This report summarizes a conversation that took place in April of 2010 in Washington, DC regarding high school reform and Native American, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian students. The meeting was co-sponsored by the National Indian Education Association (NIEA) and the National Education Association (NEA). The meeting was attended by a broad…

This article analyzes how macrolevel institutional forces persist and limit the expansion of decentralized schools that attempt to challenge normative definitions and practices of traditional school organizations. Using qualitative case study methodology, the analysis focuses on how one decentralized charter school navigated and reconciled its…

This article presents findings of a qualitative exploration of prisoners' perspectives on ideal schools. Based on the foundation of systems theory, it suggests that many voices are unheard in the school reform dialogue. The results of interviews with maximum-security prisoners pointed to a need for increased relationships among teachers and…

Across the country, educators in schools that have not met their targets for improved student learning are considering next steps. As a first step, a school improvement plan that is grounded in data and based on a comprehensive needs assessment can provide a framework for effecting change for a school's programming, student support systems, and…

In many educational jurisdictions, the responses to student disengagement and behaviour problems have been restrictive or punitive; they include on-site police officers, locker searches, metal detectors, and zero tolerance policies. There is little evidence that such strategies are effective in changing behaviour, attitudes, or achievement.…

In this article, a former principal at Falk Elementary School in Madison, Wisconsin, describes his school's shift as it sought to create an inclusive school for all students and establish an authentic sense of belonging. Nationwide, schools and districts from Concord, New Hampshire, to Whittier, California, and from Cambridge, Massachusetts, to…

High school reform has now been on the national agenda long enough that people can begin reaching conclusions about the effectiveness of various approaches to it. This article discusses several strategies of high school reforms which includes: (1) improving school climate; (2) strengthening curriculum and instruction; (3) raising graduation…

School reform efforts to date have not always resulted in meaningful change. This book presents findings from an ethnographic study that examined the change process in three schools undertaking systemic reform. The schools included the Hull Junior-Senior High School, a primarily white public school in a recession-battered community; the Academy at…

Describes school restructuring, discusses its basic premises, and identifies current restructuring components that can serve as a guide for public school educators and researchers. Schools undergoing massive change will enjoy several benefits, including renewed prevalence of both excellence and equity, a renewed interest in the teaching…

This paper examines the incompatibility between organizational structures and the efforts used to improve student learning. Following a brief introduction, it outlines why school improvement is so problematic. The essay makes the case for the incompatibility between the structure of schools and the demands for school improvement. To make this…

Americans are increasingly disenchanted with what they perceive to be lackluster efforts to improve schools. Some new approaches are needed. Schools must be re-created by local school leaders and by teachers who will focus on their vision or visions of what their school culture, learning, and teaching would be like if all conditions were as they…

Recounts a fictitious high school's steps to build support for whole school change. To create a framework for change, Farragut High developed a vision statement of organization characteristics and a profile of current school characteristics and assembled people to coordinate the change process. A hands-on leadership role for the principal was…

This book is part of a series of case studies that demonstrate better ways to educate Ohio's students. The case study is part of the Transforming Learning Communities (TLC) Project, designed to support significant school-reform efforts among Ohio's elementary, middle, and high schools. This report describes the implementation of an innovative…

Describes restructuring objectives and changes at a suburban middle school in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Although collaborative planning led to predictable changes (interdisciplinary teaching, advisories, flexible scheduling, common planning time, core curricula, and a discipline system), several unplanned changes occurred regarding home-school…

Describes a comprehensive school reform initiative in one Memphis, Tennessee district. The restructuring started when the district began collaborating with New American Schools. Data from interviews, focus groups, surveys, observations, and student achievement records revealed which reform designs demonstrated the most progress in team building,…