School Districts and Instructional Renewal - Book Review

School Administrator, Dec, 2003 by Larry Nyland

"Make no mistake. Achieving a constructive and pro-active district role in instructional renewal is not a simple matter."

Despite this sobering observation, School Districts and Instructional Renewal provides promising information on how districts make a difference in the outcomes of students. For years we have had indicators of effective teaching and effective schools. This book points toward emerging evidence from several multiyear research projects about school districts that have succeeded in improving teaching and learning.

The focus throughout is on instructional renewal and districtwide improvements. The authors strike a good balance between explaining the evidence and pointing the way to promising practices. The experiences of New Haven, Calif., San Diego and District 2 in New York City are described in considerable detail. Other chapters focus on multidistrict studies where individual district details are less prominent than the study findings.

Although the authors caution that it is too early to make definitive conclusions, they identify six themes common to districts making a difference in instruction: (1) District leaders who are learners first and then consistent teachers of what works; (2) Interconnected learning communities that engage every classroom; (3) A shared focus on instructional improvement sustained over time; (4) Subject-specific learning focused typically on literacy or mathematics; (5) Use of data to create a culture of inquiry and professional accountability; and (6) Partnering with outside networks to expand the capacity of the district.

(School Districts and Instructional Renewal, edited by Amy M. Hightower, Michael S. Knapp, Julie A. Marsh and Milbrey W. McLaughlin, Teachers College Press, 2002, New York, N.Y., 240 pp., $26.95 softcover)

Larry Nyland

Academic Officer, Highline Public Schools, Burien, Wash.