A Study of Multi-Age or Family-Grouped Classrooms." Phi Delta Kappan3/81 (1981): 513-514.

Compares the effects of multi-age groupingand traditional grade-level grouping on theacademic performance and attitudes ofchildren 6-11 years of age. Academicoutcomes were similar; children in multi-age groupings had more positive attitudesthan those in traditional structures.

Miller, B. A. "A Review of the QuantitativeResearch on Multigrade Instruction."Research in Rural Education 7/1 (1990):1-8.

Examines the quantitative researchliterature on the effects of multigradeclassroom structures on student cognitiveand affective outcomes. Compared tostudents in single-grade settings, those inmultigrade classes had more positiveattitudes toward self, school, and school-mates. Achievement outcomes weresimilar.

Mobley, C. F. A Comparison of the Effects ofMultiage Grouping Versus HomogeneousAge Grouping in Primary School Classes ofReading and Mathematics Achievement.Practicum Report. Ft. Lauderdale, FL:Nova University, April 1976. (ED 328 102)

Investigates the effects of single-age andmulti-age grouping on the reading andmath achievement and self-concepts ofchildren in their first, second, and thirdyears of school. Results were mixed onthe math and reading measures; self-concept scores significantly favored multi-age grouping.

Papay, J. P.; Costello, R. J.; Hedl, J. J., Jr.;and Speilberger, C. D. "Effects of Traitand State Anxiety on the Performance ofElementary School Children in Traditionaland Individualized Multiage Classrooms."Journal of Educational Psychology 67/6(1975): 840-846.

Compares the task performance andanxiety levels of first and second gradersin traditional, grade-level groupings withthose of age peers in multiage classes.Multiage-grouped subjects had loweranxiety than traditionally crouped stu-dents, and multiage-grouped secondgraders evidenced superior task perfor-mance as well.

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Pavan, B. N. "The Benefits of NongradedSchools." Educational Leadership 50/2(1992): 22-25.

Presents results of a review of 64 researchdocuments on the effects of nongradedprograms on student achievement, mentalhealth indicators, attitudes, and particularpopulations. Nongraded programmingcompared favorably with single-gradegrouping on all of the measures consid-ered. Data are also reported in Andersonand Pavan (1992) above.

Pavan, B. N. "The Nongraded ElementarySchool: Research on Academic Achieve-ment and Mental Health." Texas TechJournal of Education 4/2 (1977): 91-107.

Reviews 37 comparative research studieson nongraded elementary instructionversus traditional grade-level groupings.Students in nongraded settings signifi-cantly outperformed controls on measuresof academic achievement, attitudes, self-concept, attendance, and other outcomes.

Pratt, D. "On the Merits of Multiage Class-rooms." Research in Rural Education 3/3(1986): 111-115.

Discusses sociological and anthropologicalfindings about the ways people and ani-mals organize themselves into age group-ings and reviews research on the compara-tive achievement and affective outcomes ofsingle-age and multiage learning environ-ments.

Roopnarine, J. L., and Johnson, J. E. "Social-ization in a Mixed-Age ExperimentalProgram." Developmental Psychology 20/5(1984): 828-832.

Examines the social interactions of chil-dren three to eight years old in an earlychildhood education program. Children ofdifferent ages made different choicesregarding the age groups of classmateswith whom they chose to interact. Nofirm conclusions were drawn.

Rule, J. G. Effects of Multigrade Grouping onElementary Student Achievement inReading and Mathematics. Mesa, AZ:Depaitment of Research and Evaluation,May 1983.

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Compares the reading and mathematicsachievement of third through sixth gradersin multigrade classes with the achieve-ment of those instructed in single-gradeclasses. No significant differences werefound on eleven of twelve comparisons.

Schrankler, W. J. "Family Groupings and theAffective Domain." The ElementarySchool Journal 7617 (1976): 432-439.

Compares the self-concepts, attitudestoward school, and academic achievementlevels of three groupings of elementarychildren: complete multiage, restrictedmultiage, and unit-age. Results showedaffective differences favoring the multiagestructures and no achievement differences.

Way, J. W. "Achievement and Self-Concept inMultiage Classrooms." EducationalResearch Quarterly 6/2 (1981): 69-75.

Compares the achievement and self-concept scores of children six to ten yearsold in multiage learning environmentswith those in single-grade environments.No achievement differences were found;self-concept scores favored the multiagestructure, especially on the factor of"happiness and satisfaction."

Way, J. W. "Verbal Interactions in MultiageClassrooms." The Elementary SchoolJournal 79/3 (1979): 178-186.

Examines children's interactions inelementary multiage classes in two schoolsto identify patterns. Among the findings:in three-year age-span classes, interactionacross age groups is infrequent, and olderchildren do not give assistance and adviceany more often than younger ones.

Winsler, A., and Espinosa, L. The Benefits ofMixed-Age Grouping in Early ChildhoodEducation: A Report to the Redwood CitySchool Board on the Primary EducationCenter's Mixed-Age Summer School PilotProgram. Redwood City, CA: RedwoodCity School District, November 1990.

Reports results of a study comparing theeffects on kindergarten-age children in amixed-age summer program with those in

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a conventional kindergarten program.Children in the mixed age group exhibitedmore positive outcomes on all measures.

General ReferencesBredekamp, S. (ed.) Developmentally Appro-

priate Practice in Early Childhood Pro-grams Serving Children From BirthThrough Age 8Expanded Edition. Wash-ington, DC: National Association for theEducation of Young Children, 1987.

Cites research fmdings about the impor-tance of matching early childhood programcontent to the age and developmentallevels of children in those programs.Provides considerable detail about therange of developmentally appropriatepractices for children of different agegroups.

Calkins, T. "The Track: Children Thrive inUngraded Primary Schools." The SchoolAdministrator 49/5 (1992): 9-13.

Discusses the congruence betweenmultiage classroom grouping and what isknown about the developmental processand needs of young children. Givesoverviews of school restructuring in twoschools in British Columbia.

Connell, D. R. "The First 30 Years Were theFairest: Notes from the Kindergarten andUngraded Primary (K-1-2)." YoungChildren 42/5 (1987): 30-39.

Traces the history of early childhoodeducation in the U. S. during the past 60years and laments the trend toward moreacademically oriented, rigidly structuredprogramming during the past 30 years.Offers a description of her positive experi-ences in one-room and ungraded schoolsettings.

Craig, C., and McLellan, J. "Split GradeClassrooms: An Educational Dilemma."Education Canada 27/4 (1987): 4-9.

Discusses the phenomenon of split-gradeclassrooms, especially as these are utilizedin Canada. Distinguishes between split-

grade and other multi-age arrangements,presents the results of a teacher surveyabout split-grade structures, and offersrecommendations to educators who are orwill be using split-grade arrangements.

Cuban, L. "The 'At-Risk' Label and theProblem of Urban School Reform." PhiDelta Kappan 70/10 (June 1989): 780-784,799-801.

Argues that graded school structures helpto create and perpetuate problems for so-called "at-risk" students. Cites obstaclesto redesigning schools, but offers stepsthat schools and individual teachers cantake to improve the quality of education,especially for those labeled as "at risk."

Davis, R. The Nongraded Primary: MakingSchools Fit Children. Arlington, VA:American Association of School Adminis-trators, 1992.

Discusses the nature of nongraded primarygrouping, the rationale for implementingit, role changes that take place whenschools make the transition to nongradedprimary, appropriate teaching strategies,and suggestions for those wishing tochange to a nongraded arrangement.Contains excerpts from many resources onnongraded grouping.

Elkind, D. "Developmentally AppropriatePractice: Philosophical and PracticalImplications." Phi Delta Kappan 7112(1989): 113-117.

Contrasts the dominant "psychometric"philosophy of education with the "develop-mental" concept in terms of their differingviews of learners, the learning process, thenature of knowledge, and the goals ofeducation. Draws implications of thedevelopmental view, which he favors.

Gaustad, J. "Making the Transition fromGraded to Nongraded Primary Education.'OSSC Bulletin 35/8 (April 1992): entireissue.

Cites validated elements of successfulchange from graded to nongraded systems;discusses the educational change process;describes transitions to nongraded struc-

CLOSE-UP *14 PAGE 13

'a

tures at the single site, district, and statelevels; and presents implications for school-boards.

Gayfer, M. (ed.). The Multi-grade Classroom:Myth and Reality - A Canadian Study.Toronto, Ontario: The Canadian Educa-tion Association, 1992.

Summarizes the results of a study under-taken to determine the prevalence of,reasons for, and advantages/disadvantagesof multi-grade classrooms in Canada. Onefinding: enrollment, budgeting, and otheradministrative concernsnot pedagogicalonesare the main reasons for organizingmulti-grade classes.

Goodlad, J. I., and Anderson, R. H. TheNongraded Elementary School. RevisedEdition. Reissued with a New Introduc-tion. New York: Teachers College Press,1987.

Presents the original 195911963 text of thisbook, with newly prepared introductorymaterial which sets a contemporarycontext for the theory of, arguments for,and descriptions of the operation ofnongraded elementary education.

Hunter, M. How to Change to a NongradedSchool. Alexandria, VA: Association forSupervision and Curriculum Development,1992.

Raises and addresses issues that schoolsface when undertaking the challenge ofchanging to nongraded groupingissuesrelated to school organization, studentplacement, instructional design, programassessment, communication with parents,and preparation of teachers to teachmixed-age classes. Includes a case study ofone school's transition to nongradedgrouping.

Katz, L. G., and McClellan, D. E. TheTeacher's Role in the Social Developmentof Young Children. Urbana, IL: ERICClearinghouse on Elementary and EarlyChildhood Education, 1991.

Cites research indicating that failure toachieve minimal social competence inearly childhood is linked to maladaptivebehavior later in life. Provides general

guidelines and specific strategies teacherscan use to foster healthy social develop-ment in.young children.

Miller, B. A. The Multigrade Classroom: AResource Handbook for Small, RuralSchools. Portland, OR: NorthwestRegional Educational Laboratory, 1989.

Presents fmdings from research on multi-grade settings (reprinted in Miller 1990and 1991) and offers information andguidelines for use by teachers of multi-grade classes in the areas of classroomorganization, management, grouping,instruction, and others.

Miller, B. A. "A Review of the QualitativeResearch on Multigrade Instruction."Journal of Research in Rural Education 712 (1991): 3-12.

Provides an overview of the problems andneeds of rural teachers in multigradeclassrooms and reviews studies detailinghow instruction is conducted in multigradeclasses. Draws implications for teacherpreparation, classroom organization, andstudent learning.

National Association for the Education ofYoung Children, and the National Associa-tion of Early Childhood Specialists in StateDepartments of Education. "PositionStatement: Guidelines for AppropriateCurriculum Content and Assessment inPrograms Serving Children Ages 3Through 8." Young Children 46/3 (1991):21-38.

Offers a rationale for proferring guidelinesfor the education young children, reviewsthe major concepts of developmentallyappropriate practice, offers a series of 20guidelines for developing curriculum, andprovides suggested assessment proceduresfor regular and special needs students

Pavan, B. N. Moving Elementary SchoolsToward Nongradedness: Commitment,Assessment, and Tactics. 1991 Revision.Philadelphia, PA: Temple University,1991.

Itemizes the principles of nongradednessin the form of a survey instrument forrespondents to use to indicate their

PAGE 14 CLOSE-UP 014V'J

opinions about the relative importance ofthese principles. Topical clusters includegoals, organization, curriculum, instruc-tion, materials, and assessment.

Purdom, D. M. "Experience with Nongrading:A Personal Reflection." Wingspan 8/1(1992): 28-35.

Describes the author's experience workingin an innovative nongraded school inKentucky in the 1960s and draws implica-tions for nongraded education in the 1990sand beyond. Builds on the principlesdiscussed in his 1972 article (see nextentry).

Purdom, D. M. "The Ideal Nongraded School."Orbit 3/4 (1972): 4-7.

Points out that there are many conceptsand delmitions of the nongraded schooland that these have led to confusion.Offers and comments on a conceptualmodel of the nongraded school as a meansof clarifying the meaning and purpose ofthis educational approach.

Shepard, L. A., and Smith, M. S. "Synthesis ofResearch on Grade Retention." Educa-tional Leadership 47/8 (1990): 84-88.

Summarizes research on the incidence anctcost of retention in grade and on the effectof retention on achievement, dropoutrates, and student affect. Concludes thatthe effects of retention are overwhelm-ingly negative and encourages alternativesto its use.

Williams, L. R. "Determining the Curricu-lum." Chapter 1 in Seefeldt, C. (ed.). TheEarly Childhood Curriculum: A Review ofCurrent Research. New York: TeachersCollege Press, 1987, 1-12.

Provides an overview of the evolution ofWestern thinking, from the early 18thcentury to the present, about the way thatroung children should be educated. Fa-

vors the view that the developmental levelof young children calls for a "whole child"approach rather than a cognitively ori-ented, preacademic one.

This publication is based on work sponsored wholly, or in part, by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement(OERD, U.S. Deparcment of Education, under Contract Number RP91002001. The content of this publication does notnecessarily reflect the views of OERI, the Department, or any other agency of the U.S. Government.

April 1993

CLOSE-UP #14 PAGE 15

Snapshot #25


Building Positive Student Self-ConceptStevenson-Carson School District

Stevenson, Washington

Kathleen Cotton

Research Findings'Goal #1: Students will have

a positive self-concept."

When the staff and community of theStevenson-Carson School District establishedthis goal and gave it top priority, they wereresponding to three influences:

Widespread agreement in the school andcommunity that positive student self-concept is of primary importance

District data indicating that improvementwas needed in this area

Research data showing the critical impor-tance of a positive self-concept for successin school and in life.

Focusing on the support provided by research,it can readily been seen that many effectiveeducational practices are typically in operationin schools and distzicts whose students havepositive self-regard. The document, EffectiveSchooling Practices: A Research Synthesis I1990 Update (Northwest Regional EducationalLaboratory, April 1990), identifies the follow-ing practices as being particularly relevant toenhancing student self-concept:

At the classroom level:

1.2.1 Instructional Groups Formed in theClassroom Fit Students' Academic andAffective Needs

1.3.4 Studenis Routinely Receive Feedbackand Reinforcement Regarding TheirLearning Progress

1.4.1 There are High Expectations for StudentLearning

1.4.3 Pe.sonal Interactions Between Teachersand Students are Positive

1.6.1 Students at Risk of School Failure areGil yr. the Extra Time and Help TheyNee to Succeed.

At the school level:

2.1.1 Everyone Emphasizes the Irnportanc, ofLearning

2.2.4 There are Pleasant Conditions forTeaching and Learning

2.4.2 Incentives and Rewards are Used toBuild Strong Student and Staff Motiva-tion

Northwest Regional Educatiunal Laboratory101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500Portiand, Oregon 97204Telephone (503) 275-9500

0 9

i'School Improvement Program I

\It

2.6.1 Students at Risk of School Failure areProvided Programs to Help ThemSucceed

2.7.1 Parents and Community Members areInvited to Become Involved.

At the district level:

3.1.1 High Expectations Pervade the Organiza-tion

3.1.2 There are Policies and Procedures thatSupport Excellence In Student Perfor-mance

3.4.1 Improvement Efforts are Encouraged,Supported, and Monitored.

SituationThe Stevenson-Carson School District is aconsolidated district made up of many smallcommunities. Located in the "windsurfingcapital of the world"the Columbia RiverGorgethe di strict serves approximately 1100students in Lwo elementary schools, a middleschool, and a high school. Some 95 percent ofStevenson-Carson's students are white/non-Hispanic. The teacher-student ratio is one totwenty-three or less at all grade levels.

Skamania County, in which the school districtis located, has had the highest unemploymentin the state of Washington for a number ofyears, due primarily to the general decline inthe logging and wood products industries inthe Pacific Northwest. While the unemloy-ment rate over the last ten years has averagedapproximately 15 percent, at this writing it hasreached nearly 30 percent. Other develop-ments, such as a recently erected conventioncenter and the designation of the ColumbiaGorge as a National Scenic Area, are expectedto reinvigorate the local economy, but theireffect has not yet been significantly felt.

ContextBELIEFS ABOUT EDUCATIONALIMPROVEMENT

When Stevenson-Carson superintendent TonyFeldhausen became aware of NWREL'sstrategic improvement process, Creating the

Future (CTF), central office and school-levelstaff in his district were already engaged inresearch-based school improvement projectsand had undertaken some of the componentsof strategic planning. Feldhausen and specialprograms supervisor Mollie Lopshire had, forexample, provided Teacher Expectations andStudent Achievement (TESA) training to anumber of the district's teachers. They hadprovided classes in the development of collabo-rative staff relationships, cooperative learning,and the use of research-based practices inlesson design. Small grants were also offeredby the district for teachers to develop andimprove these practices in their own areas ofresponsibility. The district had provided staffdevelopment activities for instructionalassistants as well. In addition, administratorsand teachers had been involved in directionsetting, visioning, studying the change pro-cess, and reviewing/sharing research oneffective schooling practices.

Reading a journal article about the CTFprocess, Tony Feldhausen saw a high degree ofcongruence between CTF and his district'scurrent efforts. And since he and his staffwanted to take a more structured and system-atic approach to districtwide school improve-ment, Feldhausen contacted NWREL and,together with supportive staff and communitymembers, embarked on the CTF approach todistrictwide school improvement.

Why did Stevenson-Carson stakeholders feelthe CTF process was right for the district?The answer lies in the following list of philo-sophical and procedural features, whichcharacterize both the district's direction andthe CTF strategic improvement approach:

All stakeholder groups in the districtboard members, administrators, teachers,noncertified staff, parents, other commu-nity members, and studentsshould have avoice in planning and decision making.

The improvement process should be led bya team responsible for guiding the effort,engaging the participation of school andcommunity people, and keeping all stake-holder groups informed of activities andprogress.

Plans and decisions should be made basedon their potential for improving outcomes

PAGE 2 SNAPSHOT *25

for all students, including those identifiedas "at risk."

Plans and decisions should be made basedon knowledge of validated schoolingpractices as identified in the educationalresearch base.

Plans and decisions should be data based;that is, based on information about currentstudent performance and communitypriorities.

The role of central office personnel is toinspire and provide support for school-based management.

Proposed improvement activities have thebest chance for success when staff engagein collegial planning and projects.

Real and lasting change occurs slowly, andthose engaged in a change process canexpect to encounter obstacles along theroad to achieving their goals.

THE FOCUS ON STUDENT SELF-CONCEPT

With assistance and support from NWRELstaff, a broad base of district, school, andcommunity representatives initiated a district-wide improvement effort in the mannerspecified by the CTF process. Guided by thedistrict leadership team, this group developeda mission statement, a vision statement, andfive student goal statements, with the develop-ment of positive student self-concept as thefirst priority goal.

Why self-concept? As planners utilized theCTF processes for identif3ing needs, determin-ing their relative importance, and reviewingrelevant research, they came to appreciate thecritical role of positive self-concept in theschool performance and overall well-being ofstudents. In particular, they came to under-stand the close relationship between positiveself-concept and academic achievement. Theyalso became very concerned about the nega-tive influences on self-concept experienced bymany Stevenson-Carson students due towidespread economic hardship and its atten-dant family problemsdrug/alcohol abuse,domestic violence, and depression.

SNAPSHOT #26

Leadership team members and stakeholdersdeveloped and refined an action plan aimed atenhancing student self-concept. At the sametime, they specified measurable academic,behavioral, and affective indicators of self-concept in order to be able to monitor progresstoward the goal.

In keeping with the evidence that locallymanaged improvement efforts have thegreatest likelihood of success, staff of each ofthe district's four schools were given theresponsibility and the authority to developtheir own plans and activities for improvingthe self-concepts of students within thatschool. Stakeholders did agree, however, thatefforts to enhance self-concept should not takethe form of separate programs. Rather, theuse of research-based methods and techniquesfor building positive self-concepts should beintegrated into all aspects of the school pro-gram.

Both the educational research base and theexperience of Stevenson-Carson educatorspointed to the critical importance of adequateinformation, support, and resources in orderfor improvement efforts to succeed. Conse-quently, district personnel worked to give theself-concept development effort high visibilitythroughout the district and made themselvesavailable to provide training and technicalassistance to staff of each school as theyplanned and launched their activities.

For their part, board members approved theprovision of release time to assure that staffdevelopment and training activities could takeplace, established criteria for assessing thelevel of caring and empathy exhibited byteachers seeking employment within thedistrict, and authorized grant moneys forimplementing action plans.

Practice: Activities toBuild Positive Student

Self-ConceptVisiting classrooms, talking with teachers, andobserving school activities in process provideda wealth of information about each school'sapproach to fostering positive self-regard in itsstudents.

PAGE 3

STEVENSON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Ms. Jodi Thompson, a fifth grade teacher atStevenson Elementary School, opened herclassroom for observation as she conducted aStudent Circle activity. Students were giventhe opportunity to offer one another support oradvice, and to express "resentments" or"appreciations" they might have on theirminds.

First came a review of the school's guidelinesfor interpersonal interactions and otherbehaviors. In response to Ms. Thompson'squeries abou 1. the guidelines, students enthusi-astically raised their hands, were recognized,and identified the following:

Striving for one's "personal best,' ex-plained by one student as, "not yourneighbor's best, but your own"

Avoiding "put-downs," including a shortdiscussion of "how put-downs make peoplefeel bad"

Everyone's "right to pass"; that is, eachperson's freedom to "pass" on suggestionsor invitations that he/she knows or sus-pects are harmful, such as using drugs

Telling the truth

Building trust for one another

Engaging in "active listening," whichstudents demonstrated by looking at eachspeaker and communicating attentivenesswith their body language.

Ms. Thompson thanked each student as he orshe shared, and then directed the class'sattention to the classroom "put-up" box. Theopposite of put-downs, put-ups are messages ofthanks or appreciation that students hadwritten to one another or to Ms. Thompsonand placed in a box specified for that purpose.As the box was passed from student to studentand the put-up messages were read, there wasmuch laughter and good cheer. "How does itfeel to be put-up this morning, guys?" askedMs. Thompson, to which responses of "Good!"and "Great!" could be heard.

An additional noteworthy feature of this classis that special education students could not bedistinguished from their classmates.

Ms. Annette Medlin and Ms. Sue Lofberg,Stevenson Elementary teachers who applied

- for and received Self-Concept Grants from thedistrict, discussed their self-concept develop-ment activities.

One use to which the grant resources havebeen put is the development and implementa-tion of Arts Afternoons, a program grounded inDr. Howard Gardner's concept of multipleintelligences. Ms. Lofberg explained thatprogram students, many of whom have beenidentified as being at risk of school failure,interact with teachers, classified staff, seniorcitizens, and area artists as they expressthemselves through a variety of artistic media.Both visual and performing arts are empha-sized. "Our intent is to enhance self-esteemusing artistic expression as our vehicle," readsthe grant proposal, which also provides theresearch evidence (as required of grant appli-cants) showing that activities such as thoseproposed have led to increases in student self-esteem in other settings.

Arts Afternoons activities conclude with a"Show Oft" of artistic products, in whichstudents display or perform their work forschool and community people. An impressivemural developed by Arts Afternoons partici-pants decorates an expanse of wall in one ofStevenson's hallways.

Arts Afternoons is characterized by frequentevaluations, involving its studen' participants,of how the program is goingwhich activitieshave gone well, what needs to be changed, andsolicitation of suggestions for ways the pro-gram might be improved. Student input istaken to heart and has been a major ingredi-ent in shaping the program.

Ms. Annette Medlin's grant supported thedevelopment of Stevenson's "Record ofAchievement" for students in grades K-3. Inkeeping with recent research favoring the useof performance-based assessment methodsrather than relying on standardized testing,the Record of Achievement focuses on studentdemonstrations of skills they have acquired. Akey element is an alternative report cardwhich identifies the large array of learningareas and subskills presented to and acquiredby children during their primary years. Thecard notes skills introduced and skills mas-tered, and includes indications of the student's

PAGE 4 SNAPSHOT #25

J

level of effort. Reviewing Record of Achieve-ment reports with their child and his/herteacher, parents get a much more completepicture of the child's learning progress thanthat offered by more traditional report cards.

The Record of Achievement also includessamples of student work, many of which areselected for inclusion by the student. Inaddition to the periodic parent-teacher-studentconferences, there are frequent conferencesbetween teacher and student, in which studentwork samples are reviewed and, as the origi-nal grant proposal specifies, "a teacher mustassess nonjudgmentally and gently and re-spectfully critique but not criticize." Havingthe opportunity to review, his/her own cumula-tive record, says Ms. Medlin, "enhances self-concept by showing the student's growth andprogress over time."

Another of Stevenson Elementary School'sapproaches to building student self-concept isthrough the KLUE (Kids Like Us are Every-where) program, a 12-week class for childrenwhose parents have drug or alcohol problems.Participants are self-selected initially andcontinue in the program if parent permissionis granted. A tracking system is being used todetermine whether involvement in the pro-gram reduces or delays the use of drugs andalcohol by participants.

CARSON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Carson Ekmentary principal Chris Whetzelspeaks of the school's self-esteem-buildingactivities with a great deal of pride. Hedescribed the Kids Care program, in whicheach classroom of students, together withtheir parents, teacher, and instructionalassistants, participates in an array of self-esteem-building activities while on a day-longretreat at a Forest Service retreat center.

When a Carson student is selected as Citizenof the Week, Mr. Whetzel calls his or herparents and draws their attention to thepositive things their child has done to receivethis honor. And in Carson's VIP (Very Impor-tant Person) classroom activities, studentshave the opportunityone at a time in eachclassto select and portray pictures whichreflect the things each child feels are impor-tant about him/herselfpictures of familyactivities, sports participation, and other

elements of the child's life. Not far from a VIPBoard in one second grade classroom, thefollowing affirmation was displayed on the

I am the one and only me. I am animportant person. I like myself.When I really like myself, others willlike me, too. I am responsible forwhat I do and the kind of person I am.I am special.

As a complement to the many brief overviewsof activities teldng place at Carson, a visit withveteran sixth grade teacher Mary Frenterprovided an in-depth look at the way self-esteem-building activities are integrated intothe work of one teacher. Ms. Frenter made nosecret of the fact that, at the beginning of thecurrent school year, her class was "unruly"and fraught with social interaction problems.She also made it clear that this is no longerthe case. Asked what she does to ameliorate adifficult situation like this, she launched into adescription of the many activities she conductsto enhance students' self-regard and help thembuild skills in interacting positively with oneanother. These include:

Explaining and reinforcing her classroom'sguiding principles: "Integrity, Kindness,and Respect."

Weekly "spotlighting" of a given student,during which the other students write andcommunicate positive things about theweek's featured student.

Teaching students the importance of"seeing the good in one another" andcontinuously encouraging them to do so.

Frequently changing the seating arrange-ment in the classroom and having studentsobserve and make positive observationsabout their new "neighbors."

Participating with her class in the KidsCare program.

Displaying a "Put-Up Board," on which thepositive comments students write aboutone another are posted.

Teaching the use of "snakes": Whenstudents hear comments that sound like

SNAPSHOT #25 ",-) PAGE 5

put-downs, they are encouraged to make ahissing sound and a "snake" gestureholding one's hand with the index andmiddle fmgers partially extended, as ifthey were the fangs of a snake. In thissomewhat whimsical way, they can signaltheir unwillingness to listen to or partici-pate in spiteful talk.

Making use of a classroom "Me Board,"which is similar to the VIP Board used insome others of Carson's classes, butsomewhat more complex, befitting thegreater maturity of these students. MeBoard displays feature both pictures andwords, with descriptions and imagesrevealing the student's plans, hopes, anddreams, as well as their present circum-stances. Each student presents his or herMe Board display to the whole class.

Carrying out a practice whereby studentswho are disruptive must leave the roomand are allowed to rejoin the class onlyafter an analysis and improvement planare made.

Frequently focusing on helping students tosee how their behavior impacts others.

Having students "make appointments"with their parents to discuss things ofimportance to them.

Encouraging parent participants in theschool's open house to leave "warmfuzzies"notesofpraise and affectionintheir children's desk:4.

Working with parents in a program called"Preparing for the Drug-Free Years," inwhich parents learn how to deal construc-tively with their own emotions, solveproblems, and develop greater understand-ing of young people through role-playing.

Providing classroom activities to helpstudents to manage their own anger anddeal with the anger of others

Teaching "politeness skills," for example,discussing the importance of both aperson's words and tone of voice in convey-ing meaning. Students are encouraged toseek a "reality check" when they areunsure about what another person's toneof voice might mean.

PAGE 6

Recognizing that "we all feel sorry forourselves sometimes" and permittingstudents to have "pity parties"periods ofself-indUlgent sulkingfor a maximum of45 minutes.

Teaching the importance of learning fromfailure. 'Tm going to teach you how tofail," Ms. Frenter says, explaining thatstudents, particularly those inclined to beperfectionists, need to learn that "theworld doesn't end if you don't do every-thing perfectly."

Making use of an array of activities fromthe resource book, Go For It!, which wasdeveloped with gifted children in mind, butwhich Ms. Frenter has found to be appro-priate for all students.

Focusing on elements from WilliamGlasser's Reality Therapy, which identifies"love, power, fun, and freedom" as basichuman needs. When students are havingproblems, Ms. Frenter works with them toanalyze their experience in order to seewhich of these elements might be insuffi-cient. Each student develops "My BasicNeeds Circle," and this is used to helpthem create a better balance among theirneeds.

Having students put items of their choicein a "time capsule," which she keeps andthen shares with students when theybecome seniors in high school.

Offering opportunities for students to earnrecess time.

And more. Asked what designation she givesto this program of self-understanding andimproved self-regard for students, Ms. Frentersays, "I don't know what to call ithealth?science? social studies? I can't say; I just doit, and it works."

WIND RIVER MIDDLE SCHOOL

The district's seventh and eighth gradersattend Wind River Middle School and, as partof the school's approach to developing studentself-concept, spend 30 minutes each day in aprogram called Home Base. The purpose ofHome Base is to make certain that every WindRiver student has a personal and ongoingrelationship with a school staff member.

SNAPSHOT #25

Home Base groups are limited to 14 members,and attempts are made to group togetherstudents who are not already establishedfriends. Time in Home Base is spent workingon listening skills and other interpersonalskills, and students engage in short activitiesfrom the "Ropes' curriculum, which focuses onbuilding trust, interdependency, and positiveself-regard. Home Base teachers are alertedwhen their students are falling behind in theirassignments and take action to assist andencourage them.

A different but complementary approach todeveloping students' self-esteem is the "cross-age coaching" program co-developed by WindRiver physical education teacher TracyJennings and a teacher from Carson Elemen-tary School next door. A course in which thetwo teachers were involved required that theydesign an innovative course. From theircollaboration emerged a physical educationcourse in which Wind River students developand carry out lesson plans for teaching andcoaching the younger Carson children in avariety of sports activities.

Outcomes of this activity have surpassed theteachers' hopes and expectations. Wind Riverstudents, particularly those who had a historyof behavior problems, have experienced agreat deal of success in developing leadershipskills as they provide guidance and support tothe younger children. Many have said thattheir teaching/coaching experience has madethem more understanding about the disciplineproblems teachers face. For their part, theyounger children respond well to takingdirection from the older students and expressfeeling important and special because of theattention and help given them.

During the observation, groups of Wind Riverstudents could be seen playing with groups ofCarson children in several different indoor andoutdoor activitiesgolf, soccer, tennis, basket-ball, and volleyball. In the team sports, eachteam was made up of both older and youngerstudents, with the older students being atten-tive to their younger classmates, coaching,encouraging, cheering successes, and provid-ing reassurance following misplaced kicks ormissed baskets.

STEVENSON HIGH SCHOOL

The action plan for enhancing the self-conceptsof-Stevenson High School students has compo-nents ranging from student recognitionactivities to counseling activities in a variety ofareas to programs designed to build students'academic self-confidence and success. Devel-oped in response to research fmdings oneffective practices, examples of programs andactivities include:

A Student of the Month program, featuringpublic recognition at a school assembly andbreakfast as the guest of the principal, JimSaltness.

An annual Evening of Excellence event,during which students exemplifyingexcellence in different areas are recog-nized.

A program for identifying and planningsupport activities for students who areexperiencing academic, behavioral, orattendance difficulties.

Drug and alcohol aftercare for studentsrequiring ongoing support after substanceabuse treatment.

A Peer Helpers program, which trainsstudents in helping, communication, andproblem-solving skills so as to be effectivein assisting their schoolmates in need ofsupport.

A support group for parents focused onsharing problems and successes.

Study skills development activities pro-vided to help freshmen get off to a goodstart academically.

Community volunteer tutors who makethemselves available to assist studentsneeding help with school work and provideother kinds of assistance to teachers andadministrators.

An in-depth look at just one of Stevenson'sprograms was provided by Mr. Saltness andtechnology education/industrial arts teacherBill LaCombe, who described the school'sSummer Success Program.

SNAPSHOT #25 PAGE 7

Initiated during the sununer just past, Sum-mer Success is an eight-week program jointlyfinanced by the school district and the Commu-nityFoundation of Southwest Washington.Participants include both successful and at-riskstudents, who are paid for their involvementin the all-day, five-days-a-week programactivities. Two-thirds of the 19 summer 1992participants were selected based on factorssuch as low socioeconomic status, parentalunemployment, poor attendance, behaviorproblems, and academic difficulties. The otherthirdthe "role model" studentswere selectedbased on having a history of school success.Summer Success activities included:

Morning "icebreaker" lessons, such aschallenging students with puzzles ormysteries to be solved using inquiry skills.

Mathematics and language assignmentsset in real contexts that are meaningful tostudents. One such activity called forstudents to work cooperatively to preparea written proposal for paving the schoolparking lot, including the computations formaterials needs and costs.

Ropes program activities aimed at buildingtrust; e.g., a group of students holdinganother student off the ground, passingthe student safely from one point toanother

Day Camp leadership functions, in whichSummer Success participants planned,practiced, and carried out activities for 60children in grades K-6.

How did it turn out? Mr. LaCombe notes thatthere was distance and some friction betweenthe at-risk and the successful students at thebeginning of the summer activity, and that afew of the at-risk students never really becamefully engaged in the program. For the mostpart, however, the goal of building trust andbonds between members of the two groups wasmet, and thP attendance of many of the at-riskstudents has improved following involvementin the program.

"When I first came to Stevenson," says Mr.LaCombe, "I thought it would be a short stopfor me. Now, I don't see myself leaving hereanytime soon. I'm proud to be a Bulldog. Thestaff work together like a family. In Summer

Success I learned a lot about the hardshipsmany students face. I have become morecompassionate, and I make myself moreavailable as- my students. These 'at-risk' kidsknow a lot; they teach me things."

OutcomesAlthough the focused efforts to raise the self-esteem of Stevenson-Carson students havebeen in operation only a short time, staff havea wealth of anecdotal information about thepositive effects of these efforts. Teachersurveys, for example, point to improved self-regard among students and indicate thatteacher-student bonds have been strength-ened.

Perhaps more to the point, however, are thefmdings concerning the indicators specified atthe beginning of the improvement effort.Some highlights:

Dropouts. The 1986-90 dropout rateaveraged 8.75 percent. The 1990-91dropout figure was 5.7 percent.

Attendance. From the 1989-90 to the1990-91 school year, average attendance atthe elementary level increased slightly,decreased slightly at the middle schoollevel, and increased significantly at thesenior high level.

Achievement. Of the many positiveachievement indicators tracked byStevenson-Carson staff, some are particu-larly noteworthy, including a dramaticreduction in the class failure rate of middleschool students and a significant increasein the standardized reading comprehensionscores of senior high students.

Referrals. From 1989-90 to 1990-91 therewas a 19 percent decrease in the numberof senior high students receiving referralsand a 33 percent decrease in the numberof middle school students receiving refer-rals.

Student Perceptions. Average re-sponses of middle school students toquestions about staff acceptance, caring,and support of them improved dramaticallyfrom the period 1987-90 to the 1990-91school year.

PAGE 8SNAPSHOT #26

As Stevenson-Carson district-level and school-level staff have written and implementedaction plans in other goal areasskill develop-

_ment, knowledge acquisition, motivation, andvaluesthey have taken care to continue theirfocus on building student self-concept. Speak-ing of the key role of positive staff-studentinteractions in building self-esteem, superin-tendent Tony Feldhausen quotes a bit ofproverbial wisdom: "Students don't care howmuch you know, until they know how muchyou care."

Contact Tony Feldhausen, Superintendent,Stevenson-Carson School District, P.O. Box850, Stevenson, Washington 98648, 509/427--5674, for more information on the district'sactivities for improving student self-concept.For more information on the Creating theFuture strategic improvement process, contactNWREL staff members, Robert E. Blum (503/275-9615) or Thomas A. Olson (503/275-9644).

This publication is based on work sponsored wholly, or in part, by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement(OEM), U.S. Department of Education, under Contract Number RP91002001. The content of this publication does notnecessarily reflect the views of OERI, the Department, or any other agency of the U.S. Government.

April 1993

SNAPSHOT #25 PAGE 9

64


Snapshot #26

Achieving Success in MathematicsThrough Innovative Programming

Davis Elementary SchoolPortland, Oregon

Al Fitzpatrick

Research FindingsTo meet the needs of both successful studentsand those at risk of academic failure, keyelements of effective classroom and schoolwidepractice need to be present. According toEffective Schooling Practices: A ResearchSynthesis11990 Update (Northwest RegionalEducational Laboratory, April 1990), theseinclude:

At the classroom level:

1.2.1 Instructional Groups Formed in theClassroom Fit Students' Academic andAffective Needs

e. Small groups are used for instructionand practice in the use of higher-order thinking skills.

1.3.2 Instruction is Clear and Focused

f. Teachers use strategies to developstudents' higher-level thinking skills.

1.4.1 There are High Expectations for StudentLearning

a. Teachers set high standards forlearning and let students know theyare expected to meet with them.Standards are set so they are bothchallenging and attainable.

1.4.3 Personal Interactions Between Teachersand Students are Positive

a. Teachers pay attention to studentinterests, problems, and accomplish-ments in social interactions both inand out of the classroom.

1.6.1 Students at Risk of School Failure areGiven the Extra Time and Help .TheyNeed to Succeed

e. Whenever possible, at-risk studentsare given additional learning time forpriority objectives; this time is spentin interactive learning activities withteachers, aides, or peer tutors.


2.2.2 School Time is Used for Learning

e. During the school day, unassignedtime and time spent on noninstruc-tional activities are minimal.


a. The focus is on prevention of learningproblems rather than remediation.

Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500Portland, Oregon 97204Telephone (603) 275-9500

t))

School Improvement Program 111

2.7.1 Parents and Community Members areInvited to Become Involved

f. Special efforts are made to involveparents of disadvantaged students,who are often underrepresentedamong parents involved in theschools.

SituationReynolds School District. Seven thousandstudents attend the district's schools, whichinclude one high school, two middle schools,and nine elementary schools. The district isdirectly adjacent to the city of Portland andblends into the nearby community ofGresham. It is a combination of urban,suburban and rural settings.

Davis Elementary School. Almost 400students in grades K-5 attend Davis Elemen-tary School. Over 60 percent of the studentsqualify for free or reduced-priced lunches, andthe school has a mobility rate of approximately30 percent. Davis's student population is 20percent minority, with Hispanic studentscomprising the largest minority group. Manyof the students live in apartment complexes,and many of these are government subsidized.

ContextDavis Elementary School staff have receivedtraining in the Onward to Excellence (OTE)school improvement process developed by theNorthwest Regional Educational Laboratory.As called for by the OTE process, Davis staffr, viewed previous and current test scores andidentified mathematics as an area of concern.Specifically, they noted that in the fall of 1986,there had been more students who were belowaverage in mathematics than were aboveaverage and, in 1987, Davis Elementarystudents had had a mean score in mathematicsbelow both district and county averages.

In 1990, Davis Elementary was awarded agrant from the RJR Nabisco Foundation toimplement an innovative program entitled"Recess Math."* Recess Math derives itsname from the fact that instruction beyondthat provided during regularly scheduledmathematics lessons takes place duringstudents' free time, such as during recessesand before and after school. An additionalcomponent of Recess Math is a six-weeksummer program. The aim of the summer

program is to provide opportunities for stu-dents to learn important math skills andconcepts in ways that are enjoyable andreiiarding.

A key element of Recess Math at Davis El-ementary School is that students attend bychoice. It is not offered as a remedial mathprogram, nor is it a special program foraccelerated or gifted students. Any studentwho wants to attend is welcome to participate.Classes are mixed with regard to age, gradeand ability. Recess Math has served nearlyninety percent of the school's population. Inaddition, the Recess Math summer programalso accepts students who will enter kindergar-ten in the fall or who have completed the fifthgrade at Davis Elementary and will be attend-ing middle school in the fall.

In addition to the grant from RJR Nabisco,local businesses, the Davis Parent-TeacherGroup, and the school district have providedfmancial support for equipment and suppliesfor the program. Recess Math is staffed byboth certified and classified staff members.Staff allocations have been adjusted periodi-cally to keep the student-to-teacher ratio at orbelow fifteen to one.

Students who choose to participate in theprogram must complete an application andpledge to attend class for one "unit," or abouttwenty days. Seven units are scheduledduring the school year. Students may enrollin one of the following classes: before school,after school, or at lunchtime. They may alsochoose to spend some of their recesses in theprogram during the time they are enrolled.Davis Elementary does not provide specialtransportation to attend Recess Math classes;students without access to transportation areplaced in lunchtime classes. Classes vary inlength from 30 to 60 minutes each day. In1992, an additional component was added tothe program to address the need for earlyintervention. All kindergarten students visitthe lab one day each week as part of theirregular curriculum.

The heart of the Recess Math curriculumcenters around seven goals and standards setforth by the National Council of Teachers ofMathematics:

* Davis Elementary School teacher Kristi Fosback wasone of the originators of the Recess Math program andcontributed the information on program development.

PAGE 2 SNAPSHOT #26ziG

Students will learn to value mathematics.

Students will become confident in theirmathematics abilities.

Students will become mathematicalproblem solvers.

Students will learn to communicatemathematically.

Students will learn to reason mathemati-cally.

Students will demonstrate a higher rate oflearning mathematics than those whochoose not to participate in Recess Math.

Students will demonstrate a higher rate oflearning mathematics than they did inprevious years without Recess Math.

The environment of the Recess Math labora-tory is nonthreatening and encourages risktaking. Math lessons are always varied so thatstudents who attend additional units will notrepeat the same activities. Activities areenjoyable, but they do necessitate that stu-dents use mathematical thinking in order tocomplete them. Math manipulatives are inabundant use, and students have access tocomputers and calculators. Students spendconsiderable time solving problems together insmall and large groups. Participants areencouraged to communicate verbally withadults and peers.

Practice:Recess Math Through the

School Day and Year

BEFORE SCHOOL

The regular school day at Davis Elementarybegins at 9:15 a.m. As is typical, studentsbegan entering the math lab at 8:00 a.m. onthe day of the observation. They had eitherwalked to school or had been transported by aparent or other adult. A bank of computers isset up on one side of the classroom, and eachstudent took a seat at one of the computers. Ateaching assistant and a student volunteerfrom a nearby community college were avail-able to help students select an appropriateprogram. Most students were able to operatethe computer on their own, but individualassistance was provided for students who

needed it. Most students selected a programthat provided them practice with math compu-tational skills.

After about 15 minutes, when most studentshad arrived, the students were instructed toturn off their computers, put away materialsand assemble on the rug. Recess Mathteacher Vicky Porter displayed some coins onthe overhead projector and asked individualstudents to show different combinations ofcoins that equaled one dollar. After demon-strating success with this skill and somediscussion about the value of each coin, Mrs.Porter explained the activity for the day.Students would be making name tags (this wasthe first day of a new unit). The tag itself wasfree, but items to decorate the name tag wouldneed to be "purchased." Students were eachgiven a plastic bag containing a variety of playcoins.

Arranged throughout the room were stationsthat contained decorating items and theneeded materials to affix items to the nametags. The price for each item was posted ateach station. As this was a mixed-age group-ing of students, prices varied according tograde levels. For example, all students neededstring so the name tag could be worn aroundtheir necks. Primary students paid ten centsfor a length of string, while intermediatestudents were required to pay a penny for eachtwo inches of string. "Jewels" were availablefor twenty-four cents. Stickers cost primarystudents four cents, while intermediatestudents could by them "two for a nickel."Glitter, easily the most popular item, wasthirty cents a scoop. Colored paper wasavailable for five cents per color. Seashellswere an expensive item, and most studentschose not to purchase them. When purchasingitems to adhere to their name tags, studentswere responsible for counting out the coinsneeded for the purchase and for determininghow much change they were to receive back.

The direct application of previously learnedmathematics skills was apparent, but theopportunity to practice social skills was aterrific bonus. Students were required tomake decisions and thoices and to interactwith peers and adults. The students' pride intheir ability to make these transactions wasevident, and they were clearly enjoyingthemselves.

Upon completion of the activity, materialswere neatly put away, name tags were depos-

SNAPSHOT #26 PAGE 30 1

ited into a box, and students were quietlyexcused to go to their classrooms for theheginning of the regular school day. As theywalked out the door, each student was invitedback for another activity during their morningrecess. Most of them returned.

RECESS TIME

At most schools, students are provided choicesat recess times: they may choose to go outsidewhere additional choices can be made, forexample, between kickball and hopscotch.Some schools also allow students the choice ofgoing to the library. At Davis Elementary,students have an additional choice: they cango to the math lab. Computers are availablefor individual or paired skill reinforcement,and a variety of other math activities arealways available.

KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS

At 10:00 a.m., seven kindergarten studentsentered the Recess Math lab. They assembledaround tables where brightly colored patternblocks were available. They were allowed toexperiment and quickly developed repeatpatterns of twodiamond, hexagon, diamond,hexagon. After pattern:, were checked by anadult, the children were given similar shapescut from construction paper and glued their"recreated pattern" on strips of paper. At theend of the session, they left the lab with theirpattern strips, enthused about returning totheir regular classroom and telling theirteacher what a hexagon is. They were toreturn to the lab the following week foranother math activity.

Involving kindergarten students in the RecessMath lab is a new practice in the 1992-93school year. It is part of their regular sched-ule, each child attending once a week in asmall group of six or seven students. Thiscomponent supports the concept of earlyintervention and provides young students withearly introduction to key math concepts.

FAMILY MATH NIGHT

Twice each year Davis Elementary Schoolopens its doors in the evening and invites allfamilies to attend a "Family Math Night."Over half of the families attend these events,at which students have an opportunity to"show off' their math abilities. Familiesparticipate in a variety of hands-on math

activities (e.g., estimating, graphing). Thepurpose of these activities is to inform parentsaboutthe Recess Math program.

SUMMER PROGRAM

Students at Davis Elementary can also chooseto attend Recess Math classes during thesummer months. Three two-week sessionsare available, with most students attendingthe entire six weeks. Students come for eithera morning or an afternoon session. Eachsession lasts for two hours. Both large- andsmall-group activities are provided. The areasof emphasis are similar to those of the regularprogramapplication ofmathematics skills,decision making, and developing an apprecia-tion for mathematics. All activities are skill orconcept oriented, with an additional emphasison having fun.

A visitor to the Recess Math lab will observestudents actively involved in mathematicspractices appropriate to their ages and devel-opmental levels. Activities are open-ended,encouraging the application of problem-solvingand critical thinking skills. Students areallowed plenty of time to complete activities.Exploration is the norm; adults provideassistance when needed, but their approach isto use questioning strategies that will allowstudents to find their own answers.

Students exhibit high levels of interest. Whilestudent-student interaction takes place,children complete activities with purpose andtask commitment. The climate of the class-room is relaxed and encouraging. Sinceprogram participation is optional, it is obviousthat students attend Recess Math because it isfun for them.

Program EvaluationThe staff of Davis Elementary School, recog-nizing the need to evaluate and monitor theRecess Math program, developed an extensivesystem for assessing program success. Theyhave now completed two annual evaluations.Highlights from among the findings include:

Student attitude surveys show uniformlypositive attitudes about their confidencewith math, valuing of math, and communi-cating about math.

Parent response to a questionnaire wasoverwhelming supportive.

PAGE 4:3

SNAPSHOT #26

100 percent of the staff indicated highsatisfaction with the program.

By the end of the 1991-92 school year, 89percent of Davis students had participatedin the program.

Achievement test scores showed signifi-cantly higher gains than those for acomparison population.

Thanks to the Recess Math summerprogram, Davis Elementary studentsexhibited mathematics growth duringsummer 1992, whereas the comparisonpopulation showed a slight loss of growthduring this same period.

Those desiring more information about theRecess Math program are encouraged tocontact former Davis Elementary principal,Dr. Donnise Brown, who is now principal ofMargaret Scott Elementary School, 14700 N.E.Sacramento Street, Portland, Oregon 97230-3860, (503) 255-2031 or current Davis Elemen-tary School principal, Curt Anderson, 19501N.E. Davis Street, Portland, Oregon 97230-8035, (503) 665-6193.

This publication is based on work sponsored wholly, or in part, by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement(GERI), U.S. Department of Education. under Contract Number RP91002001. The content of this publication does notnecessarily reflect the views of OERI, the Department, or any other agency of the U.S. Government.

April 1993

SNAPSHOT *26 PAGE 5


Snapshot #27

Success for At-Risk StudentsThrough Computer-Assisted Instruction

Pensacola High SchoolPensacola, Florida

Kathleen Cotton

Research FindingsOf the schooling practices that research hasshown to be effective for educating students atrisk of school failure, staff of Pensacola HighSchool in Pensacola, Florida make use ofmany that are appropriate for students ingrades 9-12. As expressed in Effective School-ing Practices: A Research Synthesis 11990Update (Northwest Regional EducationalLaboratory, April 1990), key practices include:

1.3.1 Students are Carefully Oriented toLessons

c. The relationship of a current lessonto previous study is described. Stu-dents are reminded of key concepts orskills previously covered.

1.3.2 Instruction is Clear and Focused

d. Students have plenty of opportunityfor guided and independent practicewith new concepts and skills.

h. Computer-assisted instruction...supplements teacher-directed learn-ing and is integrated with it, ratherthan supplanting teacher-led activi-ties.

1.3.4 Students Routinely Receive Feedbackand Reinforcement Regarding TheirLearning Progress

f. When computer-assisted instructionis used, activities are chosen whichgive students immediate feedbackregarding their learning performance.

1.3.5 Review and Reteaching are Carried Outas Necessary to Help All Students MasterLearning Material

e. When selecting computer-assistedlearning activities, teachers makecertain these include review andreinforcement components.

1.4.3 Personal Interactions Between Teachersand Students Are Positive

b. Teachers praise and encouragestudent effort, focusing on the posi-tive aspects of students' answers andproducts.

1.6.1 Students at Risk of School Failure areGiven the Extra Time and Help TheyNeed to Succeed

f. Teachers and aides communicatewarmth and encouragement to at-risk

Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500Portland, Oregon 97204Telephone (503) 275-9500 il

*e.School Improvement Programll

"111.

students, comparing their learningwith the students' own past perfor-mance rather than making compari-sons with other students.


2.3.3 Staff Engage in Ongoing ProfessionalDevelopment and Collegial LearningActiuities

h. Ongoing technical assistance is madeavailable to staff as they pursueschool improvement activities.

2.5.1 Learning Progress is Monitored Closely

c. Summaries of student performanceare shared with all staff who theyassist in developing action alterna-tives....


e. Programs and activities for at-riskstudents are carefully coordinatedwith regular classroom activities.

g. Remediation programs for olderstudents incorporate validated ap-proaches such as...computer-assistedinstruction.

j. The findings from ongoing monitoringefforts are used to adapt instructionto students' individual needs.

SituationAt the extreme western end of the Florida"panhandle" is the Escambia County SchoolDistrict, which serves a student population of42,000. Some nineteen hundred of thesestudents attend Pensacola High School (PHS),a 9-12 school located in the city of Pensacola.African-American youth make up 45 percent ofPHS's student population, white studentscomprise another 45 percent, and studentsfrom other racial or ethnic groups make upthe remaining 10 percent.

The families of PHS students represent a wideeconomic range: although one-fourth of theschool's students come from advantaged, well-to-do homes, fully half of them are from the

PAGE 2

other end of the socioeconomic spectrum andqualify for free and reduced-priced lunches.PHS staff describe the school as "three schoolswithin a school," since it comprises the regularinstructional program and a Dropout Preven-tion program, as well as being an InternationalBaccalaureate magnet school.

ContextIn 1985 Pensacola High School became a fieldtest site for the Summer Youth Programoperated by the local Private Industry Councilwith funds from the federal Job TrainingPartnership Act (JTPA). The summer pro-gram included a computer-assisted instruction(CAI) component, and the JTPA Title II fundssupported the initial development of a CAIlaboratory and program at PHS. Other highschools in the Escambia district were alsoinvolved in the program, which was coordi-nated by English teacher and CAI specialistGene Evans.

In 1987, Pensacola assistant principal SarahArmstrong served on a team of Escambiadistrict educators working on a programproposal aimed at lowering the district's highdropout rate. With CAI facilities already inplace, and with research findings supportingthe use of CAI with dropout-prone students,Gene Evans encouraged the proposal develop-ers to write a CM component into the district'sproposal. They did so, the proposal wasapproved, and since that time Pensacola's CAIlab has developed into a large-scale and criticalcomponent of the school's program for support-ing students at risk of school failure. Sup-ported by a combination ofJTPA, dropoutprevention, and special education resources,the CM program serves more than a fourth ofPHS's students. Participants engage in CAIactivities during daily 20-minute sessions,accompanied by their teachers and the instruc-tional assistant who serves as a the lab'sproctor.

In its present form, the CAI program usessoftware developed by the Computer Curricu-lum Corporation ( CCC) headquartered inSunnyvale, California. The program's "host"computer is located at PHS, and other partici-pating schools are connected to the system bymodem. The host has a large capacity; it canaccommodate 5,000 students, each working infive curricular areas.

SNAPSHOT #27

CAI LEARNING ACTIVITIES

The CAT scores of participating students areused to determine the level at which eachstudent begins in each of the learning areasaddressed by the CCC softwarereading,mathematics, language arts, spelling, and apre-employment course in "survival skills."Regardless of initial achievement level,matching students with CAI activities that willallow them to have scores of 80 percent orabove is a key feature of the program. Forthese at-risk students, achieving at or abovethe 80 percent level is sometimes their firstexperience of school success, and survey

. results indicate that their self-esteem isgreatly enhanced as a result. Achieving 80percent mastery also insures that students willbe ready to take the next step in whateverlearning sequence they are pursuing.

A Teacher Information packet highlights theindividualization of instruction that the CAIprogram makes possible:

The individualized program is providedas the computer monitors eachstudent's progress and

1. diagnoses the student's leval ofunderstanding of a concept.

2. selects or generates exercisesappropriate for each student.

3. analyzes all student responses.4. gives appropriate confirmation,

correction, error message, orhints.

5. displays the student's results atthe end of a session.

6. records the student's performancedaily.

More specifically, the CM curriculum beginswith what are known as Initial PlacementMotion (IPM) algorithms, which are set so thateach student will be able to produce at his/heractual grade level of achievement, regardlessof test scores.

Let's say a student is working on mathematicsskills. When the student generates an incor-rect response on a problem involving thesubtraction of fractions, the program makesnote of this and presents a similar problemwithin the next six or eight problems it offers.If this second problem is also missed, the

program continues to present, at frequentintervals, problems calling for skill in subtract-ingfractions. If five such problems are offeredand missed, then only problems of this kindare presented until the student is able toproduce correct responses to fourteen of themin a row. Then, this type of problem is againinterspersed with other kinds of math prob-lems until 17 subtracting-fractions problems ina row are answered correctly. This is consid-ered mastery of the subskill of subtractingfractions.

The program, however, "remembers" that thisstudent had previously experienced difficultywith problems involving the subtraction offractions. At the end of the next twenty 20-minute sessions, another subtracting-fractionsproblem is presented to determine whetherthe student remembers. If the student missesthis problem, the cycle begins again.

Similar cycles are carried out within allcurricular and skill areas, and students rarelyrequire more than two of these cycles beforethey are able to retain their skills in the areaunder consideration.

Mr. Evans provided general information on theprogram's many elements. The readingcomponent, for example, has learning activi-ties ranging from the kindergarten to theadult levels. Among its many skill areas is"Critical Reading Skills," in which studentsread a passage, with a time setting thatprevents them from referring back to thepassage when it is time to respond to ques-tions about it. Mf. Evans notes that oncestudents become accustomed to this pacing,their comprehension scores begin to improverapidly.

Within the Language Arts component, theaudio feature of the program "speaks" wordsthat students are to spell, and students typethe words in response. The word processingpart of the component leads students throughconstructing sentences, then paragraphs, thentypes of written products, such as "how to"instructions and descriptions of persons,places, or things.

The Mathematics component contains a hugevolume of materialenough for five years'worth of sessions at the usual student rate offive 20-minute sessions per week. Skill areas

SNAPSHOT #27 PAGE 3.)

include problem solving, math concepts, andmath survival skills, which focuses on real-life-applications of mathematics knowledge.

RECORD SEEPING

Highlights from among the many kinds ofreports the software is able to generateinclude:

Classes. Each participating student iscoded by grade, class, and whether he/sheis a JTPA student, a dropout preventionstudent, a special education student, andso forth. This makes it possible to gener-ate many different kinds of student listsfor different purposes.

Individual. Reports on individual stu-dents indicate areas of emphasis, level ofparticipation, modifications to programs(e.g., turning off the "timing" function forspecial education students, who aregenerally allowed to take all the time theywant to respond to learning activities).

Enrollment. Mr. Evans has cross-referenced CAI activities with districtperformance standards, making it possibleto identify and prescribe activities insupport of required student performancelevels.

List. The record keeping system cangenerate lists of CAI participants by classand grade level, what CAI activities thesestudents are currently pursuing, what theyhave completed, and so on.

Course Report. This is a record of eachparticipant by curricular area, grade level,problems attempted, number correct,percent correct, identification of learningproblems, likelihood that a given studentwill be presented with a certain kind ofproblem. etc. Teachers receive CourseReports every Friday.

Gains. This report indicates the numberof sessions in which a student has partici-pated. the amount of time he or she hasspent on the computer since completion ofthe Initial Placement Motion, the gain(expressed in months), and the grade levelat which the student is working.

PAGE 4 p)!

Worksheet. Teachers can ask for indi-vidualized worksheets to be generated fortheir students, based on each student'slearning history and needs, poorestperformance area, and other factors.Teachers can specify whether or not theworksheets will include answers.

.The system is also able to identify whichstudents throughout the district are at thecomputer terminal at any given moment,specify the last time a given student attendeda CAI session, and carry out other functions.

THE ROLE OF TEACHERS

Mr. Evans emphasizes that the impissivetechnology should not obscure the fact that theheart of the CM program is the teacher-student interactions that take place in relationto the computer activities. First of all, teach-ers receive training and acquire experiencepursuing the CM activities before theirstudents do, which enhances their ability toassist when students have difficulties. Teach-ers always accompany their students to theCAI lab, taking note of their students' dailyprogress and calling students' attention toways in which their performance is improving.

The weekly reports on student performancethat teachers receive enable them to tailorlearning activities to address areas of need,while praising and rewarding success. Teach-ers can also utilize the lab facilities for specific,short-term purposes, such as having studentswrite papers using the lab's word processingcapabilities or exposing them to review mate-rial in preparation for upcoming tests.

An excerpt from the program's ComputerAssisted Instruction Philosophy states:

The program recognizes that theclassroom teachers are the mostimportant element in computerassisted instruction. Properly trainedteachers who have control over theCM program can provide their stu-dents with an added dimension inlearning. In the end, it is the class-room teachers' creativity, enthusiasm,the professional competence that willtransform instruction into exemplarystudent achievement.

SNAPSHOT #27

Practice: Highlights from aDay in Pensacola HighSchool's Computer Lab

Ms. Sandra Robinson's class entered the large,bright CAI lab and immediately occupied mostof the lab's 24 workstations. Obviously famil-iar with lab routines, each student entered hisor her identification number into the com-puter, which responded by presenting prede-termined activities selected on the basis ofthat student's learning needs. While thestudents were working, Ms. Robinson pointedout that since no two students have the samelearning strengths and needs, different ques-tions are presented to each individual, making"cheating" irrelevant and impossible.

Ms. Robinson described her methods forenhancing student motivation in the CAI lab.Each time a student gets a score of 100 duringa session, that student is recognized by havinghis or her name displayed as a member of the"Top 100 Club." Ms. Robinson also factors instudents' weekly CAI lab reports and work-sheet grades as one-fourth of their overallgrade during each six-week period. "I do itthis way so they will know that computer labactivities are important, not just 'busywork',"she says. Later in the day, another of Ms.Robinson's classes made use of the lab, againin an efficient, businesslike way.

Throughout the day, Ms. Ann Stanley, theinstructional assistant who is the CAI labproctor, worked with each group of students,answering questions and providing assistanceas needed. Like other PHS staff memberswho have experience with the lab, Ms. Stanleybelieves that it is the experience of academicsuccess that inspires students to apply them-selves in pursuing CAI activities. "I like to seekids succeed," she says, "and most of them doin here." She believes that students' feelingsabout themselves improve because of in-creases in content knowledge, but also becausethey are developing computer skills. Studentsconducted themselves in a focused and orderl,manner as groups rotated in and out of the labat 20-minute intervals as the school day wentby.

Mathematics teacher Mr. Jack Moberly worksboth with PHS students and at Tate HighSchool with adults preparing for their highschool equivalency certificates. Asked about

the difference between these two groups, Mr.Moberly noted that they're similar in mostways, but that adults have appreciably longerailention spans, and thus can work produc-tively for longer periods of time than the 20-minute intervals appropriate for youngerstudents.

Of the kinds of information that CAI recordkeeping system provides, Mr. Moberly is mostconcerned with data on individual studentprogress. "Teachers aren't as interested inidentifying the grade level on which a studentis working as they are in seeing whether astudent is experiencing learning gains, and ifso, how much. This system keeps us abreastof that."

When a group of Ms. Katherine Frazier'sEnglish-as-a-Second-Language students weresettled in at their workstations and tacklingthe day's activities, she described the value ofCAI lab activities for ESL instruction. Sheremarked that her students function on manydifferent levelsfrom totally non-Englishspeaking to fairly proficient in English skills.Consequently, the CAI program, with itsability to tailor and individualize instruction,can offer each student lesson content on his orher own level.

Although the program has activities in sevendifferent languages, it does not include Viet-namese, which is the native language of mostof PHS's ESL students. Consequently, thesestudents engage in reading activities inEnglish, beginning at very simple levels andgradually building English skills.

OutcomesThe Escambia School District's dropoutprevention program received recognition fromthe State of Florida as an exemplary programfor the 1991-92 school year, with the CAIcomponent cited as a major reason for theprogram's guccess. A close relationshipbetween time spent on CAI lab activities andNCE gains on the reading and math portionsof the CAT was noted for all four of thedistrict's high schools.

Focusing in Pensacola High School's programin particular, Gene Evans notes that 30percent of PHS's 1992 graduates were gradu-ates of the CAI lab. Data on students with

SNAPSHOT #27 PAGE 5

comparable academic histories and no CAI labexperience indicate that half the studentsomprising that 30 percent would not have

graduated without the lab experience. Thisconclusion is also supported by data on PHSstudents before the inception of the program.During the years that the CAI program hasbeen in operation, the dropout rate for all CAIparticipants has not exceeded five percent, andthe dropout rate for the JTPA studentswhoare most at riskhas remained below twopercent.

A study of the use of the CAI lab by specialeducation students found that these studentshave experienced an even larger gain per hourof CAI activity than have the regular programstudents. They enter at a much lower level, ofcourse, but the study found that these stu-dentseducable mentally retarded, physicallyimpaired, speech and hearing impaired,educationally handicapped, specific learningdisabled, and severely emotionally disturbedhave exhibited as much as a month of educa-tional growth for each hour of CAI instruction.Specifically, their gains were somewhatgreater than those of regular program stu-dents in the Initial Reading strand, equal tothe regular program students in ReadersWorkshop activities, and significantly higherthan regular program students in MathConcepts and Skills.

Is there a "down side" to this highly successfulprogram? Gene Evans believes that theprogram could produce even greater achieve-ment gains if computer equipment were moremodern, if acquisition of equipment were notcompletely dependent on grant moneys, and ifthere were a budget for maintenance andrepair. He wishes there were resources toopen up the CAI lab's offerings to at least someof the non-at-risk population. And he alsostates that the program has received insuffi-cient support and attention from the outgoingdistrict administration.

On the plus side, Mr. Evans cites the opennessand support of PHS principal J. P. Cone amongthe reasons for the program's success. Inaddition, Mr. Evans is hopeful that the incom-ing district superintendent will provide greatersupport for the CAI effort.

Since only low achievers are scheduled intothe program at the present time, what aboutthe potential for program students beingstigmatized? Mr. Evans notes that thispotential exists, but is minimized due to theuse of the lab for word processing by non-program students when program students arenot making use of it. In addition, adultparticipants in Community Education classesuse the lab in the evenings.

For more information about the CAI programat Pensacola High School in particular orthroughout the Escambia districtcontactMr. Gene Evans, CAI Program Specialist,Pensacola High School, A and MaxwellStreets, Pensacola, Florida 32501, (904) 433-8291.

This publication is based on work sponsored wholly, or in part, by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement(GERD, U.S. Department of Education, under Coatract Number RP91002001. The content of this publication does notnecessarily reflect the views of GERI, the Department, or any other agency of the U.S. Government.

April 1993

PAGE 6 SNAPSHOT #27


Snapshot #28

Restructuring in aMultiethnic EnvironmentLinda Vista Elementary School

San Diego, California

Barbara K. Hernandez

Research FindingsResearchers have conducted extensive exami-nations of effective practices for urban schoolsserving minority student populations. Inaddition to the practices from the effectiveschooling research in general, they also haveidentified practices that have special relevanceto minority racial and ethnic groups.

Having a principal who "brings in the re-search" may help explain the strong connec-tion between what is happening at Linda Vista,a large urban elementary school in San Diego,California, and what the effective schoolingresearch recommends. The following prac-tices, drawn from NWREL's Effective School-ing Practices: A Research Synthesis11990Update, are among those that have generallyguided Linda Vista's five-year restructuringeffort:

2.2.1 Students are Grouped to PromoteEffective Instruction

2.3.1 Strong Leadership Guides the Instruc-tional Program

2.3.2 Administrators and Teachers Continu-ally Strive to Improve InstructionalEffectiveness

2.7.1 Parents and Community Members areInvited to Become Involved.

In addition, in her paper, Educating UrbanMinority Youth: Research on Effective Prac-tices (Topical Synthesis *4, NWREL 1991),Kathleen Cotton identifies effective practiceswith "particular relevance to members ofminority racial and ethnic groups." Thoseinfluencir Linda Vista's program include:

1. Tea responsibility and sense ofefficacy that acknowledges that learningproblems are not caused by students'backgrounds but indicate a need to adaptone's instructional approach

2. Degree of native language instructionprovided based on skill levels of students

3. Division of large schools into smallerlearning units to foster ongoing relation-ships between students and school person-nel

4. Assessment that is nonbiased and genu-inely reflects students' abilities

5. Early childhood programming toincrease student achievement, improveattitudes toward schooling, and increasegraduation rates

Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory101 S.W. Main Street, Suite 500Portland, Oregon 97204Telephone (503) 275-9500 School Improvement Program

6. Multicultural programming integratedinto the core curriculum to promote cross-cultural understanding and respect

7. Strong parent involvement in class-room and extracurricular activities

8. Coordination of community resourcesto meet personal or family needs ofstudents.

SituationLinda Vista Elementary School is a largeurban school within the City of San DiegoSchool District. Its students come from lowsocioeconomic backgrounds and neighborhoodswhere gang activity is common. Nevertheless,the school is virtually free of gang activity andgang graffiti. The school and surroundinggrounds are clean and well kept. Studentsmake orderly exchanges between classes andengage in friendly interactions on the play-ground.

Comprising two campuses, Linda Vista El-ementary School has a student enrollment ofnearly 1,000 students (in late 1992 enrollmentstood at 995) and a staff of 120. There are 42certificated staff, and every teacher has anaide supported by federal funds.

The neighborhood has always been multi-ethnic; however, about a decade ago, it becameeven more so. The surrounding naval housingbecame low-rent housing for Southeast Asianfamilies. Three Southeast Asian refugeegroupsHmong, Laotians and Vietnameseaccount for 55 percent of the school's studentenrollment. Hispanics and blacks constitute33 percent, and whites, 12 percent. Fivemajor languages are spoken at Linda Vista:Hmong, Laotian, Vietnamese, Spanish, andEnglish. Seventy-five percent of the studentbody is limited English proficient (LEP). Thisis up from 50 percent in the late 1980s.

ContextDr. Adel Nadeau was appointed principal atLinda Vista in July 1987. She came to theschool with a background in English as aSecond Language, bilingual education, teach-ing, and administration. She found a schoolwith, as she says, "immense needs." Studentsreceived inequitable services; staff suffered

from lack of communication and low morale;instruction lacked continuity and focus. Dr.Nadeau did her homework. For six monthsshe gathered evidence. She documenteddiscouraging student achievement data. Shealso found that excessive pull-out practices fornon-English-speaking or limited-English-speaking students resulted in:

Students missing entire blocks of instruc-tion in art, music, or computers

Teachers never having full classrooms

Teachers receiving unequal preparationperiods.

These inequities contributed to the low staffmorale she witnessed daily.

Knowing change was desperately needed, shecalled a meeting in January 1988 of all staff,both certificated and classified. She presentedthe facts and said, "The decision to change isnot yours. But how we change is your deci-sion." Thus began a site-managed restructur-ing effort which has spanned five years at thetime of this writing and still continues.

From January 1988 until the following June,staff met and considered how they wanted tochange Linda Vista. Dr. Nadeau had askedthem, "If you had a magic wand, what wouldyou do to improve Linda Vista?" They wavedtheir magic wands and came up with sevengoals to guide their work:

1. More appropriate instructional/languageproficiency groupings for each student

2. Less pull-out instruction during morninghours

3. More integrated learning experiences

4. Greater equity of services to all students

5. Less labeling of special needs students

6. A more unified staff

7. Better use of space.

Staff formulated a total school restructuringeffort, simply called The Plan, based on theseseven goals. They initiated and have contin-ued a site-based management system orga-

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f

nized around a committee structure and full-staff consensus decision-making. "Conrnitteemembership is rotated continually to encour-age participation and leadership from theentire staff," says Dr. Nadeau. "This structureincreases staff ownership in the process and itsresults."

Staff may sit on one or more of 19 standingcommittees. A sample of these includes:Assessment, Budget, Calendar, Curriculum,Discipline, Early Childhood, Parent Outreach,and Race/Human Relations.

The major components of the Plan are:

An upgraded curriculum

Development of an early childhood educa-tion program for pre-kindergarten, kinder-garten and special education students atthe annex site

Reduction of class sizes

Provision of weekly preparation time forall teachers

Reallocation of resources to implement thePlan.

Resource teacher Cindy Whitmore describesthe process in this way:

We are more involved in decisionmaking now, and we really worktogether. There's a lot more sharingamong staff. But we needed ouradministrator to give us a "jumpstart." Without her, none of thiswould have happened.

In addition to providing the impetus forchange, Dr. Nadeau has served as a link withdistrict staff when questions have arisen aboutdistrict rules or legal issues related to imple-mentation.

Sally Greenfeld, also a resource teacher, adds:

"Jump" is a good word to use. We hadto jump in and do a complete revamp-ing of the system. One small changeeach year wouldn't have been enough.You can't wait until the time is perfector conditions just right. We did the bigthings first and refined later.

SNAPSHOT #28

Whitmore adds, "It's like a spider web. But itall works. It wouldn't work at all if we didn'thave very dedicated classified employees.*They are an important part of our success."

A supportive leader and empowered staff havechanged the quality of education at LindaVista.

Practices"We did the big things first and refmed later."Because Linda Vista is involved in a compre-hensive school restructuring effort, it is mosthelpful to look at several practices to see howthe overall plan is being implemented.

Adapting Instructional Approachand Groupings to Serve AllStudents Equitably

Linda Vista has gone from excessive relianceon pull-out programs and age and abilitygroupings to ungraded classrooms withinapproximately four multi-age groupingsearlychildhood, primary, middle, and upper. TheAnnex, Linda Vista's auxiliary campus, housesits early childhood education program, includ-ing pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, first gradedevelopmentally young, and young-age specialneeds students. Previously, special educationstudents were segregated at the annex. At themain campus, students are grouped by pri-mary (previously first and second grades);middle (previously third and fourth grades);and upper (previously fifth and sixth grades).Students are no longer referred to by gradelevels, except for testing purposes.

Students are assigned to morning homeroomclasses by their language proficiency levels toeliminate the need for pull-out programs.Proficiency levels include: entry-level, shel-tered A and B (requiring a specialized Englishinstruction program); transition A and B,nonsheltered classes, and bilingual classes.Each level has entry and exit criteria, andstudents advance when they meet the exitcriteria, not at predetermined times duringthe school year. This morning scheduleprovides students with ample opportunity tofoster close relationships with their homeroomteachers.

There is no "watered down" curriculum atLinda Vista. Students receive the same

PAGE 3

curriculum, whether it is presented in theirnative language or in English. Social studies-and mathematics are presented in a student'snative language for SoutheastAsian students.Spanish-speaking students are taught readingand math in their native language.

In the afternoon, students are rotated througha series of classes based on multi-age group-ings only, not on language proficiency levels.Integrated by cultural and linguistic group andgender, students spend approximately ten daysin two subjects. For example, a student willreceive science and music for ten days andthen rotate to phy'rcal education and art. Inaddition to science, physical education, andfine arts, all primary students take readinglab, oral language lab, literature, and com-puter lab. Upper students take literature,library research skills, math lab, counselinggroups, and computer/writing. These classesare presented as subjects, not as supplementalor remedial programs.

This integrated afternoon schedule enablesstudents to receive instruction from many staffin a variety of subjects that one teacher couldnot even begin to present adequately. Theyalso are exposed to a variety of teaching styles.The afternoon schedule reduces boredom bothfor students and teachers and discouragesalienation or isolation by making it possible forstudents to interact meaningfully with nearlyall staff members.

Staff have spent several years developing theirLanguage Arts Standards and Rubrics. Thisdocument clearly defines oral language,reading and writing competencies, instruc-tional materials to use, and appropriateportfolio contents for each language profi-ciency level at each age grouping.

Dr. Nadeau says, "Acceptance of portfolios as amajor portion of assessment at Linda Vistareflects a major change in teachers' thinkingnot only about assessment of student progresibut also about learning." A radical change inthe manner of grouping students to increasetheir learning inevitably led to a nontradi-tional approach to assessing their learning.

Assessment was a key concern from thebeginning of the restructuring effort. Staffwanted to establish an assessment system thatreflected both the state framework for assess-ment and Linda Vista's six levels of language

proficiency. They envisioned a system thatdidn't unduly categorize students at the sametime that it embraced schoolwide standards.

After much study, staff concluded that portfolioassessment would be used to assess the actualwork of studentsthe process and thinkingskills usedin the context of the standardizedexpectations set by instructional staff. Indeciding to use portfolio assessment forlanguage arts, staff had to design rubrics fororal language, reading and writing, and thendecide appropriate types of student work toinclude in a portfolio.

Initial efforts at portfolio assessment werefragmented. Some teachers began buildingportfolios for their students while othersstayed with old familiar ways. Then, in April1992, Linda Vista received a large grant fromRJR Nabisco under the Next Century Schoolsproject. Funds from this grant enabled staff toincorporate technology into the portfolioassessment system and elevate it to a school-wide effort. Special rooms housing teachercomputer stations and electronic scanners arelocated at both campuses. Ongoing stafftraining ensures the effective use of thesystem, which can store all types of studentworkoral, graphic, and written. Originalwork can be scanned directly from a photo-graph or lifted from a videotape or audiotape.

Designing and implementing the program hastaken three years. Portfolios will be presentedto parents for the first time during the 1992-93school year.

Multicultural Programming

At Linda Vista, multicultural programming isused to promote cross-cultural understandingand respect. Curriculum units as well asspecial events are used to present informationabout culture in general and about particularcultures. Two major activities of the multi-cultural program are described below.

THEMATIC PRESENTATIONS

Every four to six weeks begins a new multi-cultural theme at Linda Vista. Students fromearly childhood to upper groups study differentcultural groups, both within and outside theUnited States. Units present different aspectsof the cultural group in both a historical and

PAGE 4SNAPSHOT #28

contemporary context and rely on classroomvisitors to serve as role models.

Culminating activities occur throughout theyear. For example, American Indian Dayoccurs in November at the early childhoodannex. This year students rotated throughstations on the playground as the temperaturereached a warm 75 degrees. One grouplearned a circle dance, listening intently to thebeat of the drums. Another group plantedcorn, not in a garden but in dampened cottonballs placed in ziploc bags. The next groupcrushed corn kernels with small rocks on theasphalt to make corn flour, then moved to thenext station where the corn flour was madeinto tortillas and fried. The last group rinsedcranberries in large wash tubs, then sat downto enjoy some cooked cranberries with bis-cuits.

Some students wore costumes made in classvests from brown paper bags, decorated withbrightly colored paints and beads, and paperheadbands, also beaded and adorned withpaper feathers. A visiting kindergarten classfrom a suburban school dressed as pilgrimsand joined in the celebration. Teachers, aidesand older students guided the children throughthe different stations. Several helped disabledstudents participate in the activities.

Teachers and paraprofessionals broughtAmerican Indian artifacts from their personalcollections and transformed an ordinaryclassroom into a small museum, featuringpottery, basketry, and clothing. A specialaddition is a headdress made from goldeneagle feathers. Because it is now illegal toobtain or own such feathers, the headdress isregistered with the United States government.Children may also participate in hands-onactivities in the little museum, including ashell game and clay making.

RITES OF CHALLENGE PROGRAM

Seeking answers to the problems plaguingAfrican-American men, Ron Mtume developedan in-school program called Rites of Challengefor young African-American students. Thiseight-week course began in January 1992 atLinda Vista and is part of the morning socialstudies program for seven- to twelve-year-olds.The basic assumption of the course is thatchildren develop, mature, and accept increas-ingly more socially acceptable responsibilities

as they are empowered by adults to do so. Thecurriculum takes students through a series ofchallenges, including communication withfamily members, withstanding negative peerpressures, and personal decision-making. Italso teaches African and African-Americanhistory and cultures. Parent involvement is amajor aspect of the program.

Plans are underway to provide a similarprogram for Hispanic girls, who constitute thelargest number of dropouts at Linda Vista.Eventually, staff plan to include all children insuch programs.

Community Involvement

Community involvement is a strong focus atLinda Vista. A multi-faceted partnershipprogram has grown from the school's commit-ment to involve its community in the educa-tional process. According to Dr. Nadeau,"Partnerships are a major aspect of ourrestructuring effort." At present, Linda Vistaenjoys partnerships with six agencies:

Western Division of the San Diego PoliceDepartment

County Office of Education

Francis Parker Middle and Upper School(a nearby private school)

Local YMCA

Local McDonald's restaurants

Price Club.

Partners provide many valuable services atLinda Vista. For example, the Price Club, amajor corporation in California, provided fundsfor Linda Vista's one-acre garden, includingseed, fertilizer, equipment, and fencing.Students care for the garden as part of theirscience classwork. Parents, especially theHmong and Laotian, also use the garden.

In 1991, the YMCA approached Linda Vistastaff. The YMCA has a large facility virtuallyunused during the day. It proposed that LindaVista use the facility and even offered the helpof their instructors. One glitch was transpor-tation. A local McDonald's heard of the planand decided they could help with transporta-

SNAPSHOT #28 PAGE 5

tion. They wrote a grant to McDonald'sCorporation to fund some buses. Bus driversfrom Francis Parker School drive the buses.Four days a week, physical education classesfrom Linda Vista are bused to the YMCA,where they participate in gymnastics, swim-ming, and soccer classes. Those with limited-English proficiency catch on by example.During its first year, YMCA officials estimatethat nearly 20,000 free lessons will be pro-vided.

Each year Linda Vista holds a partnershipkick-off event to highlight that year's agenciesand businesses that sign partnership agree-ments. This year the kick-off was held attheAnnex. Approximately 100 young childrengathered on the school lawn to witness thesigning of the agreements. From this group,several students emerged carrying baskets offruit, a gift for their partners symbolizing the"good things we give each other."

Parent Outreach

The Parent Outreach Committee is very busyat Linda Vista, because members know thatparent involvement is key to the success of itsrestructuring effort. Parents must take pridein the school and support its efforts. Staff atLinda Vista are busy grant writers. This ishow they obtained funds to hire a parent toserve as the parent volunteer coordinator.The coordinator prepares a newsletter forparents, recruits tutors and room parents, andcarries out a myriad of other tasks.

One major responsibility is overseeing parenteducation workshops held five times duringthe school year. These workshops are basedon needs assessments conducted with parents.Each workshop is conducted simultaneously inseparate rooms in five languages. Thisinvolves writing a script for the workshop andtranslating it into five languages. Parentsfrom each group then join together for refresh-ments after the session. Child care is pro-vided.

Also supported by grant money, three commu-nity aides serve as liaisons to the parentcommunity and as vital links to social serviceagencies. They also conduct monthly homevisits to parents. Community aides do what-ever is necessary to help families support theirchildren in school. This may mean helping afamily obtain a refrigerator for their home or

PAGE 6

shoes for one of their children. It may meantaking an ill child home.

_As mentioned earlier, parents also are in-volved in the garden project at the school andthe Rites of Challenge program.

OutcomesReporting in April 1991 on the visible effects ofthe restructuring process, Dr. Nadeau pre-sented the following observations and data.

Site-Based Management Process

A system of staff committees has evolved fromthe initial restructuring effort. Both certifi-cated and classified staff serve on committeeswhich submit proposals in writing to the entirestaff for their approval. A three-year commit-tee effort has resulted in portfolio assessmentbeing implemented at Linda Vista. Theassessment committee worked directly withthe Research and Evaluation district staff onan ongoing basis to make this possible.

Instructional ProgramObservations

The morning basic skills program runs verysmoothly. An indication of its success is thatan average of 25 students advance through thedifferent language proficiency levels within thefirst quarter of the school year, and severalhundred students are reprogrammed by theend of the school year. In 1991, a preliminaryanalysis showed that nearly 95 percent of thelanguage proficiency groups met the English-as-a-Second-Language and reading-levelexpectations set by staff.

An upgraded curriculum, reduced class size,and increased teacher preparation time haveled to improvements in several areas, such astime-on-task, student attendance, and staffmorale. Linda Vista has maintained its recordof having one of the lowest, nonapportionedabsence rates in its district.

Programs that have been especially successfulinclude a bilingual program for non-English-speaking students and the special education/basic skills program. To improve its image,the latter was given the name "The AcademicEnhancement Program." Staff have observedgenuine academic improvement for several

81SNAPSHOT #28

chronically underachieving students. Manystudents who have never received an awardreceived the good citizen and academic im-provement awards.

Two other new programs directly resultingfrom restructuring efforts are the gifted(GATE) program, which had not existedpreviously, and an innovative math program inwhich each classroom is a concept station andstudents rotate to each class every threeweeks.

The afternoon program has retained studentinterest and enthusiasm. Visitors oftenremark how little dead time and off-taskbehavior they witness at the end of the day.

Instructional ProgramAchievement Data

In comparing the ASAT scores for spring 1991and 1992, staff have found some significantdifferences for reading, math and languagearts at all grade levels. (Grade levels are usedsolely for the purpose of data reporting.) Forexample, first grade reading scores went from18 (mean percentile ranking) in 1991 to 59 in1992; math scores, from 36 in 1991 to 76 in1992; language arts total scores from 36 in1991 to 73 in 1992.

Other grades didn't see such dramatic changesbut still improved their scores: second gradersmoved from 47 in math in 1991 to 50 in 1992;third graders moved from 55 in math in 1991to 58 in 1992; fourth graders moved from 15 inreading in 1991 to 27 in 1992, and from 24 inlanguage arts in 1991 to 32 in 1992; and fifthgraders moved from 28 in reading in 1991 to32 in 1992.

English language test results for studentsserved by Chapter 1 or state compensatoryeducation programs also showed significantgains in 1992. For example, second gradersscored 21.8 (percentile equivalent) on thereading comprehension pretest, but 53.2 onthe posttest; third graders, 24.2 on the pretest,but 33.7 on the posttest; and sixth graders,33.0 on the pretest, but 35.8 on the posttest.Again, larger gains were seen at the primarylevel.

Although not all scores showed gains, studentsare achieving at a higher level overall thanthey were before restructuring began._

Recognition/Awards

Certainly one indication of success is therecognition given one's efforts. At Linda Vista,recognition has been overwhelming. Forexample, Linda Vista received one of 15 NextCentury Schools grants awarded nationwide bythe RJR Nabisco Foundation. It has receivedstate and national attention. One recentdistinguished visitor was the Governor ofCalifornia. Visitors are now a common sightat Linda Vista, and many have gained valuableinformation to help them with their restruc-turing efforts. The school was selected as oneof nine exemplary sites to be included in anationwide study of LEP programs. Finally, itwas also featured in the April 1990 issue ofTime Magazine.

A visitor once referred to Linda Vista as a"school made in heaven." Staff appreciate thispraise, but they know their successes are theresult of a lot of hard work and planning byeveryone involved: principal, teachers,paraprofessionals, and classified staff Asphysical educator Susana Occhi franklyadmits:

We have a different kind of stress now,actually a good kind of stress, becausewe are more involved and responsible.Before, someone told us what to do.Now, we are part of the decisionmaking. We have to justify and defineour programs to the entire staff.Before, we would just say, "thatdoesn't concern me." Now, everythingconcerns everyone. We look at thebenefit to the whole school, not justone person. And we know we canalways change what we don't like orwhat doesn't work. Yes, there aremore after-school meetings, andchange causes some turmoil. But, it'sdefinitely worth it.

For more information about restructuring atLinda Vista Elementary School, please contactDr. Adel Nadeau, Principal, 2772 Ulric Street,San Diego, California, 92111, (619) 496-8196.

SNAPSHOT #28 PAGE 7

This publication is based on work sponsored wholly, or in part, by the Office of Educational Research and Improvementt GERD, U.S. Department of Education, under Contract Number RP91002001. The content of this publication does notnecessarily reflect the views of OERI, the Department, or any other agency of the U.S. Government.

April 1993

PAGE 8 SNAPSHOT #28

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Documents

DOCUMENT RESUME ED 361 876 AUTHOR Cotton, Kathleen; …p25: Building Positive Student Self-Concept - Stevenson-Carson School District, Stevenson, WA #22: Using School Time Productively