The field of teacher education is abuzz with a quest for innovation, with public and private stakeholders seeking ways to improve teacher efficacy, support equity, and address the countless challenges of education in the 21st century. Technology often dominates these conversations. From online learning to virtual reality, "innovation" is…

With the increasing diversity in schools and the call for addressing specific regional needs, decentralized regulation of the education system is often proposed as an alternative approach to achieve school improvement. Researchers have often associated experimentation and risk-taking as key aspects of effective educational leadership while…

Participating in the Save Our School march was an inspiring event, the reverberating impact from which will be long-lasting. The march, which was endorsed by the Executive Board of Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI), was an effort to call awareness to the struggles that public education faces in the United States. The guiding…

Summarizes five articles in this special issue focusing on the report by the National Commission on Excellence in Education entitled "A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform." Also discusses briefly the reforms mentioned in several recent reports on the quality of schooling in America. (CB)

Describes the history, recommendations, and impact of "A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform," the report of the National Commission on Excellence in Education. Discusses broad recommendations regarding the curriculum; standards and expectations for students; time devoted to learning; the status of the teaching…

Discusses the 1983 "A Nation at Risk" report of the National Commission on Excellence in Education in terms of the history of schooling in the U.S. from the late 1890s to the present. Questions the materialistic emphasis of the commission's definitions of the purposes of education and of the "national interest." (CB)

Presents conflicting views of New Zealand's schooling from teachers' perspectives and examines some of the reforms and reflections of New Zealand's educators. Discusses some of the implications for U.S. schooling. (BB)

Reviews four professional books: (1) "Changing Teaching, Changing Schools. Bringing Early Childhood Practice into Public Education: Case Studies from the Kindergarten" (O'Connell); (2) "Whole Language Plus: Essays on Literacy in the United States and New Zealand" (Cazden); (3) "Audacious Kids: Coming of Age in America's…