Annotated Bibliography

Barth, Roland. Improving Schools from Within.

This book on improvement lead by teachers and principals is highly readable. It focuses on the development of a "community of learners" and articulately discusses how teachers and principals can work together to improve the school. The book lists specific ways to work together, learn together, and improve together. The sections on becoming a community of learners and leaders describes how schools can articulate goals, provide authority to teachers, and engage everyone in a dialogue about what's important. This book is especially useful for schools who wish to start to collaborate and want a practical and clearly written book on the subject.

Deal, Terrence, and Peterson, Kent. The Principal's Role in Shaping School Culture. OERI: U.S. Department of Education.

This book describes ways that school principals shape school culture. While focusing on the school principal, specific examples of how teachers and students can develop rituals, traditions, and ceremonies that support collaboration are given. Leadership roles such symbol, potter, poet, actor, and healer are described and illustrated. This book is particularly useful to understand the idea of school culture. It gives concrete case studies and examples of cultures in different settings.

Fullan, Michael, and Hargreaves, Andy. What's Worth Fighting For: Working Together for Your School.

Fullan and Hargreaves have written an enormously useful book about collaborating in schools. The book details the problems of collaboration in schools, the research on the topic, and specific guidelines to help teachers and others develop better collaboration. Core topics are the problems of collaboration, developing teachers who are professionals, and shaping collaborative school cultures.

Johnson, Susan Moore. Teachers at Work: Achieving Success in Our Schools.

This study uses interviews and other data about teachers and their work to describe how schools can support quality work settings for teachers. It is a rich study of how teachers view their work and the problems in building collaborative schools. Filled with excellent examples and quotes from teachers, it provides a complete picture of the work of teachers. Johnson describes the problems of collaboration, but also lists many of the advantages. This book provides useful background to anyone interested in a broader understanding of teachers in their schools.

Little, Judith. "Norms of Collegiality and Experimentation: Workplace Conditions of School Success."

This article is the classic study of collegiality among teachers. Based on research in many schools, this study found norms of collegiality and improvement to be important to school success. It is especially useful to see where many of the ideas of collegiality and collaboration originated.

Lortie, Dean. Schoolteacher.

Schoolteacher identifies three basic orientations of teachers: conservatism, individualism, and presentism. He details the history and development of teaching as an occupation and the problems of the complexity and uncertainty of teaching. This book is particularly helpful for understanding the history of teaching and the demands of teaching as an occupation.

Louis, Karen, and Miles, Matthew. Improving the Urban High School: What Works and Why.

This study is one of the most widely read examinations of school improvement in urban settings. Based on data collected in urban schools, the book provides case studies of successful school improvement in several high schools. The second part of the book details features of school improvement found in these schools. Both case studies and features of school improvement can be read independently. Each is an excellent source of ideas and concrete examples. While it focuses on urban high schools, this book also can provide insights and useful ideas for schools at any level.

Maeroff, Gene L. Team Building for School Change: Equipping Teachers for New Roles.

This book provides specific ways for schools to use teams to support change and improvement. Clearly written and well organized, the book provides useful suggestions as well as guidelines for working together. Specific chapters deal with selecting teams, bonding and growing, time, and obstacles to overcome. (In addition, a shortened version of this book and its ideas was published in the March 1993 Phi Delta Kappan.)

Rosenholtz, Susan. Teachers' Workplace: The Social Organization of Schools.

This study of schools, teachers, and leadership describes the importance of teachers' working together as professionals. The insightful descriptions of teachers advances our understanding of collaboration among teachers in schools. This book provides useful data and research-based knowledge.

Bibliography on Restructuring.

This bibliography on school restructuring is available from the Center on Organization and Restructuring of Schools, University of Wisconsin-Madison (WCER 1025 W. Johnson St., Madison, WI 53706). Providing several hundred citations to useful readings on school restructuring, curriculum and instructional reform, the professional life of teachers, school governance, and collaboration with the community, this list is one of the best available.