Student Engagement in Urban Schools

The focus of this book extends the discourse on student engagement beyond prescriptivedefinitions and includes substantive ethical and political issues relating to this concept.As such, this collection includes voices of educational theorists, practitioners, andstudents. It provides a counter discourse to the current dialogue on student engagementin educational theory and practice which equate it primarily with behavioral andattitudinal characteristics including student compliance and qualities of teaching orteachers.In this collection, engagement is not viewed simply as a matter of techniques, strategies or behaviours. Rather, theunderstandings of student engagement presented, while distinct from each other, are imbued with a common vision ofeducation for democratic transformation or reconstruction as operational for and in democratic communities. Contributorsto this volume examine issues of the purpose of student engagement, and the question of the criteria, standards, and normswhich are used to determine the quality and degree of engagement, and ultimately whether or not all forms of studentengagement are equally worthwhile. This collection is intended for use in teacherand administrator preparation programs as well as school and district professionaldevelopment initiatives.