Schools were originally designed to provide “opportunity” to learn and used the “bell-curve” to gauge their success. The expectations have changed and schools are required to make sure all children learn, but the systems, core processes, and management styles that have always driven teaching and learning have not. New programs and curriculum cannot just be added onto these outdated classroom interrelationships and be expected to produce different results. Now, by managing with W. Edwards Deming’s Theory of Profound Knowledge, science educators can improve their systems and achieve the needed results. Deming’s management theories created Japan’s “Industrial Miracle” in the 1970s by improving quality and employee morale, while decreasing costs. It is a philosophy that focuses on experimentation and allows the people who do the work to provide input into improving the work. This book shows science teachers how to apply that same philosophy to engage students in the improvement process to increase learning and enthusiasm, while decreasing failure. Combined with the latest brain and educational research, it will enlighten, empower, and engage teachers and students to continuously improve their classroom. In this second edition of Continuous Improvement in the Science Classroom, Jeffrey Burgard shares new learning and insights from the last 10 years of workshop facilitation and his own classroom experience. He delves deeper into the philosophy, clarifies each improvement process, and reveals new, highly effective applications. Each process transforms different aspects of the classroom and, when implemented concurrently, creates a dynamic, continuously improving learning system. It is time to have an “educational miracle” — science classrooms with high standards, high achievement, and high enthusiasm.

As a field, education has largely failed to learn from experience. Time after time, promising education reforms fall short of their goals and are abandoned as other promising ideas take their place. In Learning to Improve, the authors argue for a new approach. Rather than “implementing fast and learning slow,” they believe educators should adopt a more rigorous approach to improvement that allows the field to “learn fast to implement well.” Using ideas borrowed from improvement science, the authors show how a process of disciplined inquiry can be combined with the use of networks to identify, adapt, and successfully scale up promising interventions in education. Organized around six core principles, the book shows how “networked improvement communities” can bring together researchers and practitioners to accelerate learning in key areas of education. Examples include efforts to address the high rates of failure among students in community college remedial math courses and strategies for improving feedback to novice teachers. Learning to Improve offers a new paradigm for research and development in education that promises to be a powerful driver of improvement for the nation’s schools and colleges.

By implementing a system of total quality management which focuses on continuous improvement of the education system, Continuous Improvement in the History and Social Science Classroom shows how to generate academic improvement, promote student self responsibility, and increase enthusiasm toward learning. Divided into two sections, the book first introduces the tools and philosophies used throughout. Section two offers practical suggestions for using these tools and philosophies. Featuring many examples, stories, and exercises, this book is ideal for any teacher. Continuous Improvement in the Classroom The books of ASQ's Continuous Improvement in the Classroom Series, edited by Lee Jenkins, emphasize the use of quality principles in education, each focusing on a specific classroom subject. MathematicsLanguage ArtsScience

A 2022 SPE Outstanding Book Honorable Mention Teaching Improvement Science in Educational Leadership: A Pedagogical Guide presents the reader with a range of pedagogies from a variety of viewpoints and approaches. The book provides a holistic picture for how one might develop stakeholder competency and capacity with improvement science as a signature problem-solving methodology for educational leaders. And while there are books that provide foundational knowledge on the field of improvement science (including the list of titles from Myers Education Press), this book differs in that it presents varying approaches for teaching others about improvement science. For those who want to develop the methodology but who need resources, the book provides the illustrations, examples, and other concrete applications so that those involved in teaching the subject matter can connect foundational knowledge of improvement to the applied context. This book serves as the guide for education leaders who wish to have the know-how for developing the knowledge, skills and dispositions relative to the field of improvement science—the education leader’s signature problem-solving methodology. To learn more about Improvement Science and see our full list of books in this area, please click through to the Myers Education Press Improvement Science website. Perfect for courses such as: Introduction to Improvement Science | Educational Research for Administrators | Introduction to Program Evaluation | Action Research for School Practitioners | Educational Research | School Improvement | Teacher Leadership

Improvement Science in Education: A Primer provides a comprehensive overview of improvement science as a framework to guide continuous improvement and reconceptualizes improvement by centering equity and justice as the purpose of improvement. This Primer is designed to introduce improvement science, a methodology with origins in manufacturing, engineering and healthcare, to educational audiences. The book first explores the philosophical and methodological foundations of improvement science, juxtaposing it with traditional forms of research so that clear distinctions can be drawn. Chapters in the latter half of the book introduce the principles of improvement, give guidance and tools for operationalizing the principles in practice, and conclude with questions to ensure you are improving with equity in mind. Constantly reminding readers to think about who is involved and impacted, the Primer makes improvement science accessible to novices and adds critical dimensions for experienced practitioners to consider. Perfect for courses such as: Educational Research, School Improvement, and Program Evaluation

Continuous Improvement in High Schools gives educators and policymakers an accessible, actionable framework to address one of the nation's most important educational priorities: improving high school graduation and postsecondary preparedness rates. Martha Abele Mac Iver and Robert Balfanz, national experts in dropout prevention, apply the Carnegie Foundation’s continuous improvement framework to the issue of student success in high school, starting with the critical ninth-grade year. A proven tool for organizational change, the framework provides a systematic structure for examining the root causes of problems and testing possible solutions. Mac Iver and Balfanz draw on their decades of experience working with educators and their deep knowledge of challenges faced by high schools to customize the framework to the high school context. They model the use of improvement science principles such as establishing practical measures, conducting disciplined inquiry, and accelerating learning through networked communities. With real-world examples and ideas for change, the authors show how attention to five key areas can enrich student educational experience and improve high school outcomes. These areas are early warning and intervention systems; family engagement; students’ sense of connectedness to school; social, emotional, and academic development; and teacher instructional practices. The guidance offered in this useful work will enable educators and their collaborating partners to create their own powerful solutions for student success.

Put feedback to work for everyone to make a difference—now Feedback connects, deepens communication, and helps everyone focus on advancing student learning. What if you could use the dimensions and facets of formative feedback in ways that emphasize authenticity, equity, and care for ALL students? Educators Brent Duckor and Carrie Holmberg show you how to plan, enact, and reflect on feedback practices within lessons and across units using an accessible, comprehensive, and innovative framework that illuminates the path towards equity and excellence for all. With evidence-based research and real classroom examples, Feedback for Continuous Improvement in the Classroom answers: What is formative feedback? How does it influence student outcomes and teacher pedagogy? Why are well-defined learning goals, aligned with rich tasks and progress guides, essential to making feedback truly formative? What are essential facets of teacher, peer, and self-driven feedback? How does feedback work best in whole-class, small group, or individual configurations? What can make written, spoken, and nonverbal feedback modalities more effective—for all? How can focusing on feedback improve learning across all subject matter disciplines? Prompts for self-reflection, videos, vignettes, and scaffolds throughout help readers see how effective feedback can be embedded into classrooms and school communities committed to discovery, growth, and deeper learning.