Part I: THE WHY 1.. Are we ready for disruption? 2. How will we engage the willing? Part II: THE HOW 3. How do forward-looking school leaders take charge of change? 4. How will we support teachers as they become 21st century educators? 5. How can we amplify student voice? 6. How will we engage families as partners in school change? 7. Who else will join us? Part III: THE WHAT-IF 8. Addressing Challenges and Building Momentum Part IV: THE FUTURE STORY 9. How will we share our story about the future of learning? 10. What are your next steps?
Suzie Boss is an established expert speaker, writer and author on school change and reform. In this book she explores how leadership can engage the whole school and outside community to work together to build learning. Studies from the frontlines of school change provide inspiration and ideas you can adopt or adapt for your context. Discussion prompts are included to promote and provoke conversations-both inside and outside school-with everyone who has a stake in student success (including students themselves). Working together, through collaborative inquiry and hard conversations, you will arrive at your best answers for how schools should adapt for your context and your children. The four-part framework, based on insights from those at the leading edge of change, will help readers navigate the journey ahead: (1) The Why: To help a community reimagine school, effective leaders must first build common understanding about why change is necessary. (2) The How: Moving from vision to reality requires practical considerations. For example, stakeholders with diverse backgrounds bring a wealth of experiences and perspectives to shape the future of education. To collaborate effectively, however, they need to speak the same language. (3) The What-ifs: Only on paper do plans unfold without any push-back or detours. Leaders who maintain momentum and overcome resistance to "what ifs" and "yeah buts" share their troubleshooting strategies in this section, preparing readers to anticipate challenges and be more effective change managers. (4) The Future Story: School leaders who are taking courageous steps to reinvent education understand the power of story. A superintendent who regularly tweets out examples of powerful student learning or a principal who blogs about school-business partnerships helps to build public understanding of 21st century learning. Keeping change efforts from backsliding requires ongoing communication, effective storytelling, and optimism about the future. This book will walk readers through these four critical stages, helping communities mobilize around the shifts that students deserve. Compelling examples from schools on the leading edge of change will inspire readers to embark on the challenging work ahead. The book is intended to be a practical action guide, taking readers from talking about the future of learning to realizing their community's vision.
Suzie Boss is a writer and educational consultant who focuses on the power of teaching and learning to improve lives and transform communities. She is the author of 10 popular books for educators, most recently Project Based Teaching: How to Create Rigorous and Engaging Learning Experiences and Reinventing Project-Based Learning: Your Field Guide to Real-World Projects in the Digital Age, 3rd Ed. She collaborated with award-winning teacher Stephen Ritz to tell his inspiring story about classroom innovation in The Power of a Plant. A regular contributor to Edutopia, PBLWorks National Faculty emeritus, and frequent conference presenter, she consults with schools and nonprofit organizations around the world interested in shifting to a more student-centered, innovative approach to teaching and learning. Active on social media (@suzieboss), she maintains a website at suzieboss.com.