Includes bibliographical references and index.

In this ground-breaking anthology, renowned authors Noguera and Blankstein pair leading-edge ideas from award-winning educational scholars, visionaries, and practitioners with powerful case studies from multicultural K-12 settings at all levels of the system who have pursued equity goals and closed instructional and achievement gaps. Included are: examples of high-leverage practices used by award-winning schools and districts, including de-tracking, leadership capacity development and deployment to build teacher efficacy and close gaps between schools, and successful innovations in curriculum and assessment design; powerful classroom practices that lead to success for ELL, Special Ed and underserved students as well as for their more privileged peers; system-level examples by Michael Fullan, Paul Reville and others of how excellence was achieved through equity at district, state and provincial levels; a powerful concluding chapter by Andy Hargreaves on how other nations have used educational equity as a driver for extraordinary educational and economic gains.