Project CHILD constitutes a unique threedimensional instructional system that has been subjected to substantial evaluation and revision over the course of fifteen years and which has a proven track record of academic success for children in grades K-5. Project CHILD has continued to evolve and slowly expand across the United States. In the 2003-2004 school year there were over 14,000 students and more than 500 teachers involved. The system is based on an alternative, "retrotechno" theory of the proper role of computers in elementary education. The curriculum focus is on reading, writing, and mathematics, while the methodological focus is on team teaching, multiple instructional modes, and a three-year, continuous progress learning cycle. Effective school transformation is obstructed by three major barriers: school organizational structure, fear of losing control, and inappropriate training and staff development. Project CHILD has developed practical and effective ways to surmount these barriers.

• Sarah Butzin(PhD, is President & Executive Director of the Institute for School Innovation in Tallahassee, Florida, USA.)