The Social Side Of Education Reform: A Research Primer
Abstract
"This collection of research essays describes compelling evidence that the school environment influences teacher effectiveness (Kraft & Papay, essay 1), that teachers' social capital is a vehicle to increase schools' instructional capacity (Leana & Pil, essay 2), and that teaching can be improved through effective professional collaboration (Ronfeldt, essay 3). We must look at the mechanisms and specific conditions that encourage the development of professional relations within and across schools (Spillane, essay 4). Stable, trusting relationships are key to implementing complex change (Finnigan & Daly, essay 5); and it is important to anticipate when policies may be eroding such relationships by examining their unintended consequences on the social fabric of schools (Johnson, essay 6)."
