School & District Management

New K-12 Releases: Policy, Reform, and Leadership

By Catherine A. Cardno — June 14, 2012 3 min read
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Guest blogger Ellen Wexler contributed to this post:

Culturally Relevant Teaching: Hip-Hop Pedagogy in Urban Schools, by Darius D. Prier (Peter Lang Publishing Inc., 2012). This book argues that hip-hop culture can play a valuable role in education. The author suggests methods that school leaders can use to connect education and popular culture in order to promote classroom discussion about topics such as race and class.

Education and the Crisis of Public Values: Challenging the Assault on Teachers, Students, and Public Education, by Henry A. Giroux (Peter Lang Publishing Inc., 2012). In this book, Giroux argues that public schools must take on the role of instilling students with democratic ideals. According to Giroux, business culture and corporate interests are harming public schools and teachers, and the charter school movement is leading to an overly privatized public school system.

Gifted Program Evaluation: A Handbook for Administrators and Coordinators, by Kristie Speirs Neumeister and Virginia Hays Burney (Prufrock Press, 2012). This book offers guidance for administrators on evaluating their schools’ gifted programs when their districts don’t have the resources to hire an outside consultant.

The New School Management by Wandering Around, by William A. Streshly, Susan Penny Gray, and Larry E. Frase, foreword by Fenwick W. English (Corwin, 2012). This volume instructs administrators on developing a leadership style by spending more time observing and interacting with staff and students during class time. It includes over 20 research studies as well as specific leadership strategies.

Pencils Down: Rethinking High Stakes Testing and Accountability in Public Schools, edited by Wayne Au and Melissa Bollow Tempel (Rethinking Schools, 2012). This book criticizes the emphasis that policymakers often place on high-stakes testing. It includes educators’ personal experiences and provides an analysis of the damage standardized testing can inflict on students.

The Relentless Pursuit of Excellence: Lessons From a Transformational Leader, by Richard Sagor and Deborah Rickey (Corwin, 2012). This book provides a leadership model that focuses on attracting effective teachers. Sagor and Rickey, who spent over 30 years tracking this leadership model, discuss their personal experiences with the model and its results.

Rethinking Elementary Education, edited by Linda Christensen, Mark Hansen, Bob Peterson, Elizabeth Schlessman, and Dyan Watson (Rethinking Schools, 2012). A selection of writings from 25 years of Rethinking Schools magazine, this book offers personal stories and insights into elementary education, focusing specifically on how to incorporate social justice issues into a traditional elementary school curriculum.

The School Leader’s Guide to Restorative School Discipline, by Luanna H. Meyer and Ian M. Evans (Corwin, 2012). This guide to school discipline helps school leaders manage students with behavioral problems as well as developmental disorders. It includes new research, implementation strategies, and tips for teachers working in groups.

The School Mission Statement: Values, Goals, and Identities in American Education, by Steven E. Stemler and Damian J. Bebell (Eye on Education, 2012). This guide helps school leaders to craft their schools’ mission statements by explaining common ideas and themes in education. It also provides examples of mission statements from different K-12 schools.

School, Society, and State: A New Education to Govern Modern America, 1890-1940, by Tracy L. Steffes (The University of Chicago Press, 2012). This book examines the history of school reform and explains how the public school system has evolved. It analyzes the effects of reform during the Progressive Era and explains how the public school system’s expanding authority has gradually given the state more control over student’s lives.

Smarter Budgets, Smarter Schools: How to Survive and Thrive in Tight Times, by Nathan Levenson (Harvard Education Press, 2012). This book offers new ideas and strategies for school leaders to manage their budgets and allocate limited resources.

You Can’t Do It Alone: A Communications and Engagement Manual for School Leaders Committed to Reform, by Jean Johnson, foreword by Daniel Yankelovich (Rowman & Littlefield Education, 2012). This book examines what can cause the opposition to school reform and offers strategies for how to come to a consensus about controversial issues.

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A version of this news article first appeared in the BookMarks blog.