CEHD Dean Larson co-chairing Presidential Session on educational reform

University of Louisville College of Education and Human Development Dean Ann Larson is co-chair of an April 11 Presidential Session at the 2016 American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting in Washington, DC. [caption id="attachment_29099" align="alignleft" width="291"] Dean Larson[/caption] The gathering draws more than 14,000 educational researchers, faculty, deans, and higher education administrators worldwide. The session, “The Power of Public Scholarship to Transform Policy and Practice,” will feature four recipients of the University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award in Education — Linda Darling-Hammond, Michael Fullan, Andy Hargreaves and Diane Ravitch — for a panel discussion about their award-winning ideas and experiences working with policymakers and practitioners to prompt educational change. Valerie Strauss, education reporter for The Washington Post and session co-chair, will moderate the discussion. [caption id="attachment_28996" align="alignleft" width="230"] Darling-Hammond[/caption] Darling-Hammond received the 2012 Grawemeyer Award for her book, “The Flat World and Education: How America’s Commitment to Equity Will Determine Our Future,” in which she presents her theory that the United States no longer leads the world in education because it spends far less on low-income and minority students than it does on affluent students. Her research showed that although nations in Europe and Asia fund schools centrally and equally, the wealthiest American school districts spend nearly 10 times more than the poorest.   [caption id="attachment_28997" align="alignleft" width="234"] Ravitch[/caption] Ravitch’s book, “The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education,” earned her the 2014 Grawemeyer Award.  The work chronicles her decades-long journey from reform advocate to critic and encourages a return to school curriculums that value art, literature, creativity and problem solving.       [caption id="attachment_29220" align="alignleft" width="300"] Hargreaves and Fullan[/caption] Hargreaves and Fullan received the 2015 Grawemeyer Award in Education for ideas outlined in their book, “Professional Capital: Transforming Teaching in Every School.” They found that placing teachers in a team environment that encourages individual contributions, group interactions and continuous learning is a more effective approach than using performance-based education models to reward or punish individual teachers. UofL presents the annual Grawemeyer Awards for outstanding works in music composition, ideas improving world order, psychology and education and gives a religion prize jointly with Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Feature photo courtesy of Flickr