Hard Questions on Global Educational Change: Policies, Practices, and the Future of Education

by Pasi Sahlberg, Jonathan Hasak, Vanessa Rodriguez

Overview

This new book, from internationally renowned education scholar Pasi Sahlberg and his colleagues, focuses on some of the most controversial issues in contemporary education reform around the world. The authors devote a chapter to each of these “hard questions”:

• Does parental choice improve education systems?
• Is there a future for teacher unions?
• What is the right answer to the standardized testing question
• Can schools prepare children for the 21st-century workplace?
• Will technology save schools?
• Can anyone be a teacher?
• Should higher education be for the public good?
• What knowledge and skills should an educator have?

Each educational change question sheds much-needed light on today’s large-scale education policies and related reforms around the world. The authors focus on what makes each question globally significant, what we know from international research, and what can be inferred from benchmark evidence. The final chapter offers a model for policymakers with implications for teaching, learning, and schooling overall.

“This is an impressive and engaging book. If you care about the impacts of technology, testing, and teacher education designs, then this book will stretch your thinking and challenge your assumptions.”
—Andy Hargreaves, Boston College

“Fascinating case studies open up our imaginations and provide clues for the most sustainable pathways forward for educators in the years to come.”
—Dennis Shirley, Boston College

“Features enlightening chapters with an international perspective for educators and teacher educators alike. Highly recommended.”
—David C. Berliner, Arizona State University

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807775592
Publisher:	Teachers College Press
Publication date:	01/29/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	822,542
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Pasi Sahlberg is a professor of practice at the University of Helsinki and Arizona State University and author of Grawemeyer Award–winning Finnish Lessons (now in its Second Edition). He received the 2021 Australian Council for Educational Leaders (ACEL) Hedley Beare Award for Educational Writing and the 2021 ACEL Dr. Paul Brock Memorial Medal. Visit his website at www.pasisahlberg.com. Jonathan Hasak is a manager of public policy and government affairs at Year Up. Vanessa Rodriguez is an assistant professor in the Center for Early Childhood Health and Development in the Department of Population Health at the NYU School of Medicine.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vi

1 How Do Educators Respond to Hard Questions on Educational Change? 1

2 Can Parental Choice Improve Education for All? Janine Campbell Aline Hankey Jonathan Seiden 13

3 What Is the Right Answer to the Standardized Testing Question? Momar Dieng Elaine Koh Lauren Marston 29

4 Can Anyone Teach? Fairuz Alia Jamaluddin Lauren Owen Elyse Postlewaite 43

5 Do We Still Need Teacher Unions? Aditi Adhikari Jason Brown Amanda Klonsky 61

6 Will Technology Make Schools Smarter? Chu Chen Reema Souraya Kolja Wohlleben 73

7 Can Schools Prepare Kids for Work? Love Basillote Terence Tan Wei Ting Sharon Yoo 85

8 Can Higher Education Be Transactional? Zachary Goldman Wen Qiu Randy Tarnowski 107

9 What Can We Learn from Hard Questions? 119

Index 127

About the Authors 135

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"This is an impressive, engaging book about hard questions and ideas with impact. It tackles the questions and ideas that matter to young scholars, educational entrepreneurs, and future policymakers on a global scale. If you care about the impacts of technology, testing, and teacher education designs, then this book will stretch your thinking and challenge your assumptions."
—Andy Hargreaves, Brennan Chair, Lynch School of Education, Boston College

"Hard Questions on Global Educational Change provides readers with smart answers to the most hitherto intractable challenges for our schools and societies. This is a must-read volume with fascinating case studies that open up our imagination and provide clues for the most sustainable pathways forward for educators in the years to come.”
—Dennis Shirley, Lynch School of Education, Boston College

"Enlightening chapters with an international perspective, for educators and teacher educators alike. Highly recommended."
—David C. Berliner, bestselling author and Regents’ Professor Emeritus of Education at Arizona State University

"Pasi once again demonstrates why he is considered a world leader in the global education community. The insights contained in this book regarding public education and the possibilities for meaningful system change are valuable to active teachers, administrators, district leaders, and government. Hard Question on Global Education Change gives readers strategies and influences to consider when looking toward the future of public education. This book really does answer the question, is there a better way?"
—Mark Ramsankar, president elect, Canadian Teachers' Federation

“Hard Questions on Global Educational Change is a must-read for current and aspiring changemakers. Presented with clarity and originality, the authors examine major educational change questions where there are no single answers or simple solutions. Pasi Sahlberg and co-authors demonstrate the importance of changemakers coping with complex issues, understanding global contexts, and communicating persuasively to influence educational improvement.”
—Carol Campbell, associate professor, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto

Editorial Reviews

"In Hard Questions on Global Educational Change, Sahlberg, Hasak, and Rodriguez have provided a needed reminder that 21st Century education systems should be viewed within an international context, and that such systems will face ever changing hard questions. This reminder is particularly important for education students who wish to become change-makers . . . provides an excellent introduction to the preparation and encouragement of both undergraduate and graduate education students to become 21st Century changemakers."

—Education Review / Reseñas Educativas

From the Publisher