Providing an in-depth look at the processes, pitfalls, and successes that can emerge from major education reform efforts at the state level, this volume covers the full policy change cycle in the development and transformation of the Illinois principal preparation program. Offering perspectives from the major stakeholder groups involved in…

The leadership practices that matter most are the ones that research shows positively affect student achievement. This book outlines the findings of McREL's research and analysis on effective school leadership, which revealed 21 critical actions school leaders can take to make a real difference for their students and staff. Explore specific…

At the heart of the effort to enact and scale up successful school reforms is the need for more robust links between research and practice. One promising approach is design development, a methodology widely used in other fields and only recently adapted to education, which offers a disciplined process for identifying practical problems, assessing…

Effective principals run effective schools--this much we know. Accurately measuring principal effectiveness, however, has long been an elusive goal for school administrators. In this indispensable book, author James H. Stronge details the steps and resources necessary for designing a comprehensive principal evaluation system that is based on sound…

This book traces the recent socio-historical trajectory of educational language policy in Arizona, the state with the most restrictive English-only implementation in the United States. Chapters, each representing a case study of policy-making in the state, include: (1) SEI in Arizona: Bastion for States' Rights (Karen E. Lillie and Sarah Catherine…

Some of the most effective schools and school districts are increasing student achievement with the successful implementation of a Response to Intervention (RTI) initiative. RTI pulls all the pieces of the educational puzzle together to help students succeed, and this book can be the key to engaging your team. It will facilitate buy-in and support…

Effective, "schoolwide" inclusion ensures the best outcomes for all students--but how can school teams knock down the barriers to inclusion and make sure it's happening across all classrooms? This concise book gives principals and other school leaders the solution they've been waiting for: a clear framework for leading inclusion efforts,…

Since new role changes resulting from school reform agendas can place a school administrator at any career stage in uncharted territory, a career-long mentoring approach is recommended. The first chapters of this book introduce the concept of mentoring and the socialization framework consisting of characteristics, stages, methods, and goals.…

This book provides insights into one of the nation's largest and most comprehensive school-restructuring movements, the Accelerated Schools Project. Since its inception in 1986, the focus of the movement has been on transforming schools with students at risk of dropping out into schools with high expectations of all students. This is accomplished,…

Although site-based management is very popular, it is not always well understood or implemented. Seeking a middle ground between leadership theory and practice, this practical guidebook provides a systemwide approach to site-based management as a school improvement strategy; integrates a student-oriented, strategic-planning process; identifies 9…

Showcasing the "Downey Walk-Through"--a method developed over a 40-year period, tested and refined in real-world schools and classrooms, and described in the pioneering book, "The Three-Minute Classroom Walk-Through," this innovative multimedia presentation provides trainers and staff developers with a complete resource answering the questions…

Principals play an important role in the success of externally funded change projects in their schools. Interviews exploring the participation of principals in such projects in 14 Oregon elementary and secondary schools provided 11 case studies illustrating helpful and unhelpful behaviors. The projects were found to have life cycles of their own,…

According to pioneers in the effective-schools movement, every school can improve educational quality for all its students, including poor and minority children, by incorporating a set of essential, research-identified characteristics present in successful schools. This publication discusses basic elements of the ongoing effective-schools movement…

Schools are the only universally accessible institutions where there are enough adults to provide continuous support for children's growth, development, and success in life. Using the process pioneered by renowned child psychiatrist Dr. James P. Comer and his colleagues at the Yale School Development Program (SDP), this unique field guide offers…