I Used to Think ... And Now I Think ... : Twenty Leading Educators Reflect on the Work of School Reform, Jun/2011

This book’s title, I Used to Think . . . And Now I Think . . ., is borrowed from an exercise often used at the end of teacher professional development sessions, in which participants write down how what they’ve learned has changed their thinking. The resulting essays model the ongoing process of reflection and growth among those deeply committed to this work.

In this compact volume, Richard F. Elmore invites leading educators at every level of school reform—teachers, administrators, policymakers, school founders, community organizers, union leaders, teacher educators—to share their intimate reflections on the personal experiences and intellectual journeys that have shaped their practice.

Contributors include Jean Anyon, Ernesto J. Cortés Jr., Rudy Crew, Larry Cuban, Howard Gardner, Beverly L. Hall, Thomas Hehir, Jeffrey R. Henig, Frederick M. Hess, Deborah Jewell-Sherman, Brad Jupp, Dennis Littky, Deborah Meier, Ron Miller, Sonia Nieto, Charles M. Payne, Larry Rosenstock, Mark Simon, and Marshall S. Smith.

Praise

"I used to think that our best education researchers, policy analysts, policy makers, and practitioners were too busy with their own work to indulge in honest and reflective reconsideration of their positions and opinions. And now I think, thanks to this extraordinary volume, that our field is blessed with scholars and educators whose honesty, modesty, and capacity for self-correction establish ever stronger foundations for optimism about the future of our work and its relevance to the future of our schools."
— Michael J. Feuer, dean, Graduate School of Education and Human Development, George Washington University

"Reflection and learning from experience can change the ways educators think in real time about how to improve the work of school reform. A must-read for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers."
— Thomas W. Payzant, professor of practice, Harvard Graduate School of Education

About the Editor:
Richard F. Elmore is the Gregory R. Anrig Professor of Educational Leadership at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.