Small schools, big ideas : the essential guide to successful school transformation / Mara Benitez, Jill Davidson, Laura Flaxman.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction: An academically challenging education for all -- A commitment to equity -- Facing the challenges -- Creating the climate and conditions for change -- Starting with vision, mission, and goals -- Transformational leadership -- Cultivating professional learning communities -- Student-centered teaching and learning -- Demonstration of mastery -- Access, opportunity, and preparation for postsecondary success -- School culture, practices, and community -- Strategies for sustainability -- Appendix A: Coalition for Essential Schools common principles -- Appendix B: Coalition for Essential Schools benchmarks : principles in practice -- Appendix C: Profiled schools and organizations -- Appendix D: The benefits of the CES model : a look at recent research -- Appendix E: Glossary of useful assessment terms.

'Developed by The Coalition of Essential Schools, one of the nation's leading school reform networks, The Essential Guide to Successful School Transformation provides a comprehensive, principle-based approach for redesigning public schools and creating new schools that enable all students to achieve at high standards. Featuring stories and examples from schools that have successfully implemented the CES model, this powerful blueprint for district and school-level administrators, teachers, reform activists, educational policy makers, and professors distills insights and wisdom gleaned from over 20 years of work restructuring public schools'--Provided by publisher.

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