The New Basic Education and Whole School Reform: A Chinese Experience

To fulfill the democratic dream for American schooling, educators and policymakers need to work together for the same common cause: reforming the academic-vocational dichotomy of schooling that has persisted over the past century. Academic subjects continue to be separated from vocational schooling with the effect of diluting each domain's effectiveness. The Deweyian vision of social justice provides a solution for healing this fundamental dualism that characterizes schooling. Even where integration has been attempted using academic-vocational models, tracking continues in public schools without commitment to whole-school reform design. This article discusses these issues in the context of the history of vocational education and Dewey's perspective of integrated education through the occupations. The authors also illustrate the concepts presented through promising whole-school reform designs for democratizing the public education system. Policy implications are addressed for moving toward a socially just system of schooling.

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Building Coherence through Whole School Reform: The Case of the AVID Elementary Program

Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk (JESPAR) ◽

10.1080/10824669.2021.1981907 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-22

Author(s):

Lea Hubbard ◽

Kelly Metz-Matthews ◽

Barbara Resultan

Keyword(s):

School Reform ◽

Whole School Reform ◽

Whole School

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A Systematic Review of Studies Addressing the Implementation of the Evidence-Based Whole-School Reform “Success for All”

ECNU Review of Education ◽

10.1177/2096531120961521 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 209653112096152

Author(s):

Mechteld van Kuijk ◽

Marijke Mullender-Wijnsma ◽

Roel Bosker

Keyword(s):

Staff Development ◽

School Reform ◽

Primary Schools ◽

Implementation Fidelity ◽

The United States ◽

Success For All ◽

Successful Implementation ◽

Evidence Based ◽

Whole School Reform ◽

Whole School

Purpose: The effectiveness of the 14-component evidence-based whole-school reform Success for All (SfA) has been well established, but research on its implementation is limited although fidelity of implementation is vital for the effectiveness of such a program. This review sheds light on this issue. Design/Approach/Methods: A systematic literature review was conducted to acquire an overview of qualitative and quantitative aspects of SfA’s implementation in primary schools as well as to identify stimulating and hindering factors when implementing SfA. Sixteen studies, conducted in the United States and the United Kingdom, were included in this review. Findings: Results indicate that 48% of schools implemented SfA at the minimal level, 45% at a more advanced level, and 7% at an insufficient level. Information on the implementation for each of the 14 components was rare. Most of the factors that affected implementation were hindering factors rather than stimulating ones. For successful implementation of this evidence-based program, the crucial factors appear to be leadership, fulfilling organizational conditions, staff development, and relentlessly implementing all 14 components together. Originality/Value: This review shows that for an evidence-based program to be effective, implementation fidelity is a very serious concern, which needs to be addressed systematically.

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