(NAPSI)—San Francisco’s June Jordan School for Equity (JJSE) is a cutting-edge national model referred to by leading scholar Linda Darling-Hammond as having “beaten the odds in supporting the success of low-income students.”

Now, schools throughout California and elsewhere may be able to have similar success, with help from a new book. It’s by Shane Safir, one of JJSE’s founding principals, who has provided coaching, facilitation and professional development for hundreds of leaders in schools, school districts and educational organizations across the country.

The book, “The Listening Leader: Creating the Conditions for Equitable School Transformation” (Wiley), is designed to help educators close the opportunity gap for marginalized children.

It’s done, says Safir, by listening. “The top-down management style that dominates our school systems creates an empty leadership model that focuses on compliance rather than listening,” she explains.

When leaders listen:

• Students are more engaged because they know their realities matter.
• Teachers stay on the job longer because working conditions are humanized.
• Families feel they’re part of their children’s learning.

In the book, Safir blends story, theory and practice to show how listening can transform school leadership. The tools and concepts are offered in engaging stories drawn from her 20-plus years of experience in education.

Learn More

For further information or to order the book, go to www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/Section/id-WILEY2_SEARCH_RESULT.html?query=listening%20leader.