Computer Literacy for School Administrators and Supervisors, by Stephen Radin and Harold M. Greenberg (Lexington Books, D.C. Heath and Company, 125 Spring St., Lexington, Mass. 02173; 279 pages, $27.95).
This volume is intended to be a handbook for educators who have the responsibility for implementing programs to expand the uses of computers in the classroom. The authors guide the reader in such areas as: preparing to purchase a computer, involving school personnel and community members, financing the acquisition of computers, deciding on effective classroom instruction, and assessing national trends in the uses of computers. Includes appendixes on commercial software vendors, computer magazines, computer-hardware vendors, and existing school programs. Mr. Radin is a computer-education coordinator in the New York City school system, where ‘Mr. Greenberg is a teacher.
The Good High School: Portraits of Character and Culture, by Sara Lawrence Lightfoot (Basic Books Inc. Publishers, 10 East 53rd St., New York, N.Y. 10022; 416 pages, $19.95).
Based on a three-year study of six American high schools--two inner-city schools, two upper-middle-class suburban schools, and two preparatory schools--the author takes the reader into each school to discover how educational success is defined and achieved in a variety of socioeconomic settings. Concerned primarily with the concept of “goodness,” the author attempts to paint a picture of the ways it is expressed in various school settings. Good high schools, she writes, reveal a “sustained and visible ideological stance” that guards them against societal intrusions and have other characteristics that contribute to their success as institutions of learning. Ms. Lightfoot teaches at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education.
Guides and Directories
Evaluating the Performance of Trustees and School Heads, by Eric W. Johnson (National Association of Independent Schools, 18 Tremont St., Boston, Mass. 02108; 59 pages, paper $8).
Intended for private-school administrators, this book provides a rationale for the evaluation of trustees’ and school heads’ performance as a key to improving independent schools. Examples of evaluation programs and a section on handling special situations and problems are included.
1983-1984 Directory of Facilities and Services for the Learning Disabled, 10th Edition (Academic Therapy Publications, 20 Commercial Blvd., Novato, Calif. 94947-6191; 111 pages, paper $1).
A listing, organized by state, of facilities and services for the learning disabled in the U.S. and Canada, this directory includes addresses, phone numbers, staff members’ names, and specific descriptive information about each facility and its programs. For educators who work with the learning disabled, this book also includes a section on tests and assessments for identifying learning styles and needs, a section on sources of specialized material on learning disabilities, and an index of advertisers.
Other Resources
Education Under Study, An Analysis of Recent Major Reports on Education, developed by J. Lynn Griesemer and Cornelius Butler (Northeast Regional Exchange Inc., 160 Turnpike Rd., Chelmsford, Mass. 01824; 72 pages, paper $5).
This book provides an analysis and comparison of eight major reports on education, including “A Nation At Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform” and “A Study of High Schools.” Prepared by a private, nonprofit corporation that functions as a service and research agency promoting educational equity and improvement in New England, the volume includes an annotated bibliography of additional reports.
Understanding the New Right and Its Impact on Education, by Joe L. Kincheloe (Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation, Eighth and Union, Box 789, Bloomington, Ind. 47402; 41 pages, paper, 75 cents (60 cents for members).
Tracing the emergence of the New Right (dating from the Kanawha County, W.Va., textbook controversy) and its impact on the classroom, the author points out that controversy over values is a reality because of the ideological diversity of the United States. He suggests that educators stop “reacting emotionally” to conservative forces and instead ask logical questions about the meaning of the movement.--Anne Bridgman
