Empowered Schools, Empowered Students

Pernille Ripp is a teacher, speaker, author, blogger, and passionate advocate for education. She is a Skype Master Teacher; Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert; recipient of the 2015 WEMTA Making IT Happen Award; and the 2015 ISTE Award for Innovation in Global Collaboration. In 2010, Pernille founded The Global Read Aloud, a global literacy initiative that began with a simple goal in mind: one book to connect the world. From its humble beginnings, the GRA has grown to connect more than 1,000,000 students in 60 different countries. She is the author of Passionate Learners - How to Engage and Empower Your Students, now in its second edition, and Empowered Schools, Empowered Students, both focusing on creating learning spaces and communities where students thrive and all stakeholders are empowered and passionate about learning. Her work has also been featured by many print and online journals including Edutopia, School Library Journal, The Guardian, and MiddleWeb. You can follow Pernille's work on Blogging Through The Fourth Dimension, her personal blog and a frequent Teach100 top rated education blog. Pernille's current research interest is in creating passionate literacy environments within the restriction of our current educational systems to helping students fall in love with literacy again. She uses her own classroom as a laboratory, as well as the many educators she works with across the country.

Preface by Peter DeWitt Introduction I. The Need to Empower Our Schools 1. The Empowered Principal as Role Model Obstacles Benefits of Change Plan of Action 2. Revitalizing the Staff Meeting Obstacles Benefits of Change Plan of Action 3. Cultivating the Expert Within Obstacles Benefits of Change Plan of Action 4. Small Moment Professional Development Obstacles Benefits of Change Plan of Action II. The Need to Empower Our Teachers and Our Students 5. The Empowered Classroom Obstacles Benefits of Change Plan of Action 6. Classroom Set Up to Signal Change Obstacles Benefits of Change Plan of Action 7. Empowered Self - Empowered Learning Obstacles Benefits of Change Plan of Action Conclusion

"Pernille has shared what it takes to create an environment that nurtures growth for students and staff." -- Nicholas Provenzano, The Nerdy Teacher "This book is a must read for any educator looking to transform their classroom or school to be more relevant for their students and staff. Ripp's personality and warmth comes through in her writing and coupled with first-hand experience, this is a great resource for teachers and administrators alike. In addition, the author weaves in specific examples from professionals practicing the advice she puts forth. In this day of increasingly standardized educational practice, this book helps to navigate ways in which to empower the work we do as teachers and leaders. Many books are written from so called "experts" with little in-school experience, but Pernille is living and breathing what she writes about. Her narrative and those she shares are authentic and from the perspective of practicing educators. When she puts forth an idea, it is backed up with a powerful story from practitioners who are working in schools and with kids every single day. This allows readers to not only gain access to Pernille's ideas but see how they play out in numerous contexts and situations." -- Josh Stumpenhorst, Junior High Teacher "In this book, Pernille makes a case for the need to change from a traditional hierarchical approach of control to a shared, empowering approach. This book outlines steps that administrators can take to share leadership in their schools and teachers can take to share the responsibility of learning with the students. I have known Pernille for many years and my respect for her as a classroom teacher, educational thinker, and student advocate has continually grown. When Pernille speaks about empowering students I listen as should you. She is one of those rare voices, a classroom teacher who shares openly and honestly about changing practices to create a student centered classroom." -- William Chamberlain, Teacher "Pernille Ripp gives great examples not only on how leaders can empower teachers to hone in on their leadership skills in the school community, but also how teachers can empower students to create a positive learning environment in the classroom. Pernille's story about her own classroom is truly inspiring and makes you think as a teacher ways in which you can empower your own students to take ownership in the classroom. I look forward to suggesting this book to my colleagues as a must read." -- Billy Krakower, Founding Partner of Evolving Educators "As a long time blogger, Pernille has been sharing her insights and challenges for a number of years. Her following grows as she presents an honest reflection of life in a classroom. These reflections reveal a vulnerability that endears her readers and instills hope about the possibility for change. This book's theme of "empowerment" is what Pernille has been living for years. She's been able to eloquently share this idea, providing practical steps, addressing the challenges and reasoning behind change. It's a quick read but one that will get pulled off of the shelf time and time again." -- Dean Shareski, Community Manager "As of now there are about 20 books in the Corwin Connected Educator Series, a seemingly ever-growing set of titles masterminded by Peter DeWitt and Corwin Press. Each book is short enough to be read in one sitting, which makes the collection ideal for book studies and professional development, both during the summer and throughout the school year. Also, each paperback is authored by one or two educators who speak (and blog, tweet, etc.) with a credible voice in the world of connected education. Some of the topics include: Flipped leadership Tools for connecting educators, parents, and communities Blogging for educators Best practices for establishing a makerspace Tools to connect and empower teachers Finally, all of the authors are active on social media, and they regularly present at local conferences, which helps in bringing to life the contents of these books." -- Ross Cooper, Supervisor of Instructional Practice K-12