Ciaran Sugrue is Reader in Leadership and School Improvement in the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge.

This timely book provides a systematic overview and critique of contemporary approaches to educational change from some of the best-known writers and scholars in the field.

Section 1: Educational Change: For Better or For Worse? 1. Researching Change: The long and the short of it all 2. These may be good times: an argument that things are getting better 3. Towards a Single Hegemonic Model of Transfer of educational policy? Section 2: Educational Change: Lessons from Home and Away 4. U.S. School Reforms & Classroom Practice: 1980s-2005 5. Community Organizing for Educational Change: Past Illusions & Future Possibilities 6. New Influences on Policy & Practice in Mature Educational Systems Section 3: Educational Change: Finding New Directions? 7. The Exclusive Pursuit of Social Inclusion? 8. Research as a Tool for Democratizing Educational Policymaking 9. Repositioning and Revitalising City Schools: Who and What makes the difference? Section 4: Educational Change: Linking Research, Policy & Practice 10. Implementation research in education: Lessons learned; new opportunities for research, policy and practice 11. Harnessing The Power of the Knowledge Society: Possibilities & Prospects for Education Policy & Teacher Practice 12. Learning to Lead: Teachers in the Forefront