Background: Currently, there is great enthusiasm surrounding place-based initiatives for school reform, such as the Harlem Children's Zone, Promise Neighborhoods, and other initiatives that attend to the multiple contexts that influence child development. However, past efforts to bridge schools, families, and communities have been undermined by…

This article starts with an overview of the literature aiming to answer the question of what the knowledge aspect of teacher competence entails in urban schools. The conclusion of the overview identifies five areas of expertise as the most significant: (1) language development; (2) pedagogy; (3) social interaction and identity; (4) parental…

The lower rates of participation in higher education of people from remote areas, together with the under-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in higher education, make it less likely that students from remote Indigenous communities will aspire to attend university. Educators and community must develop working…

In this article, we propose to approach Indigenous education beyond the formal/non-formal dichotomy. We argue that there is a critical need to conscientiously include Indigenous knowledge in education processes from the school to the community; particularly, when formal systems exclude Indigenous cultures and languages. Based on ethnographic…

This paper explores the metonymic slippage surrounding the discourse of public education, through observations and interviews with Lawson High School active campaigners in the state of Victoria, Australia. The notion of campaigning for public education has become an ever-present issue on an international scale, and this article aims to contribute…

The 1968 Spainhower Commission planned extensive changes in the organization of public education in Missouri, proposing larger, comprehensive districts throughout the state. Intended to increase efficiency and reduce inequities, its reform proposals spurred widespread opposition from both rural and suburban communities. In the suburbs hostility…

This study involves the program evaluation of the "Conversations About Education" pilot, developed as a community collaboration to offer professional development involving participants from a Faculty of Education, local school partners, and community organizations offering programming to Newcomers to Canada. The program sought to provide…

It is estimated that as many as 20 percent of school-aged children in the United States have diagnosable mental health conditions, and schools are the primary location where children receive mental health services. Because of limited resources, school-community partnerships are recommended in the literature as a best practice for providing…

For almost two decades, the Prairie School for Union Women (PSUW) has operated in Saskatchewan, Canada. Its use of feminist popular education, adult learning principles in facilitation, and mentoring and support for activist practices make it unique from other labour schools in many respects. This paper focuses on a community-based participatory…

As educators deliberate on how to provide a well-rounded education for all, the idea of working more collaboratively with a range of arts education providers has become increasingly attractive. Allowing outside organizations and individuals to gain access to institutions in a more evenhanded way and create long-term relationships that reinforce…

In this article, the author talks about incorporating what those in academia do best--scholarship and teaching--and what government bureaucrats do best in administering housing and community revitalization programs into a strong and sustainable system of community engagement and outreach. He frames the discussion by focusing on some examples of…

The author tells how he employed leadership skills to help turn around a failing school loaded with at-risk students. Dayton's Bluff Elementary School was one of the worst in St. Paul when Von Sheppard took over as principal in 2001. Changing the staff and attitudes at the largely low-income, minority majority school in a tough neighborhood helped…

Chicago has long been one of the national epicenters for public school reform. In many ways the reform efforts of the past decade in the Windy City have served as the blueprint for the current focus of federal education priorities. In particular, federal policy for school turnaround and transformation takes clear cues from the efforts that current…

With the dawn of the Information Age, schools, along with other organizations, must take note of the varied ways individuals and groups in society are communicating. Today, with the many forms of communication, most information is made public in real time. In a qualitative national study in the United States, respondents identified positive and…

High school students in an Advanced Video class addressed the challenge of increasing community awareness. Students followed a challenge-based learning model developing guiding questions and activities to determine solutions for implementation. Literature supported the use of project-based learning that fostered partnerships outside of the…