Building Equitable Collaborations with Families and Communities
Just Schools examines the challenges and possibilities for building more equitable forms of collaboration among nondominant families, communities, and schools. The text explores how equitable collaboration entails ongoing processes that begin with families and communities, transform power, build reciprocity and agency, and foster collective capacity through collective inquiry. These processes offer promising possibilities for improving student learning, transforming educational systems, and developing robust partnerships that build on the resources, expertise, and cultural practices of nondominant families. Based on empirical research and inquiry-driven practice, this book describes core concepts and provides multiple examples of effective practices.
Core Features for Educational Leaders
This resource broadens the dominant conception of leadership to include traditionally marginalized parents and communities as potential educational leaders. The book explores partnerships from both a systemwide and in-school basis, with detailed portraits of what is possible in diverse educational settings.
The text translates theoretical principles at multiple scales: systemic, school, and individual practice. Educational administrators, teachers, and community organizers will find actionable strategies for enacting equitable collaboration with families across different contexts.
Research-Based Approaches
The book shares studies focused on a broad range of contexts, strategies, and practices for enacting equitable collaboration with families. Each chapter provides empirical evidence supporting the effectiveness of inquiry-driven approaches to family engagement. The research demonstrates how these collaborative practices improve student learning outcomes while simultaneously transforming educational systems.
Practical Applications
Educational leaders will discover concrete examples of how to build reciprocity and agency with nondominant families. The book addresses the cultural practices and expertise that families bring to educational partnerships, offering frameworks for recognizing and leveraging these assets. Strategies for developing collective capacity through collective inquiry are detailed throughout the text.
