Robert L. Larson

Changing Schools from the Inside Out (eBook, ePUB)

Small Wins in Hard Times

• Format: ePub

Produktbeschreibung

At any time, public schools labor under great economic, political, and social pressures that make it difficult to create large-scale, 'whole school' change. But current top-down mandates require that schools close achievement gaps while teaching more problem solving, inquiry, and research skills_with fewer resources. Failure to meet test-based standards can produce consequences such as school closure or staff replacement. With this real-world challenge to education foremost, this book presents pertinent research and instructive case studies of two 'good' high schools. It advocates a proven strategy of small-scale, incremental change_small wins_which increases the likelihood that schools will improve despite a climate of 'do more with less.' Chapters describe the current societal context; the history of major change projects since the 1970s; the organizational and social characteristics of schools and classrooms; human factors that encourage and support improvement; the effects of technology; forces affecting teachers and principals; commonplace components of and vehicles for change; and practical 'levers and footings' for change that can have a high positive payoff.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Bloomsbury eBooks US
• Seitenzahl: 256
• Erscheinungstermin: 16. Juni 2011
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9781607095293
• Artikelnr.: 37943655

Autorenporträt

Robert Larson is professor of education emeritus at The University of Vermont College of Education and Social Services. He was also a high school teacher and administrator for six years prior to receiving his Ed. D. from Boston University in 1968.

Inhaltsangabe

Chapter 1 Acknowledgments
Chapter 2 Foreword by George Voland
Chapter 3 Preface
Chapter 4 INTRODUCTION
Chapter 5 1. THE CURRENT CONTEXT FOR SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT
Chapter 6 2. WHAT RESEARCH AND PRACTICE TEACH US ABOUT CHANGE
Chapter 7 3. SCHOOLS AS ORGANIZATIONS
Chapter 8 4. Bromley and Mansfield: Two Case Studies
Chapter 9 5. GOOD SCHOOLS AND SMALL-SCALE CHANGE
Chapter 10 6. MAGNIFYING THE INNOVATION MAP
Chapter 11 7. THE POTENTIAL OF SMALL WINS AND RELATED STRATEGIES
Chapter 12 8. LEVERS AND FOOTING FOR CHANGE
Chapter 13 CONCLUDING COMMENTS
Chapter 14 Bibliography
Chapter 15 Index
Chapter 16 About the Author