Empowering Ourselves and Transforming Schools

Judith W. Irwin is Professor in the School of Education at the University of Connecticut. She is the author of Teaching Reading Comprehension Processes, co-author, with I. Baker, of Promoting Active Reading Comprehension Strategies and is the editor of Reading/Writing Connections: Learning from Research and Understanding and Teaching Cohesion Comprehension.

"This book is a practical guide to empowering oneself and others. It will help readers to make significant changes in their educational settings. In an age of shared decision-making and site-based management, there is confusion about power and leadership. Educators are expected to be empowered but often find it difficult to shift into these roles." — Nancy Mangano Rowe, State University of New York at New Paltz"After an excellent analysis of the factors that cause teachers to feel isolated and powerless, and a clear outline of the predictable effects of this powerlessness on their students, the author presents effective strategies for change. The book is well written and carefully researched. It contains logical and inspiring suggestions for problem-solving, action agendas, and personal and professional growth." — Harriet Alger, Director of the Miller Research Learning Center, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania

• List of Activities List of Tables Acknowledgments Introduction Part One: Understanding the System of Domination 1. Understanding Empowerment2. How Educators Experience Domination3. How Students Experience Domination Part Two: Envisioning a System of Empowerment 4. An Empowering Education5. Knowledge as Power6. Literacy as Power Part Three: Empowering Ourselves 7. Self-Empowerment8. Creating Empowering Communities9. Teachers Speak for Themselves10. Empowerment and Education: Past, Present and Future Appendix A: Interview Questions and Sample Interview Protocol Appendix B: Pebbles Along the Path: On the Process of Becoming a Teacher-Researcher, Cheryl S. Timion Bibliography Index