The School Leaders Our Children Deserve: Seven Keys to Equity, Social Justice, and School Reform

Citation

Cabezas, C. (2010), "The School Leaders Our Children Deserve: Seven Keys to Equity, Social Justice, and School Reform", Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. 48 No. 3, pp. 425-429. https://doi.org/10.1108/09578231011041125

Justice and what it takes to practice justice ‐ belief in a better way, persistence and confidence to know it is attainable, humility to question oneself, and a spirit of collective action summarizes the purpose of The School Leaders Our Children Deserve: Seven Keys to Equity, Social Justice, and School Reform by George Theoharis (p. ix). Theoharis identified a gap in the literature between understanding social justice teaching and fieldwork that analyzed the work of principals who practiced social justice leadership. This book allows the reader to look into the personal and professional lives of seven principals –three elementary and four secondary – who (p. xi):

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  led a public school;

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  possessed a belief that promoting social justice was a driving force behind what brought him or her to a leadership position;

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  advocated, led, and kept at the center of his or her practice/vision issues of race, class, gender, language, disability, sexual orientation, and/or other historically marginalizing conditions; and

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  had evidence to show his or her work had produced a more just school.

This book consists of ten chapters organized around three key features of social justice leadership (SJL) (pp. 11‐12): a portrayal of how real school leaders seek, succeed, and continue to struggle to create more just and equitable schools; a framework for understanding social justice leadership; and seven “keys” to social justice leadership to help leaders create better schools. In Chapter 1, “School leadership and social justice”, the author provides an overview of the reality seven principals experience as they encounter social barriers that effect historically marginalized students and their will and commitment to overcome injustice and student failure. Theoharis outlines the most common barriers to school success by recognizing the effects of poverty, racism, and differential educational opportunities for students who are in special education, English‐language learners (ELL), and those who are segregated through tracking practices. In support of this claim, he offers evidence of how students of color, low socio‐economic status, and non‐English speaking students are achieving and/or graduating at lower rates than their White peers. Theoharis contends that the pressure of accountability for closing the achievement gap produces knee‐jerk reactions by school administrators which in turn increase segregation, remedial, or tracking practices, retention, and other “separate” programs rather than addressing teaching and learning at its core, equitable access to a rigorous curriculum, and the climate of schools.

Chapter 2, “The Seven social justice principals and their schools”, introduces the seven principals in this study and describes the pathway that lead each of them to their calling to SJL, their approach to leadership, and some of the roadblocks they faced in their pursuit for social justice. Six of the seven principals are white and the other is Asian; consisting of three women and four men. The author provides a breakdown of student demographics in each of their schools. “There is no social justice without inclusion: advancing inclusion, access, and opportunity for all” is the title of Chapter 3. Theoharis examines the historical circumstance of inclusive schooling and how the inclusion movement should cross over into other marginalized students (race, class, language, and disabilities) to promote social justice by eliminating programs and structures that segregate students and ultimately hamper their learning. Reform and structural changes invoked by the seven principals is discussed in great detail and divided into four strategies for creating an inclusive and socially just school to include: eliminating pullout and separate programs, increase academic rigor and access to opportunities, increase student learning time, and increase accountability for the achievement of all students. The author found that by enacting these four strategies, learning for the traditionally marginalized student population was significantly impacted.

In Chapter 4, “Changing how we teach, what we teach, and how we approach schooling: improving the core learning context” the author suggests that while providing access, inclusion, and opportunities to all students creates greater equity, that alone is insufficient for advancing student achievement (p. 46) “if the curriculum is inadequate and the teachers do not have the will or skills to reach each student”. This chapter provides first‐hand accounts of how each of the principals addressed curricular and teacher issues as instructional leaders of their school and the integral steps they used to create a more professional teaching staff who are equipped to reach all children. Through the detailed examples of how each of the principals used various strategies in their school, the reader is given an opportunity to reframe their understanding of how addressing curricular and instructional issues and empowering teachers to make important decisions are essential components of SJL.

Chapter 5, “Connecting and respecting: creating a climate of belonging”, emphasizes that (p. 62) “with an increased focus on heightened accountability and improving test scores, less attention is paid to creating schools that students, staff, and families enjoy and in which they feel connected”. The five strategies used by the principals to create a climate of belonging are outlined under the following sub‐headings: build a warm and welcoming school climate, foster community building in each classroom, reach out intentionally to the community and marginalized families, incorporate social responsibility into the school curriculum, and use a proactive and process approach to discipline. This chapter advances the author's notion that (p. 76) “many school leaders mourn the lack of involvement of families in schools, particularly from low‐income families and families of color”, and yet many principals continue to communicate with students, parents, and communities by traditional means. The strategies discussed here provide school leaders with innovative options, which requires purposeful and intentional acts to create a feeling of belonging and a sense of community within their organization.

Chapter 6, “Closing the achievement gap: toward a theory of socially just school reform” extends the theme of chapters 3, 4, and 5. This chapter provides an overview of the significant improvement students made who were in the traditionally underperforming subgroups; students of color, students in special education, low socioeconomic class, and ELL students. Theoharis considers how the traditional response to school improvement perpetuates the narrowing of the curriculum, tracking and/or separate programs, and drill type practices. Understanding that a paradigm shift is necessary in school improvement efforts to increase student achievement, this chapter blends the combination of strategies used to increase access to core learning, improving the core learning context, and creating a climate of belonging as the means to bolster student achievement.

The purpose of Chapter 7, “At every turn: the barriers faced by social justice principals”, is to develop a better understanding of the historical, political, and educational barriers these principals faced on their journey for creating more socially just schools. Using the voice of the principals, the barriers they were confronted with at the school site, the district level, and the institutional level were communicated. While they were faced with the pressures and realities of the vast duties and responsibilities of the principalship, negative beliefs systems from staff, tensions from privileged parents, bureaucracy, lack of support from central office administrators and other colleagues, lack of resources, state and federal regulations, and their preparation for the principalship, these principals made what some believe impossible become “possible”. Although the consequences of advancing social justice affected these principals both professionally and personally, they remained committed to the calling of creating equitable and socially just schools.

Sustainability, both professionally and personally, leads the reader into Chapter 8, “Saving my sanity: the resilience that leaders develop to sustain justice and equity”. Theoharis goes beyond identifying barriers SJL face but delivers two kinds of strategies principals in this study used to enable them to (p. 113) “sustain their work to create more just and equitable schools”. Beginning with professional strategies, the principals describe approaches they used to advance their professional work toward social justice. The professional strategies included communicating purposefully and authentically, developing a supportive administrative network, working together for change, keeping their eyes on the prize, prioritizing their work, engaging in professional learning, and building relationships. The second strategy the principals felt were necessary to create sustainability in their pursuit for social justice was along the personal realm, one where they identified six personal coping strategies: prioritize life outside school, use mindful diversions, accept outside validation, engage in regular physical activity, provide for others, and employ potentially harmful behaviors. Theoharis concludes this chapter by clearly stating (p. 127) “the strategies the principals reported do not represent a checklist for current and future social justice leaders to complete so they may counter the resistance they face”. The intent of this chapter is to promote the idea that when principals face resistance and barriers in their pursuit toward social justice, one must find strategies both professionally and personally that will help them maintain their vision in conjunction with their emotional and physical well being.

Chapter 9, “The intricacies and details: consciousness, knowledge, skills, and core traits of social justice leaders”, addresses the first two keys to social justice leadership, which is central to the school leader:

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   Key 1 – acquire a broad, reconceptualized consciousness/knowledge/skills base; and

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   Key 2 – possess core leadership traits.

The author brilliantly separated social justice consciousness and relevant knowledge and skills into sub‐headings and blended each with ideas previously discussed in chapters 3, 4, and 5. This format intentionally fosters a better understanding that being conscious of social injustices is not enough but what these principals did to enact upon this injustices to reform, restructure, and shift once acceptable paradigms requires relevant knowledge and skills. Finally, the author describes the commonalities in leadership traits these principals possessed. In the description of each principal, they each have noticeably different leadership styles and personalities. Theoharis explains that although they are different (p. 143) “they all possess common leadership traits that are central to their social justice work”. The three common leadership traits are categorized as arrogant humility, passionate vision, and tenacious commitment to justice. He contends that these three leadership traits in combination with a broad consciousness/knowledge/skill base (p. 149) “were central to these principals' work and identity as a school leader”.

The final chapter, “But that's just good leadership: lessons and directions for social justice leadership” suggests that the seven keys grounding the framework for social justice leadership begins with the leader who (p. 150) “recognizes and works to change the injustice present at the school”. Each of the seven keys should not be used as a checklist but rather it should provide options that can be employed to promote change to create socially just schools. The author offers lessons learned when operationalizing the ideas and practices of social justice leaders. First and foremost, Theoharis points out that one must “believe” that creating equitable schools is possible. The author did more than provide strategies that social justice leaders used in pursuit of creating socially just schools but he also provides evidence of the great strides these schools made and how they continue to achieve their vision against all odds. In conclusion, Theoharis lays out the distinct differences between what is traditionally viewed as good leadership and a social justice leader. He finishes by stating that the description of SJL described in this book (p. 161) “gives vivid examples of what is possible, what is necessary, and what is good – socially just‐leadership”.

Theoharis does a beautiful job at marrying research with practical application that can be utilized by school administrators. School leaders will want to read this book to discover how principals who are social justice leaders increase student achievement through measurable attainment of justice and equity in their schools, barriers they faced and their consequences, and strategies used to continue their endeavor with commitment and sustainability to themselves and their students. Researchers in higher education and practitioners in the K‐12 setting will find The School Leaders Our Children Deserve: Seven Keys to Equity, Social Justice, and School Reform an emotionally and professionally challenging, yet rewarding read. It causes the reader to question inequities found at all levels of education and the educator's role in overcoming the perplexity of school reform in pursuit of creating socially just schools. This book does more than provide a deeper understanding of social justice leadership but it also provides realistic strategies for principals who are innovative and are willing to expand their knowledge and skills in the interest of student achievement for traditionally marginalized students. All students who are in the public education system deserve to have their teachers, school counselors, paraprofessionals, media specialists, school‐level administrators, and system‐level administrators read this book to understand and believe that social justice and equity in schools is a real possibility when pursued with deep commitment, passion, and the knowledge and skills to take action.