School governance and management
This review of research looks not only at the effects of class size on children's academic success but also at children's behaviour, teacher stress, cost effectiveness and the unique characteristics of small classes.
Research in Norway and Britain has revealed that bullying is more common than we care to admit. Doing something about it is recommended, and how to successfully intervene is spelt out.
If you can't change the child perhaps you can change the school. Alternative schools for truants and offenders, called in New Zealand 'Activity Centres', are growing. Do they work? A case study.
At what point is a school big enough? Some small schools provide a better range of subjects than big ones, but tiny schools will always be expensive to run.
This 100 item questionnaire is for you to photo-copy and use. It quickly shows which parts of your school's life you can change for the better, and checks when you have done so.
What gives your school its personality, its spirit, its own culture? How can you assess school climate, and improve it? With details and case studies this item introduces the next.
Most high schools 'bend the rules' for some pupils. The obvious results are good: less truancy, less bad behaviour, even more work. But there are bad effects: rules set aside, 'make-work', and poor role models. Research in the USA is very relevant for us.
Quite small children recognise the problem some schools have in keeping staff. What makes for a satisfied, stable, teaching force? What can principals and administrators do?
Two years ago the way beginning teachers got a job in New Zealand was completely changed. A set item in 1990 looked at the changes. Now, two years further on, the latest figures are put through the mill and principals are asked about how the system is working for their schools.
This article reviews a large body of research on different policy approaches to the curriculum and organisation of actual multi-cultural schools. Bi-Iingual and Second-language teaching are particularly noted.
