Download or read book Facing the Challenges of Whole School Reform written by Mark Berends and published by Rand Corporation. This book was released on 2002-04-03 with total page 267 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: About a decade ago, New American Schools (NAS) set out to address theperceived lagging performance of American students and the lacklusterresults of school reform efforts. As a private nonprofit organization,NAS's mission was-and is-to help schools and districts raise studentachievement levels by using whole-school designs and design team assistanceduring implementation. Since its inception, NAS has engaged in adevelopment phase (1992-1993), a demonstration phase (1993-1995), and ascale-up phase (1995-present). Over the last ten years, RAND has been monitoring the progress of the NASinitiative. This book is a retrospective on NAS and draws together thefindings from RAND research. The book underscores the significantcontributions made by NAS to comprehensive school reform but also highlightsthe challenges of trying to reform schools through whole-school designs.Divided into sections on each research phase, the book concludes with anafterword by NAS updating its own strategy for the future. This book willinterest those who want to better understand comprehensive school reform andits effects on teaching and learning within high-stakes accountabilityenvironments.

Download or read book Facing the Challenges of Whole School Reform New American Schools After a Decade written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: New American Schools (NAS) was formed in 1991 to create and develop whole-school designs that would be adopted by schools throughout the country in order to improve student performance. It was established as a nonprofit and funded largely by private sector donations. NAS founders thought that in the past many reforms were "programmatic," focused on a particular set of individuals in a school or a particular subject or grade level. They believed that adoption of multiple and unconnected approaches to address each area of schooling resulted in a fragmented education program, a balkanized school organization, and low performance by students. NAS's core premise was that all high-quality schools possess, de facto, a unifying design that allows all staff to function to the best of their abilities and that integrates research-based practices into a coherent and mutually reinforcing set of effective approaches to teaching and learning for the entire school. The best way to ensure that lower-performing schools adopted successful designs was to fund design teams to develop "break the mold" school designs that could be readily adopted by communities around the nation. After developing the design, teams would go on to implement their designs in schools throughout the country. This adoption would lead to NAS's primary goal of improving the performance of students. This whole-school approach to educational improvement was a dramatically different way of initiating and disseminating large-scale educational improvements. It was a unique combination of (1) private sector involvement using a venture capitalist approach; (2) the choice of whole-schools designs as a vehicle for reform; and (3) the ambitious goal of scale-up across the country.

Download or read book Challenges of Conflicting School Reforms written by Mark Berends and published by Rand Corporation. This book was released on 2002-03-29 with total page 197 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A decade ago, New American Schools (NAS) launched an ambitious effort forwhole-school reform to address the perceived lagging achievement of Americanstudents and the lackluster school reform attempts that have produced so fewmeaningful changes. As a private nonprofit organization, NAS set out tohelp schools and districts significantly raise the achievement of largenumbers of students by offering whole-school designs and design-basedassistance during the implementation process. NAS is currently in thescale-up phase of its effort, and its designs are being widely diffused toschools across the nation. During the 1997_1998 and 1998_1999 school years,RAND assessed the effects of NAS designs on classroom practice and studentachievement in a sample of schools in a high-poverty district. RAND foundthat high-poverty schools often have fragmented and conflicting environmentswith difficult and changing political currents and entrenched unions.Teachers in high-poverty schools tend to face new accountability systems andfluctuating reform agendas. These teachers generally lack sufficient timefor implementing reform efforts, often becoming demoralized and losing theirenthusiasm for the difficult task of improving student performance underdifficult conditions. RAND concluded that high-stakes tests may motivateschools to increase performance and to seek out new curricula andinstructional strategies associated with comprehensive school reforms.However, those same tests may provide disincentives to adopt richer, morein-depth curricula that can succeed in improving the learning opportunitiesof all students, particularly those in high-poverty settings.

Download or read book A Decade of Whole school Reform written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 8 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Focus on the Wonder Years written by Jaana Juvonen and published by Rand Corporation. This book was released on 2004-03-25 with total page 181 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Young teens undergo multiple changes that seem to set them apart from other students. But do middle schools actually meet their special needs? The authors describe some of the challenges and offer ways to tackle them, such as reassessing the organization of grades K-12; specifically assisting the students most in need; finding ways to prevent disciplinary problems; and helping parents understand how they can help their children learn at home.

Download or read book It s Time for a Change written by Matthew Lynch and published by R&L Education. This book was released on 2012 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: China, Japan, and South Korea understand that well-educated workers are crucial for survival in the competitive global economy. Thus, they are placing enormous emphasis on education, ensuring that their students receive instruction not only foundational reading and math, but are also taught to think creatively and solve problems. Their youth are poised to take on and conquer the world. The U.S., on the other hand, is losing the battle. School systems are using more money but have less to show for it. Test results, especially among the lower socioeconomic classes, are dismal. America has extraordinary natural resources, a solid, functioning democracy, and excellent infrastructure, but unless we can reform our educational system to produce students who are able to take advantage of new technologies and compete in the global economy, we will cede our position as world leader. Its Time for Change: School Reform provides a no nonsense blueprint for reforming The U. S.

Download or read book Challenges of Conflicting School Reforms Effects of New American Schools in a High Proverty District written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A decade ago, New American Schools (NAS) launched an ambitious effort for whole-school reform to address the perceived lagging achievement of American students and the lackluster school reform attempts that produced so little meaningful change. As a private non-profit organization, NAS set out to help schools and districts significantly raise the achievement of large numbers of students by offering whole-school designs and design-based assistance during the implementation process. NAS is currently in the scale-up phase of its effort and its designs are being widely diffused to schools across the nation. The purpose of this study is to examine the conditions of NAS classrooms compared with non-NAS classrooms and to study the relationships between classroom conditions and student achievement in a high-poverty district in San Antonio, Texas. The focus is on the conditions in the district, schools, and classrooms that promote or inhibit design implementation and changes in teaching and learning. Specifically, this study addresses the following questions: ̂Do the NAS designs extend beyond changes in school organization and governance and permeate classrooms? Do NAS teachers and students interact with each other and subject materials in ways that reflect the innovative curricular and instructional approaches of the design teams? ̂What factors at the district, school, and classroom level are related to implementation of designs, changes in classroom instruction, and student achievement?

Download or read book Creating New Schools written by Evans Clinchy and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this timely volume, acclaimed educational scholars and experts who share a critical view of the standards and testing movement, explore the major reform issues currently facing American educational institutions. The collective wisdom they provide is sound and never strays far from a consideration for the difficulty of implementing educational reforms in the face of structural and ideological limitations. Aspects of school reform such as the role states play, the results of reform efforts in the urban enclaves of New York and Boston, and the position of unions in school system reform, represent just some of the comprehensive analyses presented here. Particular attention is given to the challenges faced by new, smaller, and more independent schools. This volume is laden with balanced advice for anyone seeking to understand or inspire educational reform.

Download or read book School Leadership in the Context of Standards Based Reform written by Louis Volante and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-05-16 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Although standards-based reform emerged in the United States and the United Kingdom, the idea has spread across the world, as an approach to systemic reform. It might appear that there is a world-wide “tsunami” of standards-based reform that will standardize and homogenize the educational system across the globe. This volume makes it very clear, however, that there is no one approach to standards-based reform and countries change – there is a danger in paying attention to its evolution and impact in only one context. That’s what makes this volume so valuable. Louis Volante has drawn together descriptions from a wide range of countries, all involved in large-scale reform and using standards and assessments as part of their process. What becomes very obvious is that the language may be the same but the words reflect different contexts and can represent very different ideals, values, and processes. I’m sure you will find this book as interesting and challenging as I have – a gem that pushes your thinking and does not allow readers to remain neutral.” (Lorna Earl)

Download or read book Encyclopedia of Education and Human Development written by Stephen J. Farenga and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-07-17 with total page 1472 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This comprehensive and exhaustive reference work on the subject of education from the primary grades through higher education combines educational theory with practice, making it a unique contribution to the educational reference market. Issues related to human development and learning are examined by individuals whose specializations are in diverse areas including education, psychology, sociology, philosophy, law, and medicine. The book focuses on important themes in education and human development. Authors consider each entry from the perspective of its social and political conditions as well as historical underpinnings. The book also explores the people whose contributions have played a seminal role in the shaping of educational ideas, institutions, and organizations, and includes entries on these institutions and organizations. This work integrates numerous theoretical frameworks with field based applications from many areas in educational research.

Download or read book Improving Schools and Educational Systems written by Alma Harris and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2023-05-09 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: School improvement has become a dominant feature of educational reform in many countries. The pressure upon schools to improve performance has resulted in a wide-range of improvement programmes and initiatives which can provide both inspiration and advice to everyone involved in school improvement. This book draws together the most effective school improvement projects from around the world in one comprehensive text, including detailed comparative analysis of a wide variety of initiatives. Drawing on examples from the UK, the USA, Canada, South Africa and Australia this book gives both an international snapshot and a coherent synthesis of initiatives that have given achievable results.

Download or read book School Choice at the Crossroads written by Mark Berends and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-10-04 with total page 279 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: School Choice at the Crossroads compiles exemplary, policy-relevant research on school choice options—voucher, private, charter, and traditional public schools—as they have been implemented across the nation. Renowned contributors highlight the latest rigorous research findings and implications on school vouchers, tuition tax credits, and charter schools in states and local areas at the forefront of school choice policy. Examining national and state-level perspectives, each chapter discusses the effects of choice and vouchers on student outcomes, the processes of choice, supportive conditions of school choice programs, comparative features of school choice, and future research. This timely volume addresses whether school choice works, under what conditions, and for whom—further informing educational research, policy, and practice.

Download or read book Rethinking Readiness written by Rafael Heller and published by Harvard Education Press. This book was released on 2021-02-17 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rethinking Readiness offers a new set of competencies to replace the narrow learning goals of No Child Left Behind and, in chapters written by some of the nation’s most well-respected education scholars, explores their implications for schools. Today’s students must cultivate the full range of intellectual, interpersonal, and intrapersonal capacities that have been grouped together under the banner of “deeper learning.” Rethinking Readiness focuses on how educators and policy makers should move forward to provide the educational experiences that students need to become truly well prepared for college, careers, and civic life, including changes in curriculum, teacher evaluation, and student assessment. As state leaders chart a new course for K–12 education in the Every Student Succeeds Act era, Rethinking Readiness offers a succinct and compelling vision for a new agenda for school reform so future generations can prosper in a rapidly changing world.

Download or read book Changing for Good written by Melissa Evans-Andris and published by Corwin Press. This book was released on 2010 with total page 433 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'This important work identifies the critical elements of sustainability--the necessary goal of systemic reform--which requires a long-term commitment to change for the benefit of students' - Lois Adams-Rogers, Deputy Executive Director, Council of Chief State School Officers The recent emphasis on educational reform has lead to many books on initiating school improvement, but relatively few on how to sustain reform efforts so that improvements have a lasting impact. Changing for Good offers a detailed examination of current schoolwide reform efforts and identifies strategies for introducing, managing, and sustaining successful school renewal programs. Based on a six-year study of 74 schools, the book provides a model for generating the necessary district support, schoolwide leadership, teacher commitment, and performance outcomes to cultivate improvement that lasts. Applicable at all levels, this model helps readers: - Align reform efforts with educational standards and accountability guidelines - Create a research-based improvement plan - Support change by developing a shared vision - Promote distributed leadership - Celebrate gains to encourage cooperation The most beneficial school improvements are the ones that endure. With this exceptional resource, educational administrators and leaders can create a school environment that embraces meaningful change, sustains positive reform, and ensures successful learning outcomes.

Download or read book Leading With Data written by Ellen Goldring and published by Corwin Press. This book was released on 2008-09-17 with total page 217 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Goldring and Berends provide practical and strategic counsel on what data should be collected, how data can be productively analyzed, and who should be involved. Their book positions this advice deftly in research on leadership and organizational change. As school leaders confront the challenges of meeting the needs of all students through continuous school improvement, they will find this book an essential resource." —Willis D. Hawley, Professor of Education and Public Policy University of Maryland A comprehensive, practical guide to using data effectively for school improvement! For any educator focused on enhancing student outcomes and schoolwide performance results, knowing how to collect appropriate data isn′t necessarily enough. Understanding how to analyze and use data as a pathway to improvement is the key. This comprehensive, hands-on guidebook discusses the essential statistical and assessment information that principals need to know, what types of data to look at, how to analyze the information, and how to use what they′ve learned to make critical choices for teaching and learning. Full of examples and recommendations, this book illustrates proactive strategies for collecting data and generating change while focusing on other measures of learning and school organization, including data about professional development, allocation of resources, family involvement, and community standards. Part of the Leadership for Learning series, this resource: Provides leaders with support in developing and sustaining schoolwide capacity for continuous improvement Links data-based decision making with accountability issues and shared mission and goals Includes numerous examples and cases, a glossary, school improvement template, sample forms, and data tools Leading With Data demonstrates how administrators can apply knowledgeable analysis of meaningful data for continuous, sustainable, and significant school improvement.

Download or read book The Routledge International Handbook of Educational Effectiveness and Improvement written by Christopher Chapman and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-08-14 with total page 572 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The International Handbook of Educational Effectiveness and Improvement draws together leading academics and researchers in the field to reflect on the history, traditions and the most recent developments in this dynamic and influential field. This handbook provides a comprehensive overview of: the foundations of the field the evolution of educational effectiveness theory and methodology the links with other research disciplines the links between policy and practice. In conclusion, the handbook sets out a new agenda for future educational effectiveness research. This handbook is an essential resource for those interested in the effectiveness of educational systems, organisations and classrooms. It offers academics, researchers, students and policy-makers new insights into the latest thinking and evidence about educational effectiveness.

Download or read book Distributed Leadership written by Alma Harris and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2009-03-17 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Alma Harris The ?eld of school leadership is currently preoccupied with the idea of distributed leadership. Few ideas, it seems, have provoked as much attention, debate and c- troversy. Whatever your position on distributed leadership, and you cannot fail to have one, it is irrefutable that distributed leadership has become the leadership idea of the moment. Yet, it is an idea that can be traced back as far as the mid 20s and possibly earlier. So why the interest? Part of the answer can be found in a move away from theorizing and empirical enquiry focused on the single leader. This shift has undoubtedly been fuelled by structural changes, within schools and across school systems that have resulted in - ternative models or forms of leadership practice. Evidence highlights how those - cupying formal leadership positions are increasingly recognizing the limitations of existing structural arrangements to secure organizational growth and transformation (Fullan et al. , 2007; Harris et al. , 2008; Chapman et al. , 2008). As a consequence, many heads and principals are actively restructuring, realigning and redesigning leadership practice in their school (Harris, 2008). While the terminology to describe such changes varies, the core principle is one of extending or sharing leadership practice. While scholars have long argued for the need to move beyond those at the top of organizations in order to examine leadership (Barnard, 1968; Katz and Kahn, 1966) until relatively recently, much of the school leadership literature has tended tofocusupontheheadortheprincipal.