Changing for Good: Sustaining School Improvement($83.95Value)

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"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 Implement a comprehensive, whole-school reform program that lasts! The recent emphasis on educational reform has led 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 four-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 the state, district, and school level, 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. “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 Published On: 2009-06-03 Melissa Evans-Andris is an associate professor of sociology at the University of Louisville, Kentucky. Her interests include the sociology of education, work and occupations, and qualitative research methodologies particularly as they relate to schools and teaching. Her research focuses on school reform, sustainability of school improvement, and teacher quality. She authored a book in 1996 entitled An Apple for the Teacher: Computers and Work in Elementary Schools . Most recently she directed two research efforts, including a federal study entitled “Comprehensive School Reform, Educational Dynamics, and Achievement in Kentucky Middle Schools” and a state project entitled “A Research Study of the Kentucky Teacher Internship Program Pilot Project” that tracked the experiences of new teacher-interns during their first three years on the job. She is active in local and statewide discussion forums related to improvement in Kentucky schools. She received her PhD in sociology at Indiana University in 1991.