Tough Choices or Tough Times, the report of the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce, shows how the dynamics of the global economy will lead to a steady decline in the American standard of living if this country does not undertake the first thorough overhaul of its education system in a century. This new revised and expanded version of Tough Choices or Tough Times includes: An updated Introduction A summary of the Commission's proposals Commentaries on the proposals by Denis Doyle, Lawrence Mishel, Michael Petrilli, Diane Ravitch, and Richard Rothstein, with responses from members of the Commission. Tough Choices or Tough Times provides a well-researched analysis of the issues and a compelling set of proposals for changing our system of education.

Contemporary library managers face the need to make difficult choices regarding resource allocation in the modern business environment. How Libraries Make Tough Choices in Difficult Times is a practical guide for library managers, offering techniques to analyze existing and potential services, implement best practices for maximizing existing resources, and utilize pressing financial scenarios in order to justify making difficult reallocation decisions. The book begins by asking the fundamental questions of why, what, and how, moving on to look at how to manage expectations and report to both administration and faculty. The book then considers the four 'D's of Do, Delegate, Delay and Drop, before covering project management, and how to understand the mission and objectives of your organisation. The book then focuses on: service quality improvement analyses; identifying underlying issues; reviewing resources; identifying best practice; managing feedback and expectations; and looking at decision making skills and implications. - Introduces both philosophies and techniques for decision-making that will help inexperienced library managers - Provides resources for a practical orientation to new Service Quality Improvement and Project Management approaches as library managers address a wide range of resource allocation considerations - Written by a highly experienced practitioner in the field

By accepting the CEO job at Hewlett-Packard, an iconic company that had lost its way, Carly Fiorina confirmed her status as the most powerful businesswoman in America. But she also made herself a target for everyone who disliked her bold leadership style and resented her rapid rise. For six years, as she led HP through drastic changes and a controversial merger, Fiorina was the subject of endless analysis, debate, and speculation. She appeared on the cover of every major magazine and her every word was scrutinized. Yet in all that time, the public never got to know the person behind the persona. "Tough Choices" finally reveals the real Carly Fiorina, who writes with brutal honesty about her triumphs and failures, her deepest fears and most painful confrontations - including her sudden and very public firing by HP's board of directors. It's an amazing life story: Fiorina was a liberal arts major and law school dropout who didn't even consider a business career until her midtwenties. But soon she was blazing through big jobs at AT&T and then Lucent Technologies, with a growing reputation as a creative, hard-working, visionary leader. Her career path would have been remarkable for anyone, but in an industry dominated by men, it was unprecedented. "Tough Choices" shows what it's really like to lead a major corporation in a time of great change while trying to stay true to your values. It's one woman's inspiring story, along with her unique perspective on leadership, technology, globalization, sexism, and many other issues.

From lesson-planning to instructional practice to classroom management, teachers must make choices constantly and consistently. Somtimes these decisions are easy, but there are some decisions that are very difficult. Such delicate decisions often arise in the world of education and may be detrimental to one's career. Thoughtful decision-making should be part of every educator's daily experience. In Tough Choices for Teachers: Ethical Challenges in Today's Schools and Classrooms, Infantino and Wilke help student teachers, new teachers, and experienced teachers think more deeply about ethical concerns. The case studies included by the authors involve ethical dilemmas dealing with honesty, integrity, and proper professional behavior. Thinking through these scenarios based in actual situations, educators are trained in ethical decision-making processes and necessary skils for dealing with problems that arise in KD12 schooling.

Challenging times will come, but great leaders know how to lead their teams and emerge even stronger—prepare yourself now using this helpful guide to personal and professional success. Great leaderships will face challenges. Markets will collapse; pandemics will come; people will always provide new and interesting ways to makes things difficult. But leaders must achieve results and build a team that produces, even when you are faced with difficult circumstances. This all-new book from John Maxwell, created using content from several of his previous bestselling titles, is the ultimate guide to helping your team survive and even thrive when the unexpected happens. Maxwell helps leaders identify their team's main challenges, take stock of their liabilities, understand what they can control, and use challenges as opportunities to rethink the way they do things. He ultimately gives leaders the tools to grow their teams in the midst of difficult times. Through humor, in-depth insight, and examples, internationally recognized leadership expert John C. Maxwell reassures leaders that they can still lead well and help people develop the skills they need to become great leaders, even when times are tough.

This book shows that the discourse of the Labour party 1994-2007, revolving around three key concepts of identity, narrative and metaphor, not only reflected new Labour's policy and organisational changes, but that it was also an essential part of its successful strategies of renovation and of power legitimation.

While educational leaders must be responsive to federal policy mandates, compliance alone will not guarantee continuous school improvement. Leaders must create conditions that foster innovative solutions to perennial problems and engage all educators in systemic reform.

In this timely interdisciplinary volume, William Watkins has brought together leading scholars and activists to address some of the most urgent issues facing public education. What is underneath and behind the language of choice, efficiency, and improvement in current neoliberal discourse? How will urban and poor populations be affected? Will privatization lead to increased stratification in our schools? How can public education not only be saved but re-imagined? In accessible language, renowned contributors explore and critique corporate school reform to both inform and serve as an organizing tool for teachers, parents, students, and citizens committed to genuine public education. Book Features: A comprehensive critique of how corporate power is disrupting universal public education. An illumination of how corporate school reform threatens unions, racial progress, and democracy. An illustration of how private wealth forges public policy. A case study of the public school system in New Orleans. Contributors: Pauline Lipman • Kennneth Saltman • Alfie Kohn • Jack Gerson • Malila N. Robinson • Catherine A. Lugg • William H. Watkins • Ann G. Winfield • Kristen L. Buras William H. Watkins is a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago and author of The White Architects of Black Education. “As The Assault on Public Education makes so very clear. . . we are witnessing the growth of a destructive set of policies in education and the larger society. This book provides us with a set of articulate analyses of what the future will likely hold if we do not engage in the hard and committed labor of countering these dangerous tendencies today.” —From the Foreword by Michael W. Apple, University of Wisconsin–Madison “The Assault on Public Education is a powerful assemblage of scholars, practitioners, and activists who are willing to stand up to the entrenched interests arrayed against public education as we know it. This is a must read for thinking citizen scholars.” —Gloria Ladson-Billings, University of Wisconsin-Madison “Today is a pivotal moment for America and its schools. Teachers and others who envision schools that enhance democratic life will find critical theoretical and practical guidance in this book. Use it.” —Daniel Perlstein, Graduate School of Education, University of California, Berkeley “Watkins has produced an important and timely work—a much-needed corrective to the dumbing-down of educational policy discourse. The essays here offer a very real challenge to those who have confounded market-based policy with school reform and the well-being of children with the well-being of corporations.” —Charles Payne, University of Chicago

Expectations have been raised in Australia and comparable countries for an 'education revolution' that will secure success for all students in all settings. Such a revolution must ensure the alignment of educational outcomes, the skills required for a strong economy, and the needs of a harmonious society. Why not the Best Schools?

"Why not the best schools is drawn from a major research project undertaken by Brain Caldwell and Jessica Harris involving studies of successful schools in six countries (Finland, Wales, Australia, USA, China, England). It compares a total of 30 schools and examines the conditions necessary for schools anywhere to improve and attain high standard for students."--Publisher's website.