Schools on the Move

Schools on the Move PDF Author: Jay Westover
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 1071822403
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 233

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Book Description
"The greatest influence on school district improvement is the extent to which school leaders and teachers collectively transform climate, develop culture and build capacity for the purpose of creating coherence. Districts on the Move (DOTM) paved the way for system change by establishing coherent cultures of learning. Now that DOTM has been written and district leaders can establish the context for positive system change, this new book, Schools on the Move (SOTM), will delve into bringing that vision to life and realizing school improvement at the building level. At the heart of this matter is a foundational principle that schools are the unit of change for systemic improvement. It is imperative to reduce the variances in climate, culture, capacity and coherence that exist among and within school sites if school districts are to create a coherent system of continuous improvement. This book will provide practical tools and guidance to help schools create coherent systems (and thereby improve the whole district) in these four domains: 1. Shared Leadership: partnering with teachers and staff to develop a culture of co-learning 2. Clarity of Focus: creating a strategic focus on equitable student growth 3. Collective Expertise: developing instructional coherence through cycles of collaborative inquiry 4. Continuous Improvement: maintaining a focus on evidence and impact Collaborative inquiry is the vehicle through which this change is realized. Collaborative inquiry "shapes a common mindset" (Donohoo) and allows educators to develop collective efficacy through mastery of shared learning experiences"--

Schools on the Move

Schools on the Move PDF Author: Jay Westover
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 1071822403
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 233

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Book Description
"The greatest influence on school district improvement is the extent to which school leaders and teachers collectively transform climate, develop culture and build capacity for the purpose of creating coherence. Districts on the Move (DOTM) paved the way for system change by establishing coherent cultures of learning. Now that DOTM has been written and district leaders can establish the context for positive system change, this new book, Schools on the Move (SOTM), will delve into bringing that vision to life and realizing school improvement at the building level. At the heart of this matter is a foundational principle that schools are the unit of change for systemic improvement. It is imperative to reduce the variances in climate, culture, capacity and coherence that exist among and within school sites if school districts are to create a coherent system of continuous improvement. This book will provide practical tools and guidance to help schools create coherent systems (and thereby improve the whole district) in these four domains: 1. Shared Leadership: partnering with teachers and staff to develop a culture of co-learning 2. Clarity of Focus: creating a strategic focus on equitable student growth 3. Collective Expertise: developing instructional coherence through cycles of collaborative inquiry 4. Continuous Improvement: maintaining a focus on evidence and impact Collaborative inquiry is the vehicle through which this change is realized. Collaborative inquiry "shapes a common mindset" (Donohoo) and allows educators to develop collective efficacy through mastery of shared learning experiences"--

Creating Safe, Equitable, Engaging Schools

Creating Safe, Equitable, Engaging Schools PDF Author: David Osher
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781682532638
Category : Community and school
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Creating Safe, Equitable, Engaging Schools brings together the collective wisdom of more than thirty experts from a variety of fields to show how school leaders can create communities that support the social, emotional, and academic needs of all students. It offers an essential guide for making sense of the myriad frameworks, resources, and tools available to create a continuous improvement system. Filled with recommendations gleaned from research and ongoing work in every US state and territory, this book is a critical resource for understanding and adopting evidence-based practices and making programmatic decisions to ensure the ideal conditions for learning, growth, and development. "Creating Safe, Equitable, Engaging Schools is an essential read for teachers, principals, district leaders, and organizations that work with schools to create challenging and supportive environments for all students." --Paul Cruz, superintendent, Austin Independent School District "Osher and colleagues not only connect the dots between big ideas--deeper learning, trauma, social and emotional learning, evidence-based programs, comprehensive community planning--but they model the continuous improvement approach in the way ideas are ordered across and within the chapters. This is a masterful volume: comprehensive, accessible, and way overdue." --Karen J. Pittman, cofounder, president and CEO, The Forum for Youth Investment "This book provides a very usable road map for creating safe, healthy, equitable, and caring schools. The editors and contributors successfully integrate research, practice, and policy to help educators develop and implement effective and sustainable models to nurture caring schools that all children and educators deserve." --Mark T. Greenberg, Bennett Chair of Prevention Research, Pennsylvania State University David Osher is vice president and an institute fellow at American Institutes for Research. Deborah Moroney is a managing director at American Institutes for Research and is director of the youth development and supportive learning environments practice area. Sandra Williamson is a vice president for policy, practice, and systems change at American Institutes for Research.

Street Data

Street Data PDF Author: Shane Safir
Publisher: Corwin
ISBN: 1071812661
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 281

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Book Description
Radically reimagine our ways of being, learning, and doing Education can be transformed if we eradicate our fixation on big data like standardized test scores as the supreme measure of equity and learning. Instead of the focus being on "fixing" and "filling" academic gaps, we must envision and rebuild the system from the student up—with classrooms, schools and systems built around students’ brilliance, cultural wealth, and intellectual potential. Street data reminds us that what is measurable is not the same as what is valuable and that data can be humanizing, liberatory and healing. By breaking down street data fundamentals: what it is, how to gather it, and how it can complement other forms of data to guide a school or district’s equity journey, Safir and Dugan offer an actionable framework for school transformation. Written for educators and policymakers, this book · Offers fresh ideas and innovative tools to apply immediately · Provides an asset-based model to help educators look for what’s right in our students and communities instead of seeking what’s wrong · Explores a different application of data, from its capacity to help us diagnose root causes of inequity, to its potential to transform learning, and its power to reshape adult culture Now is the time to take an antiracist stance, interrogate our assumptions about knowledge, measurement, and what really matters when it comes to educating young people.

Leadership for School Improvement

Leadership for School Improvement PDF Author: Cherie B. Gaines
Publisher: IAP
ISBN: 1641136049
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 144

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Book Description
As the inaugural issue in the Leadership for School Improvement (LSI) Special Interest Group (SIG) Book Series, this volume serves as a reflection on the foundations of the field of school improvement. Contents include connections between school improvement and the agency of principals, districts, universities, and policy. This volume will be placed in the school improvement literature with examinations of evolution, trends, policies, and future foci in the field of school improvement. This book is rich in research and literature about school improvement, school effectiveness, and school reform policy and implementation and thus holds significance for educational practitioners, scholars, and policy makers at all levels.

Design-Based School Improvement

Design-Based School Improvement PDF Author: Rick Mintrop
Publisher: Harvard Education Press
ISBN: 1612509045
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 377

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Book Description
At the heart of the effort to enact and scale up successful school reforms is the need for more robust links between research and practice. One promising approach is design development, a methodology widely used in other fields and only recently adapted to education, which offers a disciplined process for identifying practical problems, assessing evidence of outcomes, accounting for variability in implementation and results, and establishing a foundation for broader understanding of the problem and proposed solutions. This exciting new book provides a practical guide for education leaders who are seeking to address issues of equity in their schools and want to pursue this approach. The book provides a step-by-step description of the process, augmented by case studies of four education leaders: Christine, a middle school principal who is concerned with the volume of disciplinary referrals in her school; Michelle, an elementary school principal who wants to address achievement gaps; Eric, an assistant superintendent who wants to improve the quality of principals’ instructional feedback to teachers; and Nora, a high school principal who is concerned about the use of racial and homophobic slurs in the hallways. The book follows each of these leaders as they formulate and refine interventions to address these problems. Design-Based School Improvement also includes a series of “excursions into theory” that discuss the research basis for design-based improvement. The author—a leading thinker about policy implementation and school reform—shows a profound appreciation for the complexity of work in schools and the deep and sustained thinking entailed in undertaking productive change. By bringing theory to life and putting it in the hands of skilled practitioners, this book promises to become an invaluable resource for education leaders seeking to solve problems of equity and social justice in schools.

The Education We Need for a Future We Can′t Predict

The Education We Need for a Future We Can′t Predict PDF Author: Thomas Hatch
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 1071838504
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 181

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Book Description
Improve Schools and Transform Education In order for educational systems to change, we must reevaluate deep-seated beliefs about learning, teaching, schooling, and race that perpetuate inequitable opportunities and outcomes. Hatch, Corson, and Gerth van den Berg challenge the narrative when it comes to the "grammar of schooling"--or the conventional structures, practices, and beliefs that define educational experiences for so many children—to cast a new vision of what school could be. The book addresses current systemic problems and solutions as it: Highlights global examples of successful school change Describes strategies that improve educational opportunities and performance Explores promising approaches in developing new learning opportunities Outlines conditions for supporting wide-scale educational improvement This provocative book approaches education reform by highlighting what works, while also demonstrating what can be accomplished if we redefine conventional schools. We can make the schools we have more efficient, more effective, and more equitable, all while creating powerful opportunities to support all aspects of students’ development. "You won’t find a better book on system change in education than this one. We learn why schools don’t change; how they can improve; what it takes to change a system; and, in the final analysis, the possibilities of system change. Above all, The Education We Need renders complexity into clarity as the writing is so clear and compelling. A powerful read on a topic of utmost importance." ~Michael Fullan, Professor Emeritus, OISE/Universtiy of Toronto "I cannot recommend this book highly enough – Tom tackles long-standing and emerging educational issues in new ways with an impressive understanding of the challenging complexities, but also feasible possibilities, for ensuring excellence and equity for all students." ~Carol Campbell, Associate Professor, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto

Organizing Schools for Improvement

Organizing Schools for Improvement PDF Author: Anthony S. Bryk
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226078019
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 328

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Book Description
In 1988, the Chicago public school system decentralized, granting parents and communities significant resources and authority to reform their schools in dramatic ways. To track the effects of this bold experiment, the authors of Organizing Schools for Improvement collected a wealth of data on elementary schools in Chicago. Over a seven-year period they identified one hundred elementary schools that had substantially improved—and one hundred that had not. What did the successful schools do to accelerate student learning? The authors of this illuminating book identify a comprehensive set of practices and conditions that were key factors for improvement, including school leadership, the professional capacity of the faculty and staff, and a student-centered learning climate. In addition, they analyze the impact of social dynamics, including crime, critically examining the inextricable link between schools and their communities. Putting their data onto a more human scale, they also chronicle the stories of two neighboring schools with very different trajectories. The lessons gleaned from this groundbreaking study will be invaluable for anyone involved with urban education.

Creating Equitable Classrooms Through Action Research

Creating Equitable Classrooms Through Action Research PDF Author: Cathy Caro-Bruce
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 1412936675
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 329

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Book Description
"Recognizing the importance of race, class, gender, culture, and ability, the authors provide a window into the difficulties that professional educators grapple with as they face the challenge of teaching all children. This text is both authentic and practical, and it demystifies the issues of equity that pervade today's classrooms." a?Diane Yendol-Hoppey, Associate Professor University of Florida "Action research of this caliber on the subject of equity is critically needed for all children to have access to the same level of rigor and high standards. This is a must-read for districts who really want to turn action research into action that affects student learning." a?Terry Morganti-Fisher, Director of Professional Development Austin Independent School District, TX Utilize the power of action research to narrow the achievement gap! Despite the best intentions of reform efforts, educational inequity continues to exist in public schools. Creating Equitable Classrooms Through Action Research confronts this challenge head-on and shows educators how they can use action research to both raise student achievement and strengthen instructional leadership. Ideal for both a first-time action research endeavor or one already in progress, this practical guidebook helps practitioners formulate specific research questions, collect and analyze data, and communicate their findings. Educators will discover: Ten action research studies on narrowing the achievement gap Guidelines for implementing an action research project that supports culturally relevant instruction Authentic examples for discussion and reflection Invaluable for school district leaders, teachers, professional development schools, and preservice teachers, this resource for systemwide improvement efforts helps schools provide more equitable learning environments for all children.

Developing Equitable Education Systems

Developing Equitable Education Systems PDF Author: Mel Ainscow
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136733604
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 187

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Book Description
Despite consistent improvements in the school systems of over recent years, there are still too many children who miss out. It is not only children from disadvantaged backgrounds attending hard-pressed urban schools that the system is failing - even in the most successful schools there are often groups of learners whose experience of schooling is less than equitable. As a result of their close involvement with a group of schools serving a predominantly working-class community over five years, the authors of this book offer an analysis of how marginalisation within schools can arise, and provide suggestions for responding to this crucial policy agenda. They propose a teacher-led inquiry strategy that has proved to be effective in moving forward thinking and practice within individual schools. However, their research has shown that using the same strategy for system change is problematic within a policy context that emphasises competition and choice. Learning from this experience, the authors analyse the factors that inhibit the collaborative approach needed to reduce inequities that exist between the schools, in order to formulate proposals that can move the system as a whole towards more equitable provision. In Developing Equitable Education Systems, the authors focus on the way teachers’ sense of ‘fairness’ can become a powerful starting point, helping individual schools to inquire into and develop their own practice and provision. They provide practical suggestions for practitioners about ways of working that can create a greater sense of equity within particular school contexts, and highlight the barriers to a wider strategy for reducing system inequities that reside in local and national policies and traditions. At a time when government policies in many countries move to extend the diversity of educational provision - for example, through the introduction of charter schools in the USA, free schools in Sweden and academies in England - the authors also include a set of recommendations that offer a timely warning against the fragmentation of school systems in the misguided belief that competition benefits all children. They suggest that a more sensible approach would be to avoid situations whereby the improvement of one school leads to a decline in the resources available to, and subsequently the performance of, others.

Meeting the Needs of Students of ALL Abilities

Meeting the Needs of Students of ALL Abilities PDF Author: Colleen A. Capper
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 9780761975014
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 228

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Book Description
This step-by-step handbook offers practical strategies for administrators, teachers, policymakers, and parents who want to shift from costly special learning programs for a few students, to excellent educational services for all students. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.