:
"If you believe that the current system of governance is rescuable, you are likely to react negatively to what I have to say. If you believe it is not rescuable and seek a blueprint for action, you will conclude that I have fallen far short of the mark. But if you believe it is not rescuable and you are open to consider a sketch for a new vision, what I have written may be of interest to you."
–From the Preface
Only recently has there developed a general recognition that the governance system of our schools works against school reform. No one has stimulated that recognition more than Professor Sarason. In this new, provocative, and bold book, he sketches a rationale for a changed governance that takes seriously the differences between productive and unproductive contexts of learning. It is his thesis that unless school governance creates and sustains contexts of productive learning, the quality and outcomes of schooling will remain the same or get worse.
Chapters: Statement of the Problem • The Non-Learning, Non—Self-Correcting System • The Context of Productive Learning • The Governors: Teachers and Parents • Some Self-Correcting Features • Are Principals Necessary? • Redefining Resources • Beyond the Classroom • The Preparation of Educators • A System That Does Not and Cannot Learn
Also by Seymour B. Sarason:
American Psychology and Schools: A Critique
Charter Schools: Another Flawed Educational Reform?
Educational Reform: A Self-Scrutinizing Memoir
Revisiting “The Culture of the School and the Problem of Change”
School Change: The Personal Development of a Point of View
Teaching as a Performing Art
