New Book By WestEd Board Member Addresses Closing the Achievement Gap
(02/07/2012) San Francisco, California — WestEd Board of Directors member Thomas B. Timar served as co-editor of the just-released Narrowing the Achievement Gap: Perspectives and Strategies for Challenging Times. This collection, created with co-editor Julie Maxwell-Jolly, provides multiple perspectives on closing achievement gaps in education.
The book's 11 chapters, written by nationally renowned experts, examine the conditions — both in and out of school — that lead to significant disparities in education achievement among racial, ethnic, economic, and other subgroups of students.
The book also explores multiple measures for addressing gaps in achievement — measures that, individually and in concert, will prove crucial to any effort to bring parity to American education.
"Although no one can offer a quick fix for America's educational problems, this incisive book offers promising and realistic measures for helping children who are poor and often racially and linguistically isolated," says David Berliner, Regents' Professor Emeritus at Arizona State University and a fellow WestEd Board member. "The authors provide a thoughtful set of alternatives to failed federal policies that have not and cannot address the pernicious achievement gaps that endanger our democracy."
In addition to co-editing Narrowing the Achievement Gap, Timar has written publications related to education finance, policy, and governance.
Timar is a professor at the University of California, Davis, School of Education and the executive director of the Center for Applied Policy in Education.
He joined the WestEd Board of Directors in May 2011 and will serve through 2014. He sits on the Board's program committee. Timar was appointed to the Board by the California Department of Education to represent the public school districts of the state.
Narrowing the Achievement Gap: Perspectives and Strategies for Challenging Times
Harvard Education Press
paper, 336 Pages
ISBN-13: 978-1-61250-123-9
Price: $29.95
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About WestEd
WestEd, a national nonpartisan, nonprofit research, development, and service agency, works with education and other communities to promote excellence, achieve equity, and improve learning for children, youth, and adults. WestEd has 16 offices nationwide, from Washington and Boston to Arizona and California. Its corporate headquarters are in San Francisco. More information about WestEd is available at WestEd.org.
Contact Information
Matthew Spaur
415.615.3219
mspaur@wested.org