Ability, Equity, and Culture

This comprehensive book is grounded in the authentic experiences of educators who have done, and continue to do, the messy everyday work of transformative school reform. The work of these contributors, in conjunction with research done under the aegis of the National Institute of Urban School Improvement (NIUSI), demonstrates how schools and classrooms can move from a deficit model to a culturally responsive model that works for all learners. To strengthen relationships between research and practice, chapters are coauthored by a practitioner/researcher team and include a case study of an authentic urban reform situation. This volume will help practitioners, reformers, and researchers make use of emerging knowledge and culturally responsive pedagogy to implement reforms that are more congruent with the strengths and needs of urban education contexts.

Elizabeth B. Kozleski chairs the Special Education program at the University of Kansas. She received the TED-Merrill award for her leadership in special education teacher education in 2011. Kathleen King Thorius is an assistant professor of urban special education in Indiana University’s School of Education at IUPUI. She is principal investigator for the Great Lakes Equity Center, a Regional Equity Assistance Center funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

“If you truly care about the serious, research-based pursuit of equity and inclusivity in urban schools, you must read this book.”
—James Joseph Scheurich, Indiana University School of Education, Indianapolis