Creating Successful School Systems. . - book review

School Administrator, May, 2002

Reviewed by Cecelia W. Krill

Associate Processor, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Va.

In their collaboration, Creating Successful School Systems: Voices from the University, the Field and the Community, Francis M. Duffy, a professor at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., and Jack D. Dale, superintendent in Frederick County, Md., have compiled an overview of future directions for schools from a wide range of contributors.

Duffy and Dale have divided the commentary into four parts. In the first, "Defining the Future Context for Systemic School Improvement," essayists share their thoughts on areas of schooling that need to change. In the second part, "Redefining the Profession to Support Systemic School Improvement," we read about practitioners' views of reform, especially standards-based reform, and the role of state and district leaders in continuing current initiatives to the next stage of school improvement.

In the third part, authors describe models of systemic school improvement in detail. In the final section, "Real Stories From the Front Line," contributors share their experiences with systemic reform at the district and school levels. The book concludes with five short messages from representatives of the national PTA, the Maryland State Teachers Association and the National School Boards Association.

As a compilation of various perspectives, this book has a serious shortcoming. It fails to provide a coherent dialogue, leaving each section and each chapter as standalone responses rather than conversational voices. Nonetheless, the views of the individuals are thought-provoking in a climate of high-stakes accountability.

(Creating Successful School Systems: Voices from the University, the Field and the Community, edited by Francis M. Duffy and Jack D. Dale, Christopher-Gordon Publishers, 1502 Providence Highway, Suite 12, Norwood, MA 02062, 2001, 300 pp., $44.95 hardcover)