Flip The System

Education is threatened on a global scale by forces of neoliberalism, through high stakes accountability, privatization and a destructive language of learning. In all respects, a GERM (Global Education Reform Movement) has erupted from international benchmark rankings such as PISA, TIMMS and PIRL, causing inequity, narrowing of the curriculum and teacher deprofessionalization on a truly global scale. In this book, teachers from around the world and other educational experts such as Andy Hargreaves, Ann Lieberman, Stephen Ball, Gert Biesta, Tom Bennett and many more, make the case to move away from this uneducational economic approach, to instead embrace a more humane, more democratic approach to education. This approach is called ‘flipping the system’, a move that places teachers exactly where they need to be - at the steering wheel of educational systems worldwide. This book will appeal to teachers and other education professionals around the world.

This powerful and honest book uncovers how we can flip the system, building a more democratic, equitable, and cohesive society where teacher expertise drives solutions to education challenges. Editor Michael Soskil brings together a team of diverse voices to highlight solutions, spark positive change, and show us the path forward towards a more civil and more peaceful America. In each chapter, inspiring educators describe how we can create lasting and meaningful change by elevating teacher expertise; educating the whole child; increasing teacher morale; and fighting for all of our children to have equitable opportunity and quality schools.

How did we let teacher burn-out happen, and what can we do about it – before it's too late? This brave and disruptive book accurately defines the problems of low teacher morale and offers systemic, future-proof and realistic solutions to bringing hope, energy and joy back to the profession. The simple answer is staring us in the face: increase teacher agency. Our rallying cry: our profession needs a return to values of humanity, pride, and professionalism. From research literacy to a collective voice, better CPD to smarter accountability, contributors to this book demonstrate the huge scope for increased teacher influence at every level of the education sector. Education voices including Sam Twiselton, Alison Peacock, David Weston and Andy Hargreaves, supported by a broad range of academics and policy makers, vouch for increased teacher agency and stronger, more powerful networks as a means of improving practice, combatting teacher disillusionment, and radically improving UK education. This text offers an exciting and hopeful perspective on education; urging teachers to work together to ‘flip the system’ and challenging policy makers to help... or get out of the way. Chapters have been contributed by Tom Bennett, Peter Ford, Jonathan Firth, David Weston, David Williams, Zeba Clarke, Julie Smith, Dr Robert Loe, Jeremy Pattle, Debra Kidd, Steven Watson, Ross Morrison McGill, George Gilchrist, Howard Stevenson, Professor Dame Alison Peacock, d’Reen Struthers, Phil Wood, Rae Snape, Simon Gibbs, Ross Hall, Jackie Ward, Simon Knight, David Frost, Sheila Ball, Sarah Lightfoot, Andy Hargreaves, Darren Macey, Gary Farrell, Julian Critchley, Tony Gallagher, Gareth Alcott, Sam Twiselton, Jelmer Evers, Alma Harris, Michelle Jones, Natalie Scott, Deborah M. Netolicky, Jon Andrews, Cameron Paterson, Per Kornhall, Joe Hallgarten, Tom Beresford and Sara Hjelm.

This is a book by educators, for educators. It grapples with the complexities, the humanity and the possibilities in education. In a climate of competing accountabilities and measurement mechanisms; corporate solutions to education ‘problems’; and narratives of ‘failing’ schools, ‘underperforming’ teachers and ‘disengaged’ students; this book asks ‘What matters?’ or ‘What should matter?’ in education. Based in the unique Australian context, this book situates Australian education policy, research and practice within the international education narrative. It argues that professionals within schools should be supported, empowered and welcomed into policy discourse, not dictated to by top-down bureaucracy. It advocates for a flipping, flattening and democratising of the education system, in Australia and around the world. Flip the System Australia: What matters in education brings together the voices of teachers, school leaders and scholars in order to offer diverse perspectives, important challenges and hopeful alternatives to the current education system.

Over the last fifty years, Canada's public schools have been absorbed into a modern education system that functions much like Max Weber's infamous iron cage. Crying out for democratic school-level reform, the system is now a centralized, bureaucratic fortress that, every year, becomes softer on standards for students, less accessible to parents, further out of touch with communities, and surprisingly unresponsive to classroom teachers. Exploring the nature of the Canadian education order in all its dimensions, The State of the System explains how public schools came to be so bureaucratic, confronts the critical issues facing kindergarten to grade 12 public schools in all ten provinces, and addresses the need for systemic reform. Going beyond a diagnosis of the stresses, strains, and ills present in the system, Paul Bennett proposes a bold plan to re-engineer schools on a more human scale as the first step in truly reforming public education. In place of school consolidation and managerialism, one-size-fits-all uniformity, limited school choice, and the "success-for-all" curriculum, Bennett advocates for a new set of priorities: decentralize school governance, deprogram education ministries and school districts, listen to parents and teachers, and revitalize local education democracy. Tackling the thorny issues besetting contemporary school systems in Canada, The State of the System issues a clarion call for more responsive, engaged, and accountable public schools.

Learn what a flipped classroom is and why it works, and get the information you need to flip a classroom. You’ll also learn the flipped mastery model, where students learn at their own pace, furthering opportunities for personalized education. This simple concept is easily replicable in any classroom, doesn’t cost much to implement, and helps foster self-directed learning. Once you flip, you won’t want to go back!

So ticked off you’re at a loss for words? 101 Ways to Flip the Bird provides 101 creative ways to express exactly how you feel. Arm yourself with the perfect bird for every occasion: Some jerk cut you off in traffic? Opt for the Classic Flip, also appropriate when protesting a bad call by a referee (see page 2). Interrupted by a rude coworker? Try the Glasses Adjuster, subtle enough to use during a business meeting (see page 26). A joker makes a snide remark about your haircut? Cup a Bird behind your ear and flip them Sorry, I’m Deaf (see page 66). Your cheap friend is hitting you up for money again? Pull Here, I’ve Got Something For You out of your pocket (see page 38). First date boring you half to death with inane chatter? Amuse yourself with the Thinker, a simple and pensive Bird to the chin (see page 64).

Where am I in the solar system? A beloved bestseller, now refreshed with new art from Christine Gore, that will help children discover their place in the Milky Way. Where is the earth? Where is the sun? Where are the stars? Now with new art by Christine Gore, here is an out-of-this world introduction to the universe for children. With Earth as a starting point, a young astronaut leads readers on a tour past each planet and on to the stars, answering simple questions about our solar system. In clear language, drawings, and diagrams, space unfolds before a child's eyes. Colorful illustrations, filled with fun detail, give children a lot to look for on every page, and a glossary helps reinforce new words and concepts. A terrific teaching tool, Me and My Place in Space is an easy and enjoyable way to introduce the concept of space to budding astronomers.