Description
Taylor & Francis Educational Change and the Political Process 2017 Edition by Dana L. Mitra
Educational Change and the Political Process brings together key ideas on both the system of educational policy and the policy process in the United States. It provides students with a broad, methodical understanding of educational policy. No other textbook offers as comprehensive a view of the U.S. educational policy procedure and political systems. Section I discusses the actors and systems that create and implement policy on both the federal and the local level; Section II walks students through the policy process from idea to implementation to evaluation; and Section III delves into three major forces driving the creation of educational policies in the current era-accountability, equity, and market-driven reforms. Each chapter provides case studies, discussion questions, and classroom activities to scaffold learning, as well as a bibliography for further reading to deepen exploration of these topics. Table of contents : - PrefaceAcknowledgementsSection I - The U.S. Educational System Chapter One - Federal Education PolicyA Nation at Risk catalyzing education reformThe Governors catalyze stronger federal involvementObama administration and The Race to the Top's avoidance of ESEAComprehension QuestionsDiscussion QuestionsActivitiesFurther ReadingsReference ListChapter Two -State Systems of EducationHistory of State ControlState Education StructuresReferendaPolicy development across states: The Story of the Common CorePushback to the Common CoreMoving forward with the Common CoreComprehension QuestionsDiscussion QuestionsActivitiesFurther ReadingReference ListChapter Three - Local School Districts, Citywide Change, and Rural DilemmasInfluencing the Local LevelDistrict ConsolidationCommunity ControlSchool BoardsCompositions of school boardsSchool board responsibilitesConsolidation of power in cities: Mayoral ControlPolicy Regimes and Civic CapacityComprehension QuestionsDiscussion QuestionsActivitiesFurther ReadingReference ListChapter Four - Influential Policy ActorsNational and state actorsTeachers UnionsParents/Parent Teachers AssociationThe new major actorsFoundationsEducation Management OrganizationsBusiness communityThink tanksResearch-Practice PartnershipsComprehension QuestionsDiscussion QuestionsActivitiesFurther ReadingReference ListSection II - The Policy ProcessChapter Five: Public Policy and PowerRational Decision Making ProcessPolicy as a Political ProcessPolicy as PowerPolicy as ArgumentProcess MattersThe Importance of Ethical PolicyDefining the Policy ProcessComprehension QuestionsActivitiesFurther readingReference ListChapter Six: Problem formation, Agenda Setting and FramingProblem FormationFraming IdeasDefining a Target AudienceAgenda SettingFinding the Policy WindowSocial media and framingBehavioral EconomicsSteady workPunctuated EquilibriumPublic IdeaFraming a ProblemPolicy EntrepreneursTimingComprehension questionsDiscussion questionsActivitiesReference ListChapter Seven - Policy FormationPolicy toolsMetapolicyComprehension QuestionsDiscussion QuestionsActivitiesFuture ReadingReference ListChapter Eight: Policy ImplementationRelating the top and the bottomLoose couplingStreet-level BureaucratsPolicy Feedback, Layered Policy, and SensemakingWill, capacity and fidelityIntermediaries as facilitators of changeDistrict as intermediaryComprehension QuestionsDiscussion QuestionsActivitiesFurther ReadingReference ListChapter Nine: Sustainability and ScaleInstitutionalizationPillars of InstitutionalismScaleA comprehensive model of scaleImprovement scienceComprehension questionsDiscussion questionsActivitiesFurther ReadingReference ListSection III - Ideals of the U.S. Educational SystemChapter Ten: Understanding U.S. IdealsEquityMarketsSocietal controlU.S. Political PartiesDiscussion QuestionsActivitiesFurther ReadingReference ListChapter 11 - Market Driven Reform: The Foundation for the Accountability MovementMarket TheoryRational Choice TheoryCritique of a Market Based SystemAcademic achievement in market models. Equity and markets. VouchersResearch on vouchers. Charter SchoolsFunding of charter schoolsHistory of chartersResearch on chartersComprehension questionsDiscussion questionsActivityFurther ReadingReference ListChapter 12 - EquityPowerCritical PedagogyCritical Race TheoryEquity and accountabilityOpportunity to Learn as a way to frame equity and accountabilityEquity and the CourtsRace and the CourtsSocial Class and the CourtsStudent voice and the right to participatePolicy topics with an equity focusEarly-childhood educationCommunity SchoolsComprehension QuestionsDiscussion QuestionsActivitiesFurther ReadingReference List