An insightful inside perspective on the implementation of instructional improvement measures in a large urban K–12 district

Policy Patrons offers a rare behind-the-scenes view of decision making inside four influential education philanthropies: the Ford Foundation, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation. The outcome is an intriguing, thought-provoking look at the impact of current philanthropic efforts on education. Over a period of several years, Megan E. Tompkins-Stange gained the trust of key players and outside observers of these four organizations. Through a series of confidential interviews, she began to explore the values, ideas, and beliefs that inform these foundations’ strategies and practices. The picture that emerges reveals important differences in the strategies and values of the more established foundations vis-à-vis the newer, more activist foundations—differences that have a significant impact on education policy and practice, and have important implications for democratic decision making. In recent years, the philanthropic sector has played an increasing role in championing and financing education reform. Policy Patrons makes an original and invaluable contribution to contemporary discussions about the appropriate role of foundations in public policy and the future direction of education reform.

Demoralized: Why Teachers Leave the Profession They Love and How They Can Stay offers a timely analysis of professional dissatisfaction that challenges the common explanation of burnout. Featuring the voices of educators, the book offers concrete lessons for practitioners, school leaders, and policy makers on how to think more strategically to retain experienced teachers and make a difference in the lives of students. Based on ten years of research and interviews with practitioners across the United States, the book theorizes the existence of a “moral center” that can be pivotal in guiding teacher actions and expectations on the job. Education philosopher Doris Santoro argues that demoralization offers a more precise diagnosis that is born out of ongoing value conflicts with pedagogical policies, reform mandates, and school practices. Demoralized reveals that this condition is reversible when educators are able to tap into authentic professional communities and shows that individuals can help themselves. Detailed stories from veteran educators are included to illustrate the variety of contexts in which demoralization can occur. Based on these insights, Santoro offers an array of recommendations and promising strategies for how school leaders, union leaders, teacher groups, and individual practitioners can enact and support “re-moralization” by working to change the conditions leading to demoralization.

Written in an accessible style, the papers in this volume document and analyse particular components of the Children First reforms, including governance, community engagement, finance, accountability, and instruction. Aimed at instituting evidence-based practices to produce higher and more equitable outcomes for all students, the policies that comprise the Children First initiative represent an attempt at organisational improvement and systemic learning.

Water policy initiatives often run into difficulties when they encounter the realities of really existing societies. Policies may not get implemented as planned, and may not achieve their stated objectives. Many things happen when policy initiatives travel from formulation to implementation. The papers in this volume examine the travel and appropriation of water policy by looking at the contestation and the embeddedness of water policy. Organised in the sequence everyday politics of water, politics of water policy, hydropolitics, global water politics, the papers constitute a call for a policy approach that replaces a social engineering with a strategic action perspective.

“Although standards-based reform emerged in the United States and the United Kingdom, the idea has spread across the world, as an approach to systemic reform. It might appear that there is a world-wide “tsunami” of standards-based reform that will standardize and homogenize the educational system across the globe. This volume makes it very clear, however, that there is no one approach to standards-based reform and countries change – there is a danger in paying attention to its evolution and impact in only one context. That’s what makes this volume so valuable. Louis Volante has drawn together descriptions from a wide range of countries, all involved in large-scale reform and using standards and assessments as part of their process. What becomes very obvious is that the language may be the same but the words reflect different contexts and can represent very different ideals, values, and processes. I’m sure you will find this book as interesting and challenging as I have – a gem that pushes your thinking and does not allow readers to remain neutral.” (Lorna Earl)