The New Imperatives of Educational Change is a clarion call to move
beyond the standardized testing and marketplace competition that have
become pervasive in school systems to focus instead on creating the
conditions that will encourage all students to become critical and
independent thinkers. Dennis Shirley presents five new imperatives to
guide educators and policymakers towards a re-thinking of what it means
to teach effectively and to learn in depth. The evidentiary imperative
requires educators to attain a better grasp of what data actually reveal
about international trends in student learning. The interpretive
imperative encourages mindful deliberation before acting on evidence
in order to promote the integrity of a school community. The
professional imperative describes new international research findings
on promising pedagogies and curricula that propel learning in new
directions. The global imperative argues that we all must look beyond
our national boundaries to improve the flourishing of all young people,
wherever they may be found. Finally, the existential imperative
reminds us that students look to their teachers as role models who can
dignify learning with meaning and embellish life with joy. Visionary in
its scope and practical in its details, The New Imperatives of
Educational Change is an indispensable road map for all teachers,
principals, and system leaders.
