How to Form Networks for School Renewal


Book Description

This book offers practical guidelines and suggestions on how to establish, maintain, and evaluate a unique type of network, one that is driven by teams of school-based practitioners; such a network is created and governed by practitioners who decide what services they want, modify the services to meet changing needs, and play key roles in the network leadership.




EBOOK: Network Learning for Educational Change


Book Description

How do networks create educational change and improve student achievement? What kinds of educational policies and practices facilitate network learning? Networks bring teachers, principals and other stakeholders together to share ideas, observe best practices, identify and analyze problems, and develop strategies for improved teaching, learning, and community life. These networks are becoming an important method to enhance educational renewal and student achievement. Networks go beyond tensions of top-down vs. bottom-up, school development and formal and informal organizational structures. The theoretical base of networking makes use of many different concepts of educational change theory, such as educational change processes, empowering of teachers, professional development, communities of practice, the network society and democratic education. The first part of the book features studies of four ‘established’ networks who have been functioning for several years. These networks describe their accomplishments, challenges, goals, and the theoretical basis of their work. In the second part of the book, three recently developed networks share their ‘start-up’ experiences and lessons learned. The book concludes by looking at networking as a strategy for educational change. Key reading for Education students, educational consultants and teacher educators with an interest in educational leadership and educational change. Contributors: Lew Allen,Linda Atkinson, Tero Autio, Randy Averso, Jean Cate, Dennis W. K. Chan, Chris Day, Victor Forrester, Gregg Garn, Dennis Gentry, Jesse Goodman, Mark Hadfield, Barbara Harold, Frances Hensley, Elaine Jarchow, Gaetane Jean-Marie, Tracey McAskill, Robin McGrew-Zoubi, Mary John O’Hair, Ulrich C. Reitzug, Eero Ropo, Joan Rué, Wiel Veugelers, Ian Walker, William Y. Wu, Henk Zijlstra.




Better Together


Book Description

Bring students, teachers, and administrators together to facilitate higher school achievement Better Together presents a tour through one of the modern era’s most important educational innovations, and provides smart strategy for working optimally within the school network sphere. There are more than 50 high-quality scaled charter networks in the U.S.; most share a learning model, professional supports, and—increasingly—platform tools. Although these charter schools get most of the attention, there are over a dozen other networks that connect district schools and provide design principles, curriculum materials, technology tools, and professional learning opportunities to streamline school improvement and help build great new schools from scratch. This book details some of the many success stories, and includes expert analysis of learning models, strategies, and innovations that are making quality scalable and helping schools produce more positive student outcomes. Illustrative examples from the New Tech Network, Summit Public Schools, Big Picture, and other big-name networks provide both guidance and inspiration, while expert discussion clarifies essential details and processes for implementation. Teachers and administrators will find much food for thought both inside and outside of a school network system. Examine proven learning models for scaled school networks Explore the latest innovations for more effective collaborations Read success stories from school networks across the country Learn smart strategies for optimizing the educational network experience Digital platforms have transformed the way we connect with friends, family, colleagues, and businesses. That revolution has finally come to education, opening doors to collaboration, resource expansion, and school success. Better Together explores beyond disruption to show how the U.S. K-12 system is truly evolving.




Leading School-based Networks


Book Description

The persistent challenge of achieving excellence and equity within education systems has renewed interest in generating context-specific solutions through localised school networks. But how can successful school networks be developed? Based around the lifecycle of a network, this book traces the development of a network from its initial inception, exploring the ways in which it can be sustained and remain capable of meeting the future challenges faced by schools and their communities. The book explores a series of important issues facing school leaders, including: the benefits of investing time and energy in networks with other schools and communities the particular problems faced by schools and the education system which are best tackled by network-based solutions the advantages for schools and communities of engaging with collaborative reform agenda the ways in which networks can be managed, and the differences between leading a school or a team and a network the elements which make an effective network. The book draws on UK and international research to discuss the development and leadership of networks and to outline a number of tried-and-tested leadership approaches. In addition, the authors draw on their own experience and research to provide accounts of real networks to expose the realities of networking. Each chapter tackles a key leadership issue and ends with a series of tools to support those leading and facilitating networks tackle these in practice. This book will be of interest to practising school leaders, network co-ordinators, postgraduate students and those researching educational leadership and school improvement.




The Essential Renewal of America's Schools


Book Description

"What can educational leaders do to create schools that are purposeful, moral, and successful? This book outlines a practical framework to replace dependence on top-down state and federal regulations with locally guided initiatives to address local goals. Building on Glickman's classic, Renewing America's Schools, this resource is for anyone involved with school change in today's complex times"--




Renewal


Book Description

Unquestioned educational practices must be re-examined. In this book, Cameron interrogates the current school system. She draws on research, the practice of colleagues and her own experiences as a teacher and principal to create pictures of possibility for our schools where every learner belongs and succeeds.




A Guide to Renewing Your School


Book Description

Sponsored by the League of Professional Schools "Understanding school reform is a daunting task. A Guide toRenewing Your School goes a long way in communicating essentialinformation about reform in a clear-cut manner." --Childhood Education In Renewing America's Schools, Carl D. Glickman--founder of theLeague of Professional Schools--made the case for basing schoolimprovement efforts on democratic values and principles. Heproposed a three-part framework for reform that would enableschools and communities to create successful change in theirschools and discussed how states and districts could support theirefforts. In this companion volume, the authors provide detailedinstructions on how Glickman's framework can be implemented at theschool level. A Guide to Renewing Your School is based on years of practicalexperience, numerous case examples, and empirical studies from theLeague of Professional Schools, a reform network based in Georgia.This hands-on book guides school practitioners through theessential steps of a reform process: (1) designing a covenant toguide teaching and learning, (2) creating a shared governanceprocess to promote democratic leadership and decision making, and(3) implementing action research to assess the reform process. Theauthors also address the challenges of change, such as how tocreate a school climate that will foster implementation of theframework and how to determine the type of facilitation and staffdevelopment needed to sustain this work. Filled with samplecovenants, charters, mission statements, worksheets, forms, andother tools, A Guide to Renewing Your School presents not only acoherent framework, but useful strategies for promoting school-widerenewal and improvement.




A Simple Justice


Book Description

Written by major players in the small schools movement, this collection of essays points to the ways school restructuring strategies connect to the ongoing pursuit of social justice. The editors bring together writers who are both educators and advocates for youth and who think changing schools can help change the world. Building bridges to their fellow educators, these essayists make powerful arguments in favour of smaller school size as an achievable reform goal.




School as Community


Book Description

An increasingly important and appealing concept for school renewal is that of school as community. While community holds multiple promises for schools, little is known about the practice of community in schools. This collection furthers our understanding about the nature of school community, its practice in public schools, and the role of leadership in this practice. Of particular importance is the question of how community can be created and sustained in K–12 public schools with highly diverse populations.




Education for Sustainability


Book Description