Working on the Work: An Action Plan for Teachers, Principals, and Superintendents (Jossey-Bass Education) [Paperback]

Phillip C. Schlechty (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 29, 2002 | ISBN-10: 0787961655 | ISBN-13: 978-0787961657 | Edition: 1

Is the work you give students engaging--enabling them to learn what they need to learn in order to succeed in the world? Maverick educator Phillip Schlechty believes that the key to improving education is to improve the quality of this student work. He calls this "Working the Work" (WOW), and he's developed a framework that allows educators to put the WOW principles into practice.

Beginning with 12 essential components of a WOW school, Schlechty suggests ways to improve the quality of content, organization of knowledge, measurement of achievement, nurturance of creativity, and novelty and variety of tasks. In addition, you'll get:
* Practical guidelines for re-designing classroom activity so that more students are highly engaged in schoolwork
* Clear and compelling standards for assessing student work
You'll also make clear connections between what students are doing and what they are expected to produce as you gain insight into the roles of teachers, principals, and superintendents--and, how they individually and collectively play a part in the WOW process.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...may help boost student achievement..." (Childhood Education, Spring 2003)

"I found a wealth of practical suggestions..." (The School Administrator, March 2003)

"Working on the Work may help boost student achievement by motivating educators to redesign the pattern of students' work...." (Childhood Education, Spring 2003)

"Working on the Work provides an instructional model for teachers to use in devising their curricula." (The Indianapolis Star, August 6, 2003)

Review

"Authentic student engagement in meaningful classroom work is the key to accountability. If teachers work-on-the-work, accountability will take care of itself. Thanks, Phil Schlecthy, for illuminating the way for all concerned educators and parents." —Lawrence W. Lezotte, educational consultant and commentator, and author, Learning for All, The Effective Schools Process

"Schlechty takes everything he knows about education, places it in a user-friendly format, and delivers it to the schoolhouse. This book is such a valuable tool that I plan to discuss it, line by line, with my teachers." —Judy Love, principal, Hayden Elementary School, Hayden, Indiana

"Any teacher who is interested in providing an authentically engaging classroom should embrace and utilize Phil Schlechty's WOW philosophy. It is an invaluable guide for teachers to become leaders and designers of quality lessons that facilitate student engagement and success. —Kristin Barton, teacher, Gardenhill Elementary, La Mirada, California

"Once again Dr. Schlechty provides a must-read to the professional educator who is serious about improving and sustaining public education in our country." —Ann Denlinger, superintendent, Durham Public Schools, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (April 29, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787961655
• ISBN-13: 978-0787961657
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #19,913 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #65 in Books > Business & Investing > Reference

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Working on the Work, March 10, 2006

By 

Michael H. Cheney "mcheney" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Working on the Work: An Action Plan for Teachers, Principals, and Superintendents (Jossey-Bass Education) (Paperback)

The thesis of the author, offer students work that is meaningful and engaging, is a paradigm shift. The usual way of improving students' experience in the classroom is to offer professional development seminars to teachers so that they might become better educators. However, Schlechty shifts the focus away from improving instruction to working on the work that we require students to do.

I thought the book was convincing of its proposal and an approach that educators need to work on. My only disappointment with the book is that the author did not offer any examples of what "engaging" work might look like. Educators often are bombarded with "theory" and little "practical" examples - which would have been great to have in an Appendix. It is in the "practical" that the book is lacking. Yet, it is a great read and a revolutionary approach.

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Edu-speak, December 2, 2005

By 

Raggedhand (Texas) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Working on the Work: An Action Plan for Teachers, Principals, and Superintendents (Jossey-Bass Education) (Paperback)

This is the sort of book school administrators love and teachers hate. It's long on vague, lofty sounding goals and absolutely no specifics to help teachers get there. What teacher wouldn't want to be more engaging? Who wouldn't want to inspire their students? Simply stating "be more engaging" doesn't get a teacher there any more than the teacher telling their student to "be smarter". But admin types love Schlechty's program. It puts the burden on the teacher to "work smarter, not harder...", "work the work" and "be more engaging and entertaining", and absolves students, parents and administrators from any responsibility for student improvement.

I'd like to see specifics. And I'd like to see specific approaches backed up by hard research that will tell me the approach works. I haven't seen that yet, not in this book or any of the other 1,000 wunderkinds that run around the educational establishment spouting the latest miracle makeover.

But I'm an optimist. I'm still looking for any information that will help me become a better teacher, information that's backed by experience and hard, objective research showing measurable results. I didn't see it here....

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Theory is good..Practice needs to come from teachers, October 25, 2006

By 

Just the Facts (TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Working on the Work: An Action Plan for Teachers, Principals, and Superintendents (Jossey-Bass Education) (Paperback)

Schlechty's Shaking Up the Schoolhouse is the parent to Working on the Work. Both books make the effort to provide information and put forth a different perspective. It's disheartening to read the reactionary comments from educators who are familiar with Schlechty and the WOW book. When is the blame shifting going to stop? How long will teachers focus on all the things they cannot control instead of on the things they can? Nothing gives a teacher more freedom by administrators than success. By shifting our focus to what we give our students to work on, we do work smarter, which brings more joy to the passion for kids that led us to teaching. Teaching the same way we always have is why we continue to have a 30% drop out rate at the high school level(and rising). The book does not say that no teachers want to be more engaging. It simply gives a framework for improving the tasks that we assign our students. If you don't like your job, get out! Education has to continue to make the paradigm shifts needed if we are to expect a responsible, informed citizenry. Here are the facts:

-Research tells us that the engagement precedes learning. Without authentic attention and investment, true and deep learning does not occur.

-Research tells us that a variety of tasks and instructional delivery is required to meet the needs of the variety of learners in any given classroom.

-Research tells us that the most effective teachers are those who are risk-takers in the classroom and make great effort to connect personally with their students.

-Research tells us that last year's lessons won't necessarily work with this year's students.

Any job you take will be evaluated, be it education or not. If we, as teachers, do not continue to reflect on the kinds of work we give our students, then we are simply a warm body in the classroom. What's the great harm in looking more closely at our lesson design and thinking outside the box? I say this book is an interesting read that can encourage any educator to take stock of what is happening in their classroom. Open your lessons up for some reflection and criticism. That's the only way we can grow as educators.