Betty Lou Whitford

Systemic Perspectives on Beginning Teacher Programs

In this article, we argue that if the purpose of beginning teacher programs is to provide neophytes with developmental support, then such programs should be based in schools where roles are structured to support induction as well as exemplary education for students. This argument is developed by examining systemic effects-those related to the pattern of rules, roles, and relationships defining the context of life in schools. Structural, political, human resource development, and symbolic issues are addressed. We conclude that effective beginning teacher programs depend on recognizing the organizational necessity of human resource development while at the same time assuring that the quality of childrens education is not compromised.

Assessment and Accountability in Kentucky: How High Stakes Affects Teaching and Learning

In their analysis of ‘assessment and accountability in Kentucky’ Betty Lou Whitford and Ken Jones describe one of the better known and contentious large scale approaches to educational reform. The 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) is one of the most pervasive and radical policies for systemic educational change ever enacted. At the basis of KERA is a performance-based approach to assessment that forms the basis of an accountability system intended to compel teachers to elicit higher levels of student learning. As Whitford and Jones point out, what is really being tested in Kentucky is the effectiveness of a change strategy predicated on student performance assessment and high stakes accountability. Using a blend of description and analysis, Whitford and Jones, outline the main components of KERA and assess its impact on curriculum, teaching and learning. They paint a picture full of ambivalence and compromise, where there is ambivalence over whether it is the school or the student that is being assessed, and where learning and achievement are fundamentally confused. Although ‘high stakes’ has focused attention on important questions related to teaching and learning, Whitford and Jones conclude that “accountability that reduces school quality to a numeric formula is over-simplified and ill-suited to evaluating many important aspects of schooling”

Schools as Knowledge Work Organizations: Perspectives and Implications from the New Management Literature.

The authors argue that the knowledge work metaphor is the most powerful image of schools for understanding reform. Using themes from the new management literature, such as shared decision making, collegiality, innovation, and experimentation, as additional guides for school improvement, the authors develop a case for systemic reform based on the professionalization of teaching and the integration of theory, research, and practice, Finally, transformational leadership is presented as the key to facilitating systemic reform.

Linking Career Ladders withdemonstration Scholls A proposed Cooperatice model

Many recent proposals aimed at the enhancement of American education have included emphasis on identification of master teachers. In this article, the authors define a three-step career ladder linked with a plan for the improvement of teaching. Additionally, Kapel and colleagues propose the establishment of demonstration schools and classrooms staffed by teachers who could fulfill the role of master and mentor educators within a school district.