Meaningful Urban Education Reform
Confronting the Learning Crisis in Mathematics and Science
Publication Year: 2005
Published by: State University of New York Press
Cover
Title Page, Copyright Page
Contents
Illustrations
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pp. vii-viii
Tables
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pp. ix-x
Preface
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p. xi-xi
Traditions in both applied anthropology and applied sociology emphasize the importance of the role of the activist researcher. In general, this role links the work done in the field with praxis. In the case of the project undertaken here, there was obvious overlap between the goals of the National Science Foundation’s Urban Systemic Initiatives program and an activist/researcher approach to evaluation. Specifically, the mission of...
Acknowledgments
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pp. xiii-xiv
The support and guidance of colleagues and friends throughout the course of our project, “Assessing the Impact of the National Science Foundation’s Urban Systemic Initiative,” helped contribute to the success of this research. We would like to thank the directors of the Urban Systemic Initiatives and their staff members in our four research sites. Their continuous support of our project enabled us to conduct our...
Abbreviations
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pp. xv-xvi
Chapter 1
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pp. 1-26
Urban schools have been the target of a series of reforms over the last twenty or more years. During this time, strategies for school improvement to prevent student failure have addressed a wide range of matters: school safety, computer use, parent involvement, business partnerships, and more. Many claim that these earlier efforts have been...
Chapter 2
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pp. 27-46
This chapter presents findings from our research that address the questions that guided our policy study. Specifically, we address the question: What is the role of institutional and individual leadership in systemic reform? By looking critically at the role played by key players at the district and school levels, we are able to achieve a better understanding of...
Chapter 3
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pp. 47-66
This statement from two Miami-Dade community stakeholders demonstrates the fact that when stakeholders become involved in educating students, their involvement can take any number of forms, from academic to social or something in between. A dramatic increase in awareness concerning the relationship among home, school, and community...
Chapter 4
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pp. 67-86
To teach in ways envisioned by the national standards, educators must not only be well grounded in content and pedagogical knowledge; they should also understand how students’ cognitions guide their learning of mathematics and science. Teachers must then provide instruction that allows students to be engaged fully and actively with the subject matter at hand. To engage in the best instructional practices:...
Chapter 5
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pp. 87-134
This chapter presents data related to teaching and learning in themathematics and science classrooms we visited over the course of ourresearch. A fundamental principle of effective systemic reform is thatchanges must occur in classroom practices, and such changes mustenhance student learning. Therefore, a major portion of this research was...
Chapter 6
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pp. 135-154
Our evaluation of the impact of systemic reform moved beyond achievement scores on standardized assessments in mathematics and science to include a measure of students’ participation in their own learning. Standards-based reform practices in both mathematics and science call for increased activity that engages students and leads to increased...
Chapter 7
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pp. 155-195
Arguably the most important aspect of the work we undertook over a three-year period in the four urban sites was to address the question of how well USI reforms in mathematics and science worked to close achievement gaps between groups of underserved students and their more privileged counterparts. Our aim throughout this research was to determine the impact of the NSF reform agenda on student...
Chapter 8
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pp. 196-214
Improving student outcomes is a complex enterprise linking teachers’ professional development activities and their subsequent classroom practices. Previous research is clear that professional development is indeed an effective lever for improving classroom instruction. Many studies have shown that when teachers are provided...
Chapter 9
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pp. 215-222
Understanding the factors that enhance the impact of systems reform is critically important for many reasons. Perhaps the most important of these is that equitable reform of urban education is necessary to insure both a just and a prosperous society. Large urban districts educate 25 percent of all school-age students, 35 percent of all poor students, 30 percent of all English-language...
Appendix A:
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pp. 223-252
Appendix B:
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pp. 253-268
Notes
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pp. 269-270
Works Cited
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pp. 271-278
Contributors
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pp. 279-282
Index
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pp. 283-285
E-ISBN-13: 9780791483879
Print-ISBN-13: 9780791463291
Print-ISBN-10: 079146329X
Page Count: 301
Illustrations: 34 tables, 3 figures
Publication Year: 2005
Series Title: SUNY series, Power, Social Identity, and Education
Series Editor Byline: Lois Weis
