A Search for Common Ground

A Search for Common Ground PDF Author: Frederick M. Hess
Publisher: Teachers College Press
ISBN: 0807765163
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 193

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Book Description
"At a time of bitter national polarization, there is a critical need for leaders who can help us better communicate with one another. Written as a series of back-and-forth exchanges, this engaging book illustrates a model of civil debate between those with substantial, principled differences. It is also a powerful meditation on where 21st-century school improvement can and should go next"--

A Search for Common Ground

A Search for Common Ground PDF Author: Frederick M. Hess
Publisher: Teachers College Press
ISBN: 0807765163
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 193

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Book Description
"At a time of bitter national polarization, there is a critical need for leaders who can help us better communicate with one another. Written as a series of back-and-forth exchanges, this engaging book illustrates a model of civil debate between those with substantial, principled differences. It is also a powerful meditation on where 21st-century school improvement can and should go next"--

Research-based Strategies

Research-based Strategies PDF Author: Ruby K. Payne
Publisher: AHA! Process
ISBN: 9781934583340
Category : Academic achievement
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description


Overcoming the Achievement Gap Trap

Overcoming the Achievement Gap Trap PDF Author: Anthony Muhammad
Publisher: Classroom Strategies
ISBN: 9781936763276
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Explores the state of the "academic achievement gap" that exists in U.S. public schools, particularly among poor and minority students, and argues that the mindset that achievement gaps are inevitable are no longer tolerable. Explores ways to close the achievement gap via real-world case studies where principals and educators have adopted new mindsets for education.

The Global Achievement Gap

The Global Achievement Gap PDF Author: Tony Wagner
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 0465055966
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description
Despite the best efforts of educators, our nation's schools are dangerously obsolete. Instead of teaching students to be critical thinkers and problem-solvers, we are asking them to memorize facts for multiple choice tests. This problem isn't limited to low-income school districts: even our top schools aren't teaching or testing the skills that matter most in the global knowledge economy. Our teens leave school equipped to work only in the kinds of jobs that are fast disappearing from the American economy. Meanwhile, young adults in India and China are competing with our students for the most sought-after careers around the world. Education expert Tony Wagner has conducted scores of interviews with business leaders and observed hundreds of classes in some of the nation's most highly regarded public schools. He discovered a profound disconnect between what potential employers are looking for in young people today (critical thinking skills, creativity, and effective communication) and what our schools are providing (passive learning environments and uninspired lesson plans that focus on test preparation and reward memorization). He explains how every American can work to overhaul our education system, and he shows us examples of dramatically different schools that teach all students new skills. In addition, through interviews with college graduates and people who work with them, Wagner discovers how teachers, parents, and employers can motivate the &"net"; generation to excellence. An education manifesto for the twenty-first century, The Global Achievement Gap is provocative and inspiring. It is essential reading for parents, educators, business leaders, policy-makers, and anyone interested in seeing our young people succeed as employees and citizens. For additional information about the author and the book, please go to a href="http://www.schoolchange.org"www.schoolchange.org

50 Ways to Close the Achievement Gap

50 Ways to Close the Achievement Gap PDF Author: Carolyn J. Downey
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 1412958989
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 337

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Book Description
Outlines research-based strategies for developing high-performing schools and fostering educational equity for all students.

Toward Excellence with Equity

Toward Excellence with Equity PDF Author: Ronald F. Ferguson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 388

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Book Description
For more than a decade, economist Ronald F. Ferguson has investigated the myriad factors that combine to create racial disparities in academic performance, ranging from school policies and practices to informal interactions between children and their parents and peers. Toward Excellence with Equity brings together Ferguson's most important articles and most recent thinking on these ideas. Taken together, these essays show that closing achievement gaps is more urgent today than ever before--and that dramatic success is possible. "This book issues an urgent call to action to anyone concerned about the lagging success rates among minority children in American schools and the repercussions for our country's future. Ronald Ferguson not only surveys the bleak terrain surrounding the achievement gap, but provides all of us with a road map to reach higher ground." -- Geoffrey Canada, President and CEO, Harlem Children's Zone "Toward Excellence with Equity is an important book written by one of the nation's foremost experts on education and economic development. Ronald Ferguson's pioneering work on black/white disparities in student skill levels and achievement-test scores has significant public policy implications. This book is a must-read for anyone concerned about narrowing the racial gap in educational attainment and earnings." -- William Julius Wilson, Lewis P. and Linda L. Geyser University Professor, Harvard University "This book combines high-quality research, judicious insights, brilliant speculation, and common sense to set forth strategies to reduce the achievement gap dramatically. It is particularly compelling in calling for a comprehensive social movement that will not only transform schools but establish strong communities, effective parenting, and powerful peer cultures." -- Henry M. Levin, William H. Kilpatrick Professor of Economics and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University "Ferguson conducts an authoritative review to show that disparities in academic performance can be closed by strong parental engagement and by parents working in partnership with schools around a shared vision of success for their children. The reality is that educators can't do it alone. This highly intelligent book gives policymakers, educators, and parents essential tools for closing achievement gaps between high-performing and low-performing schools." -- Susan Zelman, Superintendent of Public Instruction, Ohio Department of Education "Toward Excellence with Equity is essential reading for any businessperson who cares about the well-being of children and the future quality of the American workforce." -- Bridgette Heller, Chairman of the Executive Leadership Council and Global President of Johnson & Johnson's Baby, Kids, and Wound-Care Division Ronald F. Ferguson is the faculty cochair and director of the Achievement Gap Initiative at Harvard University and the founder and director of the Tripod Project for school improvement.

Using Data to Close the Achievement Gap

Using Data to Close the Achievement Gap PDF Author: Ruth S. Johnson
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 1483360644
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 337

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Book Description
"Dr. Johnson′s work provides both the philosophical and practical blueprint for transforming public schools into the learning communities we want and need. Leaders will find the book to be the most useful document to guide and inform their efforts to close the gap and maximize learning for all students." Joseph Burke, Superintendent of Schools Springfield Public Schools Springfield, MA "If the goal of all students reaching high standards is to be met, Using Data to Close the Achievement Gap should be required reading for all teachers and administrators. It should also be an integral part of the course of study for those preparing to teach in the United States." Vinetta C. Jones, Dean School of Education, Howard University "From Johnson′s penetrating analysis of current research, policies, and practices, and her wealth of experiences working with school districts around the nation, she clearly makes the connection between using data and achieving equitable outcomes as districts and schools struggle to close the achievement gap." Aukram Burton, Diversity/Multicultural Specialist Gheen Professional Development Academy Louisville, KY "This book represents a significant contribution to the national debate around school reform. Ruth Johnson presents a thoughtful, well-documented treatise on how educators, policymakers, and parents can use data to set achievement goals and to measure progress towards these goals." Walter Allen, Professor Department of Sociology, UCLA Exercise the power of data to identify and rectify educational inequalities! Student populations are diverse—however, their access to knowledge and success should not be. Unfortunately, statistics show that real disparities do exist in academic achievement, which consistently coincide with income level and race. In this comprehensive guide, Ruth S. Johnson highlights compelling evidence that these inequities can be linked to school practices that inadvertently increase inequities. The solution to this pervasive problem lies in the collection and examination of appropriate data, and this book shows readers how. This updated edition of Setting Our Sights: Measuring Equity in School Change now includes current studies, policies, and practices, and provides new sections on data dialogues and school indicators. It offers valuable assistance for understanding, visioning, planning, and executing tactics that can successfully close the gap in student achievement, including: Straightforward and in-depth discussions of the five stages for equity reform Clear and easy-to-understand explanations of research findings Practical tools including questionnaires, surveys, forms, and models Tips for effectively gathering, analyzing, and applying data Johnson shows how data is instrumental not only in targeting areas for improvement, but also in offering insights into the necessary steps to foster positive change and create a culture of high achievement for all students, especially those students who have traditionally been overlooked. An indispensable reference for any school undergoing a quality review process, this reader-friendly manual presents practical how-to′s for analyzing data and developing a strategy that empowers teachers and administrators with an equal opportunity for success.

Bridging the Achievement Gap

Bridging the Achievement Gap PDF Author: John E. Chubb
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780815714026
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 272

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Book Description
The achievement gap between white students and African American and Hispanic students has been debated by scholars and lamented by policymakers since it was first documented in 1966. The average black or Hispanic secondary school student currently achieves at about the same level as the average white student in the lowest quartile of white achievement. Black and Hispanic students are much less likely than white students to graduate from high school, acquire a college or advanced degree, or earn a middle-class living. They are also much more likely than whites to suffer social problems that often accompany low income. While educators have gained an understanding of the causes and effects of the education achievement gap, they have been less successful in finding ways to eliminate it—until now. This book provides, for the first time in one place, evidence that the achievement gap can be bridged. A variety of schools and school reforms are boosting the achievement of black and Hispanic students to levels nearing those of whites. Bridging the Achievement Gap brings together the findings of renowned education scholars who show how various states, school districts, and individual schools have lifted the achievement levels of poor and minority students. The most promising strategies include focusing on core academic skills, reducing class size, enrolling students in more challenging courses, administering annual achievement assessment tests, creating schools with a culture of competition and success, and offering vouchers in big-city school districts. While implementing new educational programs on a large scale is fraught with difficulties, these successful reform efforts offer what could be the start of widespread effective solutions for bridging the achievement gap.

Despite the Best Intentions

Despite the Best Intentions PDF Author: Amanda E. Lewis
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190250879
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
On the surface, Riverview High School looks like the post-racial ideal. Serving an enviably affluent, diverse, and liberal district, the school is well-funded, its teachers are well-trained, and many of its students are high achieving. Yet Riverview has not escaped the same unrelenting question that plagues schools throughout America: why is it that even when all of the circumstances seem right, black and Latino students continue to lag behind their peers? Through five years' worth of interviews and data-gathering at Riverview, John Diamond and Amanda Lewis have created a rich and disturbing portrait of the achievement gap that persists more than fifty years after the formal dismantling of segregation. As students progress from elementary school to middle school to high school, their level of academic achievement increasingly tracks along racial lines, with white and Asian students maintaining higher GPAs and standardized testing scores, taking more advanced classes, and attaining better college admission results than their black and Latino counterparts. Most research to date has focused on the role of poverty, family stability, and other external influences in explaining poor performance at school, especially in urban contexts. Diamond and Lewis instead situate their research in a suburban school, and look at what factors within the school itself could be causing the disparity. Most crucially, they challenge many common explanations of the 'racial achievement gap,' exploring what race actually means in this situation, and why it matters. An in-depth study with far-reaching consequences, Despite the Best Intentions revolutionizes our understanding of both the knotty problem of academic disparities and the larger question of the color line in American society.

Minding the Achievement Gap One Classroom at a Time

Minding the Achievement Gap One Classroom at a Time PDF Author: Jane E. Pollock
Publisher: ASCD
ISBN: 1416614702
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 163

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Book Description
The achievement gap is a persistent and perplexing challenge for educators. While school- and system-level reforms continue to be discussed in statehouses and district offices, individual teachers are challenged to do something now to help students who are falling short of standards, including students who are English language learners and receiving special education services. A companion to the ASCD best-seller Improving Student Learning One Teacher at a Time, this book identifies small, specific adjustments to planning, teaching, and assessment practices that will support more effective learning in every student, every day, and help close the achievement gap on a classroom-by-classroom basis. Here, you'll learn how to * Use readily available tools--curriculum documents, a plan book, and a grade book--to improve all students' access to, interaction with, and mastery of lesson content. * Design daily lessons that clarify learning goals and require students to use high-yield learning strategies, seek feedback, and reflect on their progress. * Promote the progress of English language learners through coordinated pursuit of content and language goals, and synchronize instruction to improve the performance of special education students in both co-teaching and resource environments. This book also features the voices of working educators who share how "minding the gap" has helped them engage academically at-risk students, ELLs, and special education students; improve students' test scores; and sustain these gains over time. If you are a classroom teacher or specialist committed to helping all your students become more successful learners and unwilling to wait for high-level solutions or even the results of another "data retreat," then this is just the resource you need.