City Kids, City Schools: More Reports from the Front Row


William Ayers - 2008
    A contemporary companion to City Kids, City Teachers: Reports from the Front Row, this new and timely collection has been compiled by four of the country's most prominent urban educators. Contributors including Sandra Cisneros, Jonathan Kozol, Sapphire, and Patricia J. Williams provide some of the best writing on life in city schools and neighborhoods. Young people and practicing teachers, poets and scholars, social critics and journalists offer unique takes on topics ranging from culturally relevant teaching and scripted curricula to the criminalization of youth, gentrification, and the inequities of school funding.In the words of Sonia Nieto, City Kids, City Schools "challenge[s] the conventional wisdom of what it means to teach in urban schools."

Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom


bell hooks - 1994
    Teaching students to "transgress" against racial, sexual, and class boundaries in order to achieve the gift of freedom is, for hooks, the teacher's most important goal.Bell hooks speaks to the heart of education today: how can we rethink teaching practices in the age of multiculturalism? What do we do about teachers who do not want to teach, and students who do not want to learn? How should we deal with racism and sexism in the classroom?Full of passion and politics, Teaching to Transgress combines practical knowledge of the classroom with a deeply felt connection to the world of emotions and feelings. This is the rare book about teachers and students that dares to raise critical questions about eros and rage, grief and reconciliation, and the future of teaching itself."To educate as the practice of freedom," writes bell hooks, "is a way of teaching that any one can learn." Teaching to Transgress is the record of one gifted teacher's struggle to make classrooms work.–from the back of the book

Five Miles Away, a World Apart: One City, Two Schools, and the Story of Educational Opportunity in Modern America


James E. Ryan - 2010
    Board of Education, educational opportunities remain so unequal for black and white students, not to mention poor and wealthy ones? In his important new book, Five Miles Away, A World Apart, James E. Ryan answers this question by tracing the fortunes of two schools in Richmond, Virginia--one in the city and the other in the suburbs. Ryan shows how court rulings in the 1970s, limiting the scope of desegregation, laid the groundwork for the sharp disparities between urban and suburban public schools that persist to this day. The Supreme Court, in accord with the wishes of the Nixon administration, allowed the suburbs to lock nonresidents out of their school systems. City schools, whose student bodies were becoming increasingly poor and black, simply received more funding, a measure that has proven largely ineffective, while the independence (and superiority) of suburban schools remained sacrosanct. Weaving together court opinions, social science research, and compelling interviews with students, teachers, and principals, Ryan explains why all the major education reforms since the 1970s--including school finance litigation, school choice, and the No Child Left Behind Act--have failed to bridge the gap between urban and suburban schools and have unintentionally entrenched segregation by race and class. As long as that segregation continues, Ryan forcefully argues, so too will educational inequality. Ryan closes by suggesting innovative ways to promote school integration, which would take advantage of unprecedented demographic shifts and an embrace of diversity among young adults. Exhaustively researched and elegantly written by one of the nation's leading education law scholars, Five Miles Away, A World Apart ties together, like no other book, a half-century's worth of education law and politics into a coherent, if disturbing, whole. It will be of interest to anyone who has ever wondered why our schools are so unequal and whether there is anything to be done about it.

The New Political Economy of Urban Education: Neoliberalism, Race, and the Right to the City


Pauline Lipman - 2010
    Old paradigms are being eclipsed by global forces of privatization and markets and new articulations of race, class, and urban space. These factors and more set the stage for Pauline Lipman's insightful analysis of the relationship between education policy and the neoliberal economic, political, and ideological processes that are reshaping cities in the United States and around the globe.Using Chicago as a case study of the interconnectedness of neoliberal urban policies on housing, economic development, race, and education, Lipman explores larger implications for equity, justice, and "the right to the city". She draws on scholarship in critical geography, urban sociology and anthropology, education policy, and critical analyses of race. Her synthesis of these lenses gives added weight to her critical appraisal and hope for the future, offering a significant contribution to current arguments about urban schooling and how we think about relations between neoliberal education reforms and the transformation of cities. By examining the cultural politics of why and how these relationships resonate with people's lived experience, Lipman pushes the analysis one step further toward a new educational and social paradigm rooted in radical political and economic democracy.

Horace's School: Redesigning the American High School


Theodore R. Sizer - 1992
    A plan for school reform that respects the best traditions of secondary schooling and urges us to do far more in preparing adolescents for the future.

Shaping School Culture: Pitfalls, Paradoxes, and Promises


Terrence E. Deal - 2009
    This new edition gives expanded attention to the important symbolic roles of school leaders, including practical suggestions on how leaders can balance cultural goals and values against accountability demands, and features new and powerful case examples throughout. Most important, the authors show how school leaders can transform negative and toxic cultures so that trust, commitment, and sense of unity can prevail. Praise for Shaping School Culture "For those seeking enduring change that is measured in generations rather than months, and to create a legacy rather than a headline, then Shaping School Culture is your guide." —Dr. Douglas B. Reeves, founder, The Leadership and Learning Center, Englewood, CO "Deal and Peterson combine exquisite language, vibrant stories, and sage advice to support school leaders in embracing the paradoxical nature of their work. A 'must read' for all school leaders." —Pam Robbins, educational consultant and author "Once again, the authors have presented practitioners, researchers, professional developers, school coaches, and others with a tremendous resource for renovating and reinvigorating schools." —Karen M. Dyer, Ed.D., group director, Education and Nonprofit Sector Office, Center for CreativeLeadership, Greensboro, NC

Raising the Curve: A Year Inside One of America's 45,000* Failing Public Schools


Ron Berler - 2013
    The challenges are many, and for the faculty—whose jobs may depend on their students’ ability to improve on the test—the stakes are high.Ten-year-old Hydea is about to start fifth grade—with second-grade reading skills. Her friend Marbella is a little further along, but she’s more interested in socializing than in learning. And then there’s Matthew, a second grader who began the school year below grade level and who, over the course of the year, slipped even more. In past years, these three students and many others would have received help from the literacy specialist Mrs. Schaefer. But with cutbacks and a change in her job description—the third in as many years—she won’t be able to give all struggling students the same attention. This year, she will have to select the few students whom she and the teachers can bet on—the ones who are close to achieving proficiency on the CMT. The hope is that this strategy, though not ideal, will give them the boost they—and the school—need to pass the exams. And, for added measure, Principal Hay has already asked his faculty to teach to the test.Journalist Ron Berler spent a full year at Brookside, sitting in on classes, strategy sessions, and even faculty meetings. In Raising the Curve, he introduces us to the students, teachers, and staff who make up the Brookside community. Though their school is classified as failing—like so many others across the country—they never give up on themselves or on one another. In this nuanced and personal portrait, Berler captures their concerns, as well as their pride, resilience, and spirited faith.

Supporting Positive Behavior in Children and Teens with Down Syndrome: The Respond But Don't React Method


David Stein - 2016
    Another bolts across a busy parking lot, turns and smiles at his mom. An eighteen-year-old student bursts into tears when asked to change activities at school. Sound familiar? These and other common behavior issues in children with Down syndrome can quickly become engrained and may even persist into adulthood. No parent wants that to happen, and thankfully, help is available! Dr. David Stein, a psychologist and Co-Director of the Down Syndrome Program at Boston Children's Hospital, shares his approach to behavior management in this new book for parents. Supporting Positive Behavior in Children and Teens with Down Syndrome examines how the brain of a person with Down syndrome works, how those differences impact behavior, and why bad behavior should not be viewed as a willful act. Governed by this new awareness, parents are in a better position to change and manage their child's behavior using these guiding principles: [[Be proactive, not reactive [[Be consistent [[Use visual schedules & Social Stories to direct behavior [[Develop a token reward chart [[Keep gut reactions in check [[Teach siblings to ignore bad behavior [[Learn effective disciplinary techniques [[Know when professional help is needed Some of these parenting concepts are intuitive, others are not, but when they are followed consistently, children and teens with Down syndrome do their best behaviorally and the parent-child relationship remains as positive and loving as it should be.

Becoming a Learner: Realizing the Opportunity of Education


Matthew Sanders - 2012
    As a result, many students talk about college in ways that cause them to overlook some of their most important learning opportunities. Becoming a Learner asks students to carefully reconsider conventional common sense about college and learning, and invites them to consider a new conversation about college and learning that focuses on who they are becoming and their ability to learn.

The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America


Jonathan Kozol - 2005
    Board of Education, segregation of black children has reverted to its highest level since 1968. In many inner-city schools, a stick-and-carrot method of behavioral control traditionally used in prisons is now used with students. Meanwhile, as high-stakes testing takes on pathological and punitive dimensions, liberal education has been increasingly replaced by culturally barren and robotic methods of instruction that would be rejected out of hand by schools that serve the mainstream of society.Filled with the passionate voices of children, principals, and teachers, and some of the most revered leaders in the black community, The Shame of the Nation pays tribute to those undefeated educators who persist against the odds, but directly challenges the chilling practices now being forced upon our urban systems. In their place, Kozol offers a humane, dramatic challenge to our nation to fulfill at last the promise made some 50 years ago to all our youngest citizens.

Generation iY: Secrets to Connecting With Today’s Teens & Young Adults in the Digital Age


Tim Elmore - 2015
    Over 100,000 adults have benefitted from Tim Elmore’s insights in this landmark book, which has been updated and expanded to include new research, stories, practical solutions, and two bonus chapters to help adults connect with today’s teens and young adults.

Assertive Discipline: Positive Behavior Management for Today's Classroom


Lee Canter - 2001
    A special emphasis on the needs of new and struggling teachers includes practical actions for earning student respect and teaching them behavior management skills. The author also introduces a real-time coaching model and explains how to establish a schoolwide Assertive Discipline(r) program.

Hope and Despair in the American City: Why There Are No Bad Schools in Raleigh


Gerald Grant - 2009
    Supreme Court handed down a 5–4 verdict in Milliken v. Bradley, thereby blocking the state of Michigan from merging the Detroit public school system with those of the surrounding suburbs. This decision effectively walled off underprivileged students in many American cities, condemning them to a system of racial and class segregation and destroying their chances of obtaining a decent education.In Hope and Despair in the American City, Gerald Grant compares two cities—his hometown of Syracuse, New York, and Raleigh, North Carolina—in order to examine the consequences of the nation’s ongoing educational inequities. The school system in Syracuse is a slough of despair, the one in Raleigh a beacon of hope. Grant argues that the chief reason for Raleigh’s educational success is the integration by social class that occurred when the city voluntarily merged with the surrounding suburbs in 1976 to create the Wake County Public School System. By contrast, the primary cause of Syracuse’s decline has been the growing class and racial segregation of its metropolitan schools, which has left the city mired in poverty.Hope and Despair in the American City is a compelling study of urban social policy that combines field research and historical narrative in lucid and engaging prose. The result is an ambitious portrait—sometimes disturbing, often inspiring—of two cities that exemplify our nation’s greatest educational challenges, as well as a passionate exploration of the potential for school reform that exists for our urban schools today.

Unsettled


Rosaleen McDonagh - 2021
    Unsettled explores racism, ableism, abuse and resistance as well as the bonds of community, family and friendship. As an Irish Traveller writing from a feminist perspective, McDonagh’s essays are rich and complex, raw and honest, and, above all else, uncompromising.Praise for UnsettledDon’t read this memoir in sorrow and outrage, read it because Rosaleen McDonagh is so proud, smart and ingenious, she will make you feel more properly alive. Beautifully written, this book beats back the darkness. It brings us all further on. — Anne EnrightMoving and eloquent, this collection is both the story of one woman’s life and a work of profound literary activism. — Emilie PineRosaleen’s story is her story. It’s a very important story and she has a right to tell it. Rosaleen demonstrates, contrary to some settled people’s opinion, that our community is matriarchal, our mothers are so resourceful, and we are not victims. The book is a testimony to the importance of identity and belonging. — Anne BurkeLike James Baldwin before her, this work is a ferociously honest exploration of the intricacies of racism, identity, sexuality, disability, grief, sensuality and marginalisation. It is also a beautiful piece of prose; honest and difficult and deeply moving. This book sees Rosaleen McDonagh masterfully taking all the parts of her life and fitting them together brilliantly for us. A must read. — Mark O’HalloranEmotive, honest and raw. Rosaleen McDonagh takes us on a journey of self acceptance, a journey that sees her face challenging obstacles and setbacks; as well as meeting friends and allies who help her to carve out a place in which she belongs. Unsettled is not only the recount of personal experiences but an authentic glimpse of Traveller life and culture as well as Rosaleen’s very sense of identity. — Michael Power

Planning, Implementing, and Evaluating Health Promotion Programs: A Primer


James F. McKenzie - 1992
    The Fifth Edition features updated information throughout, including new theories and models such as the Healthy Action Process Approach (HAPA) and the Community Readiness Model (CRM), sections on grant writing and preparing a budget, real-life examples of marketing principles and processes, and a new classification system for evaluation approaches and designs. Health Education, Health Promotion, Health Educators, and Program Planning, Models for Program Planning in Health Promotion, Starting the Planning Process, Assessing Needs, Measurement, Measures, Measurement Instruments and Sampling, Mission Statement, Goals, and Objectives, Theories and Models Commonly Used for Health Promotion Interventions, Interventions, Community Organizing and Community Building, Identification and Allocation of Resources, Marketing: Making Sure Programs Respond to Wants and Needs of Consumers, Implementation: Strategies and Associated Concerns, Evaluation: An Overview, Evaluation Approaches and Designs, Data Analysis and Reporting. Intended for those interested in learning the basics of planning, implementing, and evaluating health promotion programs