The Fourth Way: The Inspiring Future for Educational Change

"Andy Hargreaves and Dennis Shirley, always one or two steps ahead of the field, have done it again. An extremely balanced and insightful treatment of the first three ways of change, in which the authors clearly display the strengths and limitations of each model. And then they go to town in mapping out the fourth way―a concise and compelling framework for change that integrates teacher professionalism, community engagement, government policy, and accountability. The Fourth Way is itself a powerful ′catalyst for coherence′ in a field that badly needs guidance. Read the book and rethink your approach to educational reform."
―Michael Fullan, Educational Consultant
Author, The Challenge of School Change

A compelling approach to lasting educational change informed by lessons learned and new successes worldwide!

In an expressive and absorbing style, this penetrating volume offers a plan for viable and sustainable educational reform that reflects research on traditional methods and new findings from successful school initiatives around the globe.

Beginning with an incisive analysis of the three major educational change efforts of the past 25 years, Andy Hargreaves and Dennis Shirley offer a plan that integrates government policy, professional involvement, and public engagement to create an environment of greater inclusiveness, security, and humanity. Drawing on "Four Horizons of Hope"―examples of promising implementation and practice―the book demonstrates how districts and schools can achieve dramatic improvement built on:

• Six Pillars of Purpose that support change
• Three Principles of Professionalism that drive change
• Four Catalysts of Coherence that sustain change

Written for educators, consultants, and administrators at the school and district level, The Fourth Way represents an innovative vision of educational change for meeting the dramatic problems and dynamic challenges facing educators in the 21st century.

Andy Hargreaves is a research professor at Boston College and a visiting professor at the University of Ottawa. He is an elected member of the U.S. National Academy of Education. He is past president of the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement, adviser in education to the first minister of Scotland, and former adviser to the premier of Ontario. Andy is cofounder and president of the ARC Education Project: a group of nations committed to humanistic goals in education. Andy’s more than 30 books have attracted 8 Outstanding Writing Awards. He has been honored for services to public education and educational research in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. Andy is ranked by Education Week among the top 20 scholars with most influence on U.S. education policy debate. In 2015, Boston College gave him its Excellence in Teaching With Technology Award. Andy’s most recent book is Leadership From the Middle: The Beating Heart of Educational Transformation.

The Age of Identity is the fifth book that Dennis and Andy have written together.

Dennis Shirley is Gabelli Faculty Fellow and Professor of Formative Education at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development at Boston College. He has led and advised many educational change initiatives. He was the principal investigator of the Massachusetts Coalition for Teacher Quality and Student Achievement, a federally funded improvement network that united 18 urban schools, 7 higher education institutions, and 16 community-based organizations. He has conducted in-depth studies on school innovations in England, Germany, Canada, and South Korea. Dennis has been a visiting professor at Harvard University in the United States, at Venice International University in Italy, at the National Institute of Education in Singapore, at the University of Barcelona in Spain, and the University of Stavanger in Norway. He is a Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin, Germany. Dennis holds a doctorate in education from Harvard University.