Knowing History in Schools


Book Description

The ‘knowledge turn’ in curriculum studies has drawn attention to the central role that knowledge of the disciplines plays in education, and to the need for new thinking about how we understand knowledge and knowledge-building. Knowing History in Schools explores these issues in the context of teaching and learning history through a dialogue between the eminent sociologist of curriculum Michael Young, and leading figures in history education research and practice from a range of traditions and contexts. With a focus on Young’s ‘powerful knowledge’ theorisation of the curriculum, and on his more recent articulations of the ‘powers’ of knowledge, this dialogue explores the many complexities posed for history education by the challenge of building children’s historical knowledge and understanding. The book builds towards a clarification of how we can best conceptualise knowledge-building in history education. Crucially, it aims to help history education students, history teachers, teacher educators and history curriculum designers navigate the challenges that knowledge-building processes pose for learning history in schools.




Instructional Coaching


Book Description

An innovative professional development strategy that facilitates change, improves instruction, and transforms school culture! Instructional coaching is a research-based, job-embedded approach to instructional intervention that provides the assistance and encouragement necessary to implement school improvement programs. Experienced trainer and researcher Jim Knight describes the "nuts and bolts" of instructional coaching and explains the essential skills that instructional coaches need, including getting teachers on board, providing model lessons, and engaging in reflective conversations. Each user-friendly chapter includes: First-person stories from successful coaches Sidebars highlighting important information A "Going Deeper" section of suggested resources Ready-to-use forms, worksheets, checklists, logs, and reports




Knowing Your Schools


Book Description

Education is a significant social program in our culture because we understand that learning well impacts our capacity to live well. Its importance produces many controversies because perspectives are greatly influenced by what policies and practices are implemented. Inevitably, the general public has insufficient time and/or interest to scratch away the veneer surrounding controversial matters and discover what should be. This book identifies numerous conflicts within the field of education and provides the perspectives and information which stakeholders within the enterprise sweep aside or cover-up. An extensive data-base is used to demonstrate why existing policies and practices create unfair learning situations for our nation’s children, frequently described as our most valuable resource. Policy-makers, both administrative and legislative, are caught in the middle; yet, they choose to avoid controversy by siding with educators. This book provides evidence of how the decision-making should be altered to achieve optimal learning in our North American schools.




Measuring What We Do in Schools


Book Description

What is a true learning organization, and how can your school become one? To excel, schools must embrace continuous school improvement and evaluation, as well as systems thinking. In Measuring What We Do in Schools, author Victoria L. Bernhardt details the critical role program evaluation serves in school success and how to implement meaningful evaluations that make a difference. She provides a roadmap of how to conduct comprehensive, systemwide evaluations of programs and processes; the tools needed to obtain usable, pertinent information; and how to use these data to expand teachers’ and administrators’ data-informed decision-making focus. Educators will learn how to Assess what is working and not working for students Determine which processes need to change Use data to improve practices on an ongoing basis Although challenging for many schools, program evaluation and data analysis can begin with a single program or process, over time building on the expanded knowledge of the school’s processes and the results they produce. An effective tool—The Program Evaluation Tool—enables schools to easily identify the purpose and intended outcomes of any school program, along with whom it serves, and how it should be implemented, monitored, and evaluated. These data can then be used to improve every aspect of a school’s programs and processes and the outcomes achieved. Filled with practical strategies and featuring an in-depth case study, this book is designed to help educators see that evaluation work is logical and easy to do. They’ll gain the confidence to do this work on a regular basis—working together to become a true learning organization.




What Every Principal Needs to Know to Create Equitable and Excellent Schools


Book Description

School leaders who succeed at creating a high-achieving learning community must also be committed to creating an equitable environment for all students. In this new book, key scholars across the content areas show how to put into practice a commitment to equity and excellence across the Pre-K12 spectrum. Readers learn directly from experts in each of the content domains (literacy, mathematics, science, social studies, music, early childhood, special education, English language learners, world languages, and physical education) how a commitment to social justice and equity can be grounded in core subject areas, why each has a place in the school, and what they need to know and do in each subject area. This book is a critical instructional leadership resource for new and veteran principals who want to see all students succeed. Contributors: Antonio J. Castro, Julie Causton-Theoharis, Virginia Collier, Katherine Delaney, Catherine Ennis, Virginia Goatley, Beth Graue, Rochelle Gutirrez, Kathleen A. Hinchman, Anne Karabon, Christi Kasa, Dave McAlpine, Mitchell Robinson, Victor Sampson, Sherry A. Southerland, and Wayne Thomas




Teaching with Your Mouth Shut


Book Description

Teaching with Your Mouth Shut is not intended as a manual for teachers; it aims to provoke reflection on the many ways teaching can be organized.




What Colleges Don't Tell You (And Other Parents Don't Want You to Know)


Book Description

A sought-after packager of high school students shares 272 secrets to help parents get their kids into the top schools Targeting the savvy parents of today's college-bound teenagers who seek to gain a proven edge in the college admissions process, this book reveals 272 little-known secrets to help parents get their kids into the school of their dreams. Did you know? -A child's guidance counselor can help reverse a deferral. -A parent can help get a child off a waiting list. -There is a way for students to back out of Early Decision once they've been accepted. Based on the controversial insider information Elizabeth Wissner-Gross has gleaned from working as a highly successful packager of high school students and from interviews with heads of admission at the nation's top colleges, this book empowers parents by decoding the admissions process.




The Big Picture


Book Description

What is the purpose of education? What kind of people do we want our children to grow up to be? How can we design schools so that students will acquire the skills they'll need to live fulfilled and productive lives? These are just a few of the questions that renowned educator Dennis Littky explores in The Big Picture: Education Is Everyone's Business. The schools Littky has created and led over the past 35 years are models for reformers everywhere: small, public schools where the curriculum is rich and meaningful, expectations are high, student progress is measured against real-world standards, and families and communities are actively engaged in the educational process. This book is for both big "E" and small "e" educators: * For principals and district administrators who want to change the way schools are run. * For teachers who want students to learn passionately. * For college admissions officers who want diverse applicants with real-world learning experiences. * For business leaders who want a motivated and talented workforce. * For parents who want their children to be prepared for college and for life. * For students who want to take control over their learning . . . and want a school that is interesting, safe, respectful, and fun. * For anyone who cares about kids. Here, you'll find a moving account of just what is possible in education, with many of the examples drawn from the Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical Center ("The Met") in Providence, Rhode Island--a diverse public high school with the highest rates of attendance and college acceptance in the state. The Met exemplifies personalized learning, one student at a time. The Big Picture is a book to reenergize educators, inspire teachers in training, and start a new conversation about kids and schools, what we want for both, and how to make it happen.




The Definitive Guide to Instructional Coaching


Book Description

Even under ideal conditions, teaching is tough work. Facing unrelenting pressure from administrators and parents and caught in a race against time to improve student outcomes, educators can easily become discouraged (or worse, burn out completely) without a robust coaching system in place to support them. For more than 20 years, perfecting such a system has been the paramount objective of best-selling author and coaching guru Jim Knight and his team of researchers at the Instructional Coaching Group (ICG). In The Definitive Guide to Instructional Coaching, Knight offers a blueprint for establishing, administering, and assessing an instructional coaching program laser-focused on every educator's ultimate goal: the academic success of students. Organized around ICG's seven "Success Factors" for great instructional coaching, this book offers * An in-depth guide to the Impact Cycle, ICG's research-based and field-tested model for coaching teachers through issues that matter most to them; * Detailed guidance on how to create a "playbook" of instructional strategies to share with collaborating teachers—and how to model those strategies under different conditions; * Practical advice on preparing for and engaging in substantive, reflective, and teacher-centered coaching conversations; * Best practices for gathering, analyzing, and responding to data for improved teaching and learning; and * Real-life anecdotes and testimonies from educators and coaches who have reaped the benefits of the Impact Cycle in a diverse array of schools. In addition, each chapter of the book contains a learning map to help orient you and a list of valuable additional resources to complement the text. Whether you're new to coaching or well versed in the practice, The Definitive Guide to Instructional Coaching will no doubt prove a cornerstone of your coaching library for years to come.




The Joy of Not Knowing


Book Description

The Joy of Not Knowing takes every aspect of the curriculum and of school life and transforms it into a personalised, meaningful and enjoyable experience for all. It offers readers an innovative, theoretical and practical guide to establish a values-based, enquiry-led and challenge-rich learning to learn approach to teaching and learning and to school leadership. This thought-provoking guide provides the reader with a wealth of whole-class, easy-to-implement, malleable, practical ideas and case studies that can be personalised to the vision of each setting, age-group and curriculum. It brings together, as a whole-school framework, the strategies that have been shown to have the greatest impact on practitioner’s professional fulfilment and on children’s life chances, love of learning, intrinsic motivation and enthusiasm for wanting to know. The Joy of Not Knowing enables schools to launch the academic year with a bespoke JONK Learning to Learn Week that enables every student to succeed develops philosophical, creative and critical problem-solving and multi-lingual thinking skills establishes collaborative cultures of thinking, learning and leadership informs practice through active action research incorporates a values-led democratic approach to school life nurtures school-pupil-family-community partnerships Designed for school leaders and practitioners at all levels and across all ages, this practical guide shows how all students can thrive and develop the dispositions of successful lifelong learners and global citizens.