Challenges Facing Suburban Schools: Promising Responses to Changing Student Populations

by Shelley B. Wepner (Editor), Diane W. Gomez (Editor)

Overview

This coedited book describes the impact that an increasingly diverse student population has on 21st century suburban schools. It also presents what can and should be done to help K-12 school district administrators and teachers address this growing phenomenon across the nation. This eight-chapter book:

• provides a demographic, political, economic, and sociological overview of the changing nature of suburban schools
• describes the nature of student diversity in the changing suburbs and issues with student achievement
• identifies administrative responsibilities and program structures for working with a changing student population
• proposes ways to reduce the achievement gap, most notably in literacy
• looks at how to use “whole child” assessment protocols to provide support for such students
• delves into parent inequities within changing suburban districts and offers ideas for closing the parent gap.

This book is written for school district administrators, teachers, legislators, policy makers, teacher educators, and educational researchers for developing programs and pathways for a segment of the student and parent population that now is living in suburban areas without traditional roots as advantaged suburbanites.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781475832839
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	05/01/2017
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	148
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Shelley B. Wepner is Dean and Professor of Education in the School of Education of Manhattanville College. She has over 145 publications focused primarily on connections between K-12 education and higher education and leadership skills for effectively supporting teacher education and literacy development.
Diane W. Gómez is Associate Professor of Second Languages and Chairperson for the Department of Educational Leadership and Special Subjects in the School of Education at Manhattanville College.

Table of Contents

Dedication
Foreword
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1
Demography and Educational Politics in the Changing Suburbs
Stephen Kotok and Erica Frankenberg
Chapter 2
Race, Ethnicity, and Social Capital in the Changing Suburbs
Carl L. Bankston III and Stephen C. Caldas
Chapter 3
Administrators’ Accountabilities in Changing Suburban Schools
Shelley B. Wepner and Diane W. Gómez
Chapter 4
Lessons for Leaders about Educating English Learners
Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey
Chapter 5
A Conceptual Framework for the Educational Success of Dual Language Learners: Reducing the Achievement Gap
Eugene E. García
Chapter 6
Effective Literacy Instruction for English Learners
María Paula Ghiso
Chapter 7
Data-Driven Decisions on Effective Performance Measures of English Learners
Debbie Zacarian
Chapter 8
Closing the Parent Gap in Changing School Districts
Patricia Edwards, Lisa Domke, and Kristen White
About the Authors

Editorial Reviews

This publication is not to miss if you are an educational leader, researcher or policy maker! Volume editors Shelley B. Wepner and Diane W. Gómez’s carefully selected chapters present a comprehensive picture that uncover the complex realities of suburbia. Each chapter is written by leading experts in the field offering a new understanding of effective leadership practices and successful educational approaches to working with a changing population.

Andrea Honigsfeld

This groundbreaking compilation addresses a topic that has for too long remained invisible in much educational policy: the increasing cultural and linguistic pluralism of suburban schools and neighborhoods. Of course, this demographic diversity is not invisible to the students themselves and the teachers, administrators, parents, and researchers who are advocating for their educational and life opportunities. Bringing together luminaries in the field that offer multiple perspectives but a shared commitment to equity, Wepner & Gómez help us understand “the changing suburbs” and inspire leadership and action.

H. Gerald Campano

Change happens, including in the suburbs and in our suburban schools. Shelley Wepner and Diana Gómez have brought together an impressive group of leading scholars to highlight both the challenges and the great strengths that emerge when schools become more culturally and linguistically diverse. Educators will find a wealth of ideas and practical strategies for building on these strengths to offer equitable and effective education for all students in 21st century suburban schools.

Wayne E. Wright