xi

C h a p t e r 1 Educators Improve Schools 1Demographics and Student Achievement 2

Competing Narratives of School Reform 4

Educator Identity, Agency, and Choice 10

Closing the Opportunity Gap: Policy Recommendations and Guiding Principles 11

Core Principles to Reverse Patterns of Underachievement 12

Concluding Th oughts 13

C h a p t e r 2 A Brief History of Education Reform and Its Scientifi c Basis 16Landmark Reform Initiatives and Decisions 16

Th e Scientifi c Fragility of 21st Century Reforms 23

Th e Suppression of Scientifi c Evidence in the Corporate Reform Narrative 29

Concluding Th oughts 34

C h a p t e r 3 Education Reform at Sanchez School: A Principal’s Account 36Building Turnaround Momentum: 1999–2004 37

Reconstituting Sanchez School as a “Dream School”: 2004/2005 45

Rebuilding the School Community: 2005–2012 50

School Turnaround Challenges 54

Th e Dynamic Interplay of Policies, Ethics, and Educator Identities 58

Concluding Th oughts 60

C h a p t e r 4 Shared Leadership and the Role of the Principal 62Origins of a Leadership Philosophy 62

Rationale and Empirical Basis for Shared Leadership 64

Evolution of a Shared Leadership System 65

Teachers’ Experiences of the Shared Leadership Structures 79

Concluding Th oughts 81

T a b l e o f C o n t e n t s

xii Table of Contents

C h a p t e r 5 Accountability That Connects Instruction and Assessment 82The Destructive Effects of a Broken Accountability System 83

Successful Jurisdictions Use Effective Accountability Provisions 85

Two-Way Instruction and Assessment Connections at Sanchez School 87

School-Based Accountability Options 89

Effective Instructional Leadership and Accountability 98

Concluding Thoughts 102

C h a p t e r 6 Pre-Kindergarten: A Foundation for Academic Growth 104Why Is Preschool Education Important? 106

Evolution of the Sanchez School Early Childhood Education Program 108

A Window into a Preschool Classroom in Sanchez School 115

Insights from the Preschool Experience at Sanchez School 125

Concluding Thoughts 128

C h a p t e r 7 Enhancing Educational Quality through School and Community Partnerships 129Partnering for Students’ Health 130

Working Together to Improve Food and Nutrition 132

Collaborating for Green Spaces 137

School-Community Development Framework 146

Partnering for Literacy Development 147

Assessing the Results 149

Applying Shared Leadership Principles to School-Community Partnerships 152

Concluding Thoughts 152

C h a p t e r 8 Expressing the Self: Integrating the Arts across the Curriculum 154Exclusion of the Arts Undermines Educational Quality 155

Arts-Integrated Curriculum: A Sketch of the Research Evidence 156

Expanding Modes of Expression and Knowing through Arts-Integrated Learning 159

Music Instruction as a Means of Expanding Learning for All Students 167

Gardening by the Moon Project 169

Concluding Thoughts 172

Table of Contents xiii

C h a p t e r 9 Lessons Learned: Insights from One School’s Experience 174Federal, State, and District Level Initiatives 175

School and Classroom Level Initiatives 180

School Leadership 182

Concluding Thoughts 187

Epilogue 190 References 193 Index 203