Staff Development for Urban School Improvement: Lessons Learned from Two Case Studies

Much of the research on school effectiveness and school change fails to recognize and explore the importance of long term and school based staff development to the success of the improvement efforts. Pink uses two cases studies of urban school improvement projects (Instructional Assistants in elementary schools and a secondary school‐within‐a‐school intervention for ‘at risk’ youth) to frame an analysis of the importance of staff development to both the conceptualization and implementation of school improvement projects. Common factors which act as barriers to programeffectiveness are identified. It is argued that these factors need attention from schooldistricts prior to the initial planning for school improvement projects.