Restructuring Schooling for Individual Students

Current research in education reveals a system that consistently delivers disappointing results. Recent reforms developed in response to the Nation at Risk report have in many cases been so restrictive that they have actually aggravated the problem - increasing retention and drop-out rates, and producing even more high school graduates who must take remedial courses in college.
The authors of this timely book believe that one of the root causes of this educational decline is the failure of traditional methods and curricula to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse and multicultural school population. Their solution? Restructure public schools to accommodate the variety of student learning aptitudes present in today's classroom... and give students a greater opportunity to be successful.
In these pages you'll find a number of ways to accomplish these goals. And you'll discover a variety of innovative programs that are succeeding in public schools right now, including programs from eight model schools across the country that show many of these ideas in action.
Throughout the book the authors focus on options for restructuring that are practical and inexpensive to implement in any school system. They present detailed descriptions of classroom strategies and curriculum approaches that will be helpful to pre-service and in-service teachers, and to administrators interested in the many restructuring options available.
Specific strategies for effective teaching are discussed, including the direct teach method, mastery learning, cooperative learning, the whole language approach to teaching reading and writing, and early intervention reading programs. The authors also present a complete "learning how to learn" curriculum that emphasizes process as well as content. Other important topics covered in depth include teaching and learning styles, management and motivation, parent/school community partnerships, and staff development. A sample staff development sequence is included in Chapter 10.

A number of ways to accomplish school restructuring goals are covered in this important new resource. A variety of innovative programs that are succeeding in public schools right now are also covered, including programs from eight model schools across the country that show many of the ideas in action. The authors present detailed descriptions of classroom strategies and curriculum approaches.