Reform & Policy Books - Page 6

What's Worth Fighting for Out There?

Andy Hargreaves, Michael Fullan

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

FULLAN and HARGREAVES KEEP HOPE ALIVE 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

WHAT'S WORTH FIGHTING for OUT THERE is a must read for anyone and everyone who wants to understand the plight of education in today's schools. The book is not just limited to U.S. schools, it also examines schools around the world such as England and Canada. These schools and their teachers share similiar issues and concerns. The book focuses more on process but does give specific reasons why the various publics: teachers, principals, parents and the community must come together and form a collaborative coalition when approaching policymakers who decide the legislation that guides or in many cases mandates a certain educational practice. In recent years the overriding consensus is that these "mandates" are passed down to schools with little or no funding to implement them.This in turn leads to high levels of frustration and disconnect between education and the public.
WHAT'S WORTH FIGHTING for OUT THERE addresses these frustrations and explores how each group can develop and nurture positive relationships, to not only clear up misconceptions but also to be on the same page. The ultimate goal is to provide effective instruction to our nation's and world's most valuable resources-our children.
The book is filled with practical information that is based in research from a vast collection of educators and practitioners.Page 6 of the book outlines the problems that we face in education. They contend that these issues are the reasons why schools need to connect more effectively with the wider world beyond them.
Emotional intelligence is mentioned throughout the book. Fullan and Hargreaves argue that schools do not pay enough attention to to this concept. It is not an option in schooling to neglect this. They go on to say that emotional intelligence adds value to cognitive achievement and subsequent success in adult life.
What drew me to this book was the title "WHAT'S WORTH FIGHTING for OUT THERE." It appealed to me because as an educator I feel that we have to continously stand up and fight to communicate to the public our daily tasks. A great example is on page 82. The authors discuss the changing profession of teaching. They say that teaching as a profession has not come of age. It is not simply the view of the 1960's when teaching was seen as a demanding but not technically difficult. You prepared for class, taught it and marked papers afterwards. It didn't take long to learn to teach and once you'd prepared for it, you knew how to do it the rest of your career.You relied on experience and intuition to do it well. This is an outdated image of teaching, yet it is still widespread and influential among the wider public.This misconception is based upon the kind of teaching they( public members) remember when they were in school. This notion leads to questions such as:"if teaching is not that difficult, why not cut back on teacher's resources, levels of support and time away from the classroom? Everybody else has cut back-perhaps teachers should take their turn as well." This myth is one of the things worth fighting for in order to build a collaborative environment that is knowledgeable of teacher issues.
Perhaps one of the most poignant chapters in the book addresses "Hope". The authors write that "it is easy to be hopeful when things are rosy. It is essential to be hopeful when they are not."They go on to add that "hope's real value is when the conditions are not hopeful. Fullan and Hargreaves urge principals to fight for lost causes and be hopeful when it counts. The example given was the 1930 Frank Capra movie MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON. James Stewart plays Mr Smith a newly elected senator. He recieves some advice from his father that seems absurd at first his father said "Lost causes are the only things worth fighting for." A significant step towards liberation and for teachers is to realize that a hopeful stance in the face of seemingly intractable problems is the most healthy, constructive thing they can do. A quote from Harvel, 1993 says that:
"Hope is definitely not the same as optimism. It
is not the conviction that something will turn
out well, but the certainty that something makes
sense, regardless of how it turns out. It is hope,
above all, that gives us strength to live and to
continually try new things, even in conditions that
seem hopeless."

I would recommend this book for all teachers, parents, school leaders and community members as required reading. I am going to read the other books that have made up this series. It definitely is a book that will create dialogue regarding the state of teaching.The essence of the book in my opinion is stated in Chapter 3-GOING WIDER. The authors discuss the importance of reframing relationships to the outside. Relationships are critical to success in many things, for example,in marriages, in working with students and parents and even in the business sector, which sometimes tends to focus on products and neglecting their human resources. R.M. Kanter sums this up in his book "WORLD-CLASS LEADERS:THE POWER OF THE PAST" which the authors make reference to. Kanter states that:

Leaders of the past often erected walls. Now
they must destroy these walls and replace them
with bridges.

READ THIS BOOK!

Debating Single-Sex Education: Separate and Equal?

Frances R. Spielhagen

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Editorial Review:

Debating Single-Sex Education provides both practitioners and policymakers with a timely, detailed, and focused compilation of the issues surrounding single-sex education. It includes qualitative case studies and quantitative evidence of the effects of single-sex education on student achievement.

Designing Instruction: Making Best Practices Work in Standards-Based Classrooms

Judith K. March, Karen H. Peters

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Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

"A fresh new approach that strengthens the need for teaching with creative thinking strategies for administrative leadership teams. Few textbooks have such detailed examples combined with the background study of best practices. The authors have great credibility, experience, resources, and abundant research to support their proposal. A very well-written text offering ample review of the research."
-Sara E. Spruce, Professor of Education
Olivet Nazarene University

Use this research-based instructional model to meet students' achievement goals!

As the achievement gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students gets wider, teachers and administrators need a proven process to help all students meet the requirements of NCLB. This practitioner-friendly guidebook provides a step-by-step approach to a complete standards-based curriculum and the integration of best practices into the delivery and assessment of instruction in every classroom.

The authors present three capacity-building features of the design process: (1) training for building leadership teams to help teachers plan and lead the reform process, (2) stewardship training to assist district administrators and principals in supporting and sustaining the implemented reforms, and (3) a collaborative observation process to help teachers work together and in partnership with principals to monitor and improve classroom instruction.

Offering an education model that has been field-tested with more than 50 school districts in the U.S. and Canada, this book shows school leaders how to maximize collaborative observation and other team leadership processes to integrate reforms into a school's existing culture. Educators will learn ways to:

• Integrate instructional design with successful instructional reform
• Strengthen the learning culture through standards
• Develop effective performance indicators
• Apply curriculum mapping to instructional design

Designing Instruction supports teachers and administrators working together to raise student achievement by using proven instructional design and best practices.

(20061026)

Implementing Change: Patterns, Principles, and Potholes

Gene E. Hall, Shirley M. Hord

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Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

: Implementing Change: Patterns, Principles, and Potholes 5 out of 5 stars.
25 of 25 people found this review helpful.

Implementing Change: Patterns, Principles, and Potholes (2001) is the latest book on the process of educational change and leadership co-authored by Gene E. Hall and Shirley M. Hord. It describes the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM), a framework they have been developing for use in organizational and educational settings for the past thirty years. Within it they describe how people can and do facilitate change. Leadership today requires the ability to organize and direct human resources for levels of constant change, most recently in educational settings. This book provides educational leaders and change agents with practical tools and advice on how to effectively accomplish their goals. Among them are: innovation configuration mapping techniques, stages of concern surveys and evaluative tools, and levels of use matrices, as well as information on leadership styles and how they affect change.
The format of this book is not only engaging, but entertaining. Chapters begin with quotes in first person narrative, from real/fictitious accounts of people involved in change. The figures and graphics, often using analogies and metaphors for text ideas, add to the clarity and the readability of the book. Case studies and examples are interspersed with humor and credible settings and characters. Focus questions within chapters and discussion questions at the end of the chapter invite further thinking and discussion which makes it an ideal resource for study/focus groups who are dealing with change. Chapter endings also include suggestions for fieldwork activities that provide opportunities for active engagement with the issues being discussed.
While they caution readers not to use this as a recipe book (p. 103) it is difficult to overlook the accommodating and sequential format they use, filled with useful advice and suggestions. Hall and Hord offer practical tools and a unique combination of theory, research and practice for coping with change in organizational structures. With good humor and practical advice this is one of the most readable and useful books ever to help managers and change facilitators navigate through the difficult process of organizational changes.

Editorial Review:

This book focuses on the process of educational change and leadership using the Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM) as a conceptual framework. The change process in schools is made complex by the wide range of educational innovations. These require effective leadership that recognizes the role people play. If the focus of change is solely on technology and if the personal side is not addressed, the result is resistance and implementation failure. This book addresses those concerns using the CBAM Model in a useful and immediately applicable format. For anyone in School Reform, Staff Development, Educational Leadership, and Organizational Change.

Authentic Achievement: Restructuring Schools for Intellectual Quality (Jossey Bass Education Series)

Fred M. Newmann, & Associates

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Editorial Review:

This book presents the findings of a five-year, federally funded study that examined the connection between school restructuring and student achievement. Using a wealth of examples, the authors provide a vivid picture of the conditions under which innovations in a school's organization contribute to achievement. They recommend standards for reaching student intellectual quality and offer evidence of how these standards work.

Evaluation and Implementation of Distance Learning: Technologies, Tools and Techniques

France Belanger, Dianne H. Jordan

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Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

It's Good idea learn by Internet 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 45 people found this review helpful.

This Book cover all of the methodology to create Virtual learning sites for Universities and Schools for the new era of education.

Editorial Review:

The twentieth century has seen the creation and evolution of technologies beyond imagination a century ago. The computer has enabled the digital presentation of knowledge, and increased the speed with which information can be captured and processed. Communication technologies have made possible the storage, transfer and sharing of information across vast distances and different time zones.

The acceptance of these technologies has led to a new alternative for providing education and training - distance learning. This book focuses on the processes, techniques and tools that are being used to successfully plan, implement and operate distance learning projects. Both professionals and educators who must enter this challenging teaching and training environment in the new millennium will benefit from Evaluation and Implementation of Distance Learning: Technologies, Tools and Techniques.

Holding NCLB Accountable: Achieving Accountability, Equity, & School Reform

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Editorial Review:

"This text offers valuable information for understanding the intent of NCLB, the positive effects of the legislation, the shortcomings of NCLB as currently authorized, and specific recommendations for improvements."
-Dolores Gribouski, Principal
Columbus Park Elementary School, Worcester, MA

A provocative examination of NCLB and how it can be improved.

The pending reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has generated a spirited debate among educators. In this volume, a team of noted education scholars assess NCLB’s performance-based system and the challenges of improving NCLB in order to meet the goals of the law.

This edited resource by Gail L. Sunderman provides a comprehensive evaluation of NCLB and discusses options for modifying the legislation. With contributions from Gary Orfield, Linda Darling-Hammond, Catherine Snow, Robert Linn, and Daniel Koretz, among others, Holding NCLB Accountable examines the themes of capacity, accountability, school reform, and the law's impact on educating all students, especially those from low-income and diverse backgrounds. This groundbreaking work assesses the efficacy of NCLB test-based accountability and responds to critical questions such as: 

• How do we develop assessments and accountability systems that assist rather than interfere with educational progress?
• How do we promote change without being counterproductive?
• How do we create a viable educational agenda that is mindful of state and local capacity?

Presenting a range of perspectives, the contributors identify how to revise NCLB in ways that will mitigate the negative aspects of the law and promote the conditions necessary for meaningful student learning.

(20071023)

Why School Anti-Bullying Programs Don't Work

Stuart W. Twemlow, Frank C. Sacco

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The Conspiracy of Ignorance: The Failure of American Public Schools

Martin L. Gross

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Total reviews: 38 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Martin L. Gross has made a career out of books that attack "the establishment," whether it be the medical community (The Doctors) or the general powers that be (The Government Racket). In The Conspiracy of Ignorance, he takes aim at a lumbering, elephant-sized target: public education. Armed with statistics and research papers--the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) being his most prominent sources--Gross rails against the declining performance of U.S. students. While his criticisms--which encompass everything from teachers' unions to "useless" education degrees, PTAs, psychological services in schools, even honor roll bumper stickers--are not new, they make an imposing indictment when presented all together.

Gross poses a number of radical solutions, including the elimination of undergraduate schools of education (replaced by a one-year postgraduate course that prepares scholars to become teachers in their specialty). He believes the entire education system should--and can--be overhauled without spending any more than at present. One of his suggestions to make funds available for reform is to cut support personnel, but he doesn't address how schools would then clean themselves without custodians or how high school crime would be affected by the loss of security guards and police officers. While Gross's tendency to use his own high school experience as a model of excellence grows tiresome, his points are well taken. The Conspiracy of Ignorance will have you either nodding in agreement or aching to wring the author's neck. --Jodi Mailander Farrell

Dumbing Down Our Kids: Why America's Children Feel Good About Themselves but Can't Read, Write, or Add

Charles J. Sykes

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Total reviews: 30 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Nowhere has the flight from quality plaguing American life these days been more obvious than in our primary and secondary schools -- on the whole, the graduates seem less well-read and less well-spoken, less knowledgeable and less able to compute. In this book, Charles Sykes asks why, and lays most of the blame at the feet of the trainers of teachers, the writers of textbooks and the educational policy wonks who influence them. He convincingly shows that in many different school systems, and in many different academic fields, with the help of goofy text-books, watered-down requirements and "recentered" test grade scales, American students have come to value feeling good about a subject over being good in it. Sykes's recommended reforms include abolishing the federal Department of Education and its state counterparts, abolishing undergraduate schools of education, establishing more alternative routes to teacher certification and merit raises for good teachers. Good ideas all -- now if we can only get politicians to put them into action!