Reclaiming Our Schools

Fact: Children are more anxious, aggressive, and shut down than ever. br> Faced with this epidemic of emotional health crises and behavioral problems, teachers are asking themselves what went wrong. Why have we lost our students? More importantly: how can we get them back? Hannah Beach, a celebrated educator and specialist in the field of emotional health, and Tamara Neufeld Strijack, Clinical Counsellor and Academic Dean of the acclaimed Neufeld Institute, provide a thoughtful guide to restoring the student-teacher relationship and creating the conditions for change. Reclaiming Our Students arms teachers with strategies to reassert their leadership role and build emotional safety in the classroom. The result: students can get back to learning, and teachers can get back to teaching You'll learn: - How to build, feed, and protect the student-teacher relationship - Why children are anxious or bossy, aggressive or checked out, and what teachers can do to address these behavioral issues at their root - How you can help students and classes shift their identity as the "problem student" or "bad class" - Experiential activities for students of all ages that preserve and restore emotional health and well-being Plus, you'll find special considerations and information for parents, principals, counsellors, and home educators for building safety and support in the learning environment. Combining Hannah's groundbreaking experiential approach to creating emotional health and community in the classroom with the Neufeld Institute's insightful approach to building relationships and making sense of children, Reclaiming Our Students is required reading for teachers who not only want to understand and overcome daily challenges, but also re-connect to their calling as educators.

With its hands-on focus now even more strongly emphasized, the new edition of this clearly-written, thoughtful book does and even better job of providing readers with what they need to support a program of moral education at either the elementary or secondary level. Coverage outlines the philosophical arguments for establishing classrooms and schools as sources of moral instruction, as well as exploring pertinent theories of how to accomplish this goal. The unique presentation of Reclaiming Our Schools: Teaching Character, Academics, and Discipline combines a comprehensive overview of theory with a complete hands-on guide to classroom techniques and schoolwide policies, thus supplying both the background and the tools needed to transform schools into sources of moral instruction. A thorough list of 100 suggestions for applying the principles within the book gives parents, teachers, and administrators a solid repertoire of ideas for use in each classroom and throughout the school. In addition, a 100-item evaluation checklist serves as a framework upon which a working character-development program may be constructed. Updated exercises within each chapter engage the reader in contemporary situations that are both plausible and realistic. Sex and character is now examined in a separate chapter. Reclaiming Our Schools: Teaching Character, Academics, and Discipline is a valuable tool for any parent, teacher, administrator, school board member, or politician who wishes to learn what it takes to establish classrooms and schools as sources of moral instruction.

Why School? is a little book driven by big questions. What does it mean to be educated? What is intelligence? How should we think about intelligence, education, and opportunity in an open society? Drawing on forty years of teaching and research and "a profound understanding of the opportunities, both intellectual and economic, that come from education" (Booklist), award-winning author Mike Rose reflects on these and other questions related to public schooling in America. He answers them in beautifully written chapters that are both rich in detail and informed by an extensive knowledge of history, the psychology of learning, and the politics of education. This paperback edition includes three new chapters showing how cognitive science actually narrows our understanding of learning, how to increase college graduation rates, and how to value the teaching of basic skills. An updated introduction by Rose, who has been hailed as "a superb writer and an even better storyteller" (TLN Teachers Network), reflects on recent developments in school reform. Lauded as "a beautifully written work of literary nonfiction" (The Christian Science Monitor) and called "stunning" by the New Educator Journal, Why School? offers an eloquent call for a bountiful democratic vision of the purpose of schooling.

Reclaiming Freedom in Education examines the notion of ‘freedom’ within educational settings. Following an investigation of the new ‘Free Schools’ in the UK, it argues that this name is a misnomer, and instead explores the original free schools of the 1960s and 1970s, using these models as a lens through which to explore contemporary examples of radical schooling, notably those which describe themselves as democratic and/or progressive. By arguing that in radical educational contexts both ‘positive freedom’ and ‘negative freedom’ are apparent, and that the notion that ‘responsible freedom’ is more pertinent than that of ‘absolute freedom’, this book posits that freedom can be seen to operate in a number of ways including ‘freedom to be’, ‘freedom to think’, ‘freedom to choose’ and ‘freedom to self-govern’. The book: Describes how freedom can be used to inform educational structures, policies, pedagogies and practices across a range of settings Features illustrative case studies of radical free schools and alternative education spaces which have been underpinned by a commitment to freedom and to advancing social justice Critiques the current policy agenda to use ‘freedom’ to make education more competitive through claims that it correlates with higher test scores and academic success Considers some of the challenges for teachers, educators and students of offering and experiencing freedom in education, and argues that despite these, the case for advancing freedom is both urgent and compelling Creating discussions about the new meaning and role that ‘freedom’ can have in improving education, Reclaiming Freedom in Education is a practical contribution to educational activism, which will be a key point of reference for teachers, parents, researchers and students on undergraduate and postgraduate courses in Education Studies, Early Childhood Studies and doctorates.

Reclaiming the Teaching Profession gives educators (especially teachers and future teachers) and their allies a clear overview of the massive effort to dismantle public education in the United States, which includes a direct attack on teachers. The book details, and provides a systematic critique of, the shaky assumptions at the foundation of the market-based reform initiatives that dominate the contemporary education scene. It names and exposes the motives and methods of the powerful philanthropists, politicians, business moguls, and education entrepreneurs who are behind the reform movement. It provides counter narratives that public school advocates can use to talk back to those who would destroy the teaching profession and public education. It includes examples of successful acts of resistance and identifies resources for challenging reformers’ taken for granted primacy in the education debate. It concludes with strategies educators can use to “speak truth to power,” reclaim their professional status, and reshape the education landscape in ways that serve all of America’s children and preserve our democracy.

Effective classroom management is the key to truly inclusive education Teachers who excel at classroom management have students who are more engaged, less disruptive, and more likely to achieve academically. What can you do to confront behavior challenges, both in-person and virtually, and set your classroom on a positive course? Reclaim Your Challenging Classroom guides new and veteran teachers alike in developing effective classroom management techniques, with a particular focus on students with emotional or behavioral disorders. Addressing six interrelated topics—student perceptions of you as teacher, room arrangement, classroom expectations, consequences to encourage appropriate behavior, student lesson engagement, and classroom community—this step-by-step guide empowers teachers to create a positive and effective learning environment that is grounded in the student-teacher relationship. Each chapter includes: • Vignettes inspired by real classrooms and students • Ideas and techniques for successfully addressing common problems • A "What Research Tells Us" feature that relates current research findings to the effective management of inclusive classrooms • Self-assessment inventories linked to each topic, plus more than 50 activities to guide teachers in applying key concepts and strategies in their own classroom Now is the time to alter the course of your classroom! Effective, relationship-based behavior management keeps students on track and makes your classroom a better place to teach and to learn.

Drawing from a wealth of research and experience, this book shows educators how to use the transformative power of professional learning in community to raise the professional stature of educators. The authors, experts in their field, provide clear steps and real-school examples with a focus on collaborative adult learning for student gains, community respect, professional satisfaction, and collegial support. They examine pitfalls and distractions, and show clear images of what empowered Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) look like for teachers, administrators, and leaders at the school and district level. The authors also provide practical tools for advancing and measuring progress. This resource will help educators move from a climate of sanctions to one of mutual trust and support committed to students and dedicated to working and learning together.