EDUCATING FOR AN ENGAGED SPIRITUALITY: DOROTHY DAY AND THICH NHAT HANH AS SPIRITUAL EXEMPLARS

This article seeks to offer a holistic understanding of the spiritual life by describing an “engaged spirituality.” A particular type of spiritual commitment exists in the lives of certain individuals, a commitment which combines disciplined exploration of spiritual resources with intentional acts of compassion and justice in response to the needs of the world. Through an investigation of the lives of Dorothy Day and Thich Nhat Hanh, an understanding of the formative influences which gave shape to their engaged spiritualities is offered, as well as several suggestions for communities of faith that might wish to cultivate a similar commitment in their own settings.     

School Leadership Teams: A Process Model of Team Development

A number of studies have analyzed the factors that influence successful site-based management (SBM), but none has examined the relationships among those factors or their predictive value. In California, school leadership teams (SLTs) represent an aspect of school based management that is teacher-led and oriented to curriculum and school reform. The teams do not operate within the context of a prescribed programmatic formula and are not encumbered by personnel and budgeting decisions as are SBM committees. They receive training to learn to work together to improve teaching and learning at their schools with the goal of affecting student outcomes. To try to understand which factors are predictive of effective SLTs, we analyzed survey data from 71 elementary and 71 secondary SLTs that had received 1 full year of training. Using path analysis, we tested a model that identified the relationships among the factors that are most likely to influence the team's ability to focus on teaching and learning. The strongest predictor of their ability to focus on this important variable was the use of data collected within the school to identify needs and guide future decisions. Our findings also advanced our understanding of how SLTs work and revealed: (1) the importance of developing team skills in problem-solving as a predictor of many other positive relations; (2) the significance of strong professional relations as a predictor of positive district relations, use of data, and a focus on teaching and learning; and (3) the paradox of teams needing to hear parent and student voices and, at the same time, coping with the negative effect on professional relations if they are present on the team.     

Speech, Image, Action: Animating Tales from Shakespeare

Two assumptions are challenged in this article: that children are naturally disposed toward the animated cartoon, and that translating Shakespeare's plays into this medium automatically simplifies and gives them child appeal. It examines the confusions and cross-purposes that surrounded the making of the Animated Tales videos, and argues that there are dangers in their uncritical use in schools. It concludes with suggestions as to how they may, nevertheless, be effectively employed with children of all ages.