As the educational reform efforts of the eighties carried on into the nineties, the Office of Educational Research and Improvement launched a program of research studies which addressed various facets of educational reform. The research reported here is the result of one of 12 such studies initiated by that Office in 1991. The focus of this four-year research project has been curriculum reform, with specific attention to the three areas of science education, mathematics education, and higher order thinking across the disciplines.
Major change demands the attention of parents as well as the full range of school personnel.
It requires a major commitment over a long period of time. This study tells this story in considerable detail, including the nature of various reforms, the barriers to reform encountered, and the means by which challenges were met and positive change achieved. This report is presented with the expectation that it will be helpful to others pursuing educational reform, whether they be policy-makers, practitioners, parents or researchers. With it go best wishes to all in the quest for improved education.