-There are so few 'must read' books about superintAndents that I would recommAnd to policymakers, researchers, and novices. Add Leading to Change to the list. This insightful chapters on political and managerial leadership alone are worth the price of the book.-
-- Larry Cuban, professor of education, Stanford University

Co-Published with Apple Press

-A blueprint for those communities who are attempting change within existing educational structures. . . . Parents, teachers and school administrators, business and community leaders, and policy makers will find this book instructive. . .well worth reading.-
--American Secondary Education

-Every education, business, and community leader who wants to cut through the hype about technology to see where the investment really makes a difference should start with this book.-
--Alan November, CEO, Educational...

-If every school board member and every superintAndent read The American SuperintAndent we'd be a long way toward building the team structure we need to guide American schools.-
Anne L. Bryant, executive director, National School Boards Association

-I have been waiting for this book for a decade. In an age in which the national debate on school reform is concerned principally with tactics and process, this volume focuses on the most important of all questions. What is the purpose of school? How do we know if a school is working? The authors are the most highly regarded names in education. This is an important book for anyone interested in schooling in America today.-
-- Arthur Levine, president, Teachers College, Columbia University

This book presents an innovative approach to teaching that helps students acquire and use knowledge in ways that go beyond rote memorization of facts and figures--to develop a level of understanding that will serve them well throughout their lives. Based on a six-year collaborative research project of school teachers and researchers from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the book describes what teaching for understanding looks like in the classroom, and examines how teachers have learned to use it.

Part One: Foundations of Teaching for Understanding

1. Why...

A wonderfully useful, hones and comprehensive book, one which does not oversimplify the condition and the opportunities of the public schools.


--Theodore R. Sizer, chairman, Coalition of Essential Schools

Based on an extensive, in-depth study of 150 students from across the country, Kids and School Reform offers a student perspective on schools that are transforming themselves. Using extended vignettes and the actual voices and stories of five students who differ in personality, economic and personal circumstances, and academic achievement, the authors show...

Based on fifteen years of work with teens and the adults in their lives, Youth Leadership identifies the three major stages of adolescent leadership development. It outlines practical, tactics for developing leadership skills through experiences at home, school, community, and work, and?most importantly?a shows how adults in these settings can have a positive impact. Josephine van Linden and Carl Fertman provide flexible strategies that can be used with adolescents in any program and in varied settings, and offer diagrams, tables, and charts to clarify recommAndations and processes. From...

-No education topic is more important than how to raise the quality of teaching in America's schools. This book eloquently makes the case for reshaping teacher preparation and professional development to enhance student learning.-
--Bob Chase, president, National Education Association

Leading educational thinkers and researchers deliver an in-depth overview of the issues and challenges facing the teaching profession today. This book is the first in over a decade to synthesize the most important research in the fields of teaching and teacher education. This research is also the...

- One of] the best books on schools and schooling to cross our editors' desks this year.-


--The American School Board Journal, August 1997

Award-winning former public school educator Joe Nathan draws from nationwide surveys, research, and visits to dozens of charter schools to address key questions about charter schools. Who starts these schools? What kinds of students attAnd? Are charter schools using ideas and techniques from which other schools can learn? Are these schools actually helping students? Are charter schools making an impact on the larger...

Sponsored by the League of Professional Schools

-Understanding school reform is a daunting task. A Guide to Renewing Your School goes a long way in communicating essential information about reform in a clear-cut manner.-
--Childhood Education

In Renewing America's Schools, Carl D. Glickman--founder of the League of Professional Schools--made the case for basing school improvement efforts on democratic values and principles. He proposed a three-part framework for reform that would enable schools and communities to create successful change in their schools and...