Educational Research

Communities of Difference

The study of schools as communities of difference is an attempt to look more critically at the most generally accepted notion of school community that relies on a set of shared norms, beliefs, and values. Frequently, in an attempt to project a harmonious and unified public image, schools create what some have called pseudo or counterfeit communities rather than authentic ones.

We believe that recognizing the fundamental diversity of schooling and attempting to work with the diversity to develop a community of difference rather than from difference may be one way to minimize the cognitive dissonance currently associated with so-called normative concepts of community. In turn, this may lead to the more useful concept of communities of difference or "otherness" that could be helpful to educators in diverse and cross-cultural settings.

Recent Publications About Communities of Difference

Shields, C. M. (To be published 2000-2001). Leadership for communities (working title, invited chapter) International handbook on Educational Leadership, 2nd Edition, K. Leithwood & P. Hallinger (Eds.). approx. 70pgs.

Shields, C.M. (To be published 2000). Listening to educators: Insights into building more inclusive school communities. Invited chapter (7) for book, G. Furman-Brown (Ed.), School as community: From promise to practice. SUNY Press. approx. 30 pgs.

Shields, C.M. (To be published 2000). Learning from Navajo students: Issues in the development of community. Invited chapter (10) for book, G. Furman-Brown (Ed.), School as community: From promise to practice. SUNY Press. approx. 30 pgs.

Shields, C. M. (in press) Principals and school community: Wholeness incorporating diversity. R. Macmillian (Ed.), Conference Proceedings from the NS Principalship Symposium, Antigonish, NS., 20pgs.

Shields, C. M. (2000). From conflict to hope: Reflections on building school community. The Researcher. 15(1), 8-22.

Shields, C. M. (2000). Learning from difference: Considerations for schools as communities. Curriculum Inquiry. 30(3), 275-294.

Shields, C. M. (2000; in press). Response to Robert Boostrom (Response to reviewer's comment about the article, Curriculum Inquiry, 30(4).

Pillsbury, J., & Shields, C. M. (1999) When "they" becomes "we." Journal for a Just and Caring Education. 5(4), 410-429.

Shields, C. M., & Seltzer, P. A. (1997). Complexities and paradoxes of community: Towards a more useful conceptualization of community. Educational Administration Quarterly. 33(4) 413-439.

Shields, C. M. (1997). Learning about assessment from Native American schools: Advocacy and empowerment. Invited submission to the Journal of Theory into Practice.

Shields, C. M. (1996). Creating a learning community in a multicultural setting: Issues of leadership. The Journal of School Leadership, 6(1), 47-74.

Shields, C. M. (1995). Context, culture, and change: Considerations for pedagogical change in a Native American Community. Planning and Changing. 26(1/2), 2-24.

Shields, C. M. (1994). A planning paradox: One school's effort to restructure to meet the needs of a Native American student body. Educational Planning, 9(3), 48-61.

Shields, C. M., & Lopez, C.G. (1993). What I want for my children is what I want for all children: Planning to serve the needs of minority students. Planning and Changing, 24(1/2), 69-85.