In 2008, Alma Harris was appointed Pro-Director (Leadership) at the Institute of Education, London and Professor of Educational Leadership at the London Centre for Leadership in Learning, Institute of Education, London. Previously she was Director of the Institute of Education at the University of Warwick.

• Part 1: Setting the Context Introduction 1. A Brief History of School Improvement Research in the USA Part 2: School Improvement: Phases 2 and 3 2. Success For All 3. The High Reliability Schools Project: Some Preliminary Results and Analyses 4. sing the power of difference in school improvement projects 5.Effective School Improvement:: Similarities and Differences in Improvement in Eight European Countries Part 3: School Improvement: Phase 4 6. Changing Secondary Schools Is Hard: Lessons from 10 years of School Improvement 7. Building Instructional Quality: 'Inside-Out' and 'Outside-In' Perspectives on San Diego’s School Reform 8. Standards-Based Reform and Small Schools of Choice: How Reform Theories Converge in Three Urban Middle Schools 9. Education District Development in South Africa: A New Direction for School Improvement? 10. The Challenge of Systemic Change in Complex Educational Systems: A District Model to Scale Up Reform 11. The Creation of Knowledge Networks: Collaborative Enquiry for School and System Improvement Part 4: Towards the 5th Phase School Improvement: Future Directions for the Field Conclusion.

'This book takes the reader on a journey of school improvement by way of different practices and with a good sense of progression and direction.' - Learning and Teaching Update'This collection of case studies enhances the readers' knowledge and understanding of the processes and impact of school improvement.' - British Journal of Educational Technology