Pappano's new book, Inside School Turnarounds, is an on-the-ground journalistic take on the developing story that is urban school turnaround. The book delves into the in-the-moment challenges principals, teachers, students, parents and policymakers grapple with as they get serious about fixing our worst performing schools. Read an excerpt in the September/October 2010 issue of the Harvard Education Letter.

Reviews &  Commentary

Q&A with Laura Pappano, author of Inside School Turnarounds —Voices in Education: the Blog of Harvard Education Publishing “Having covered education for national newspapers and magazines for two decades, Pappano (Playing with the Boys) is primed to evaluate public school reform policy from its early years to the recent push for radical change led by the Obama administration and making headlines….Pappano surveys a broad spectrum of ideas that dynamic administrators have used to motivate, empower, and reward teachers and students.” — Publishers Weekly “In this well-researched, well-written, timely new book, Pappano takes us from the theory of education reform to the practical examples and inspiring, dedicated people on the front lines of making troubled schools work. With detailed case studies and thoughtful analysis, Inside School Turnarounds makes clear what is working and what more needs to be done. This is a must-read for policy makers, education reformers, and anyone committed to the goal of providing all of America’s children with the high quality public education they need and deserve.” — Alan Khazei, cofounder, City Year and author, Big Citizenship “This courageous book reveals what’s really happening in school reform today. It breaks the story of how some dedicated educators are forging bits of success, one student at a time, under incredibly daunting conditions. The author’s clear-headed account touches on all the hot buttons in education, from teacher unions to high-stakes testing, without getting snagged on the usual ideological hooks that have stalled our progress.” — William Damon, professor of education and director, Center on Adolescence at Stanford University “In this timely and important book, Pappano skillfully captures the complexity of the school-turnaround challenge. Inside School Turnarounds makes it clear that there is no silver bullet, no easy answer, but that there are a set of lessons and promising practices that we should be careful not to ignore.” — Jesse Solomon, director, Boston Teacher Residency “Once again, Pappano has captured and humanized many of the challenges associated with urban public education. Inside School Turnarounds highlights some of today’s most effective practices in urban education and considers their applicability in the turnaround context. This is the beginning of a very important story.” — Evan Rudall, CEO, Uncommon Schools