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A Brief History of Romances with Schools

by John Kofonow 02/22/2017

The original version of Romances with Schools by John Goodlad was published in 2004.  John was pleased with the reception the book received, despite limited marketing.  Later, sometime in 2010, John negotiated a new contract with Thomas Koerner of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers to reissue the book and considered adding some new material to the manuscript.  As recounted by Stephen Goodlad in the Prologue of this book, John worked on adding chapters and revising some of the other text until illness and then his death in November 2014 interrupted his work.  As noted in the Acknowledgments of the 2004 book, John thought Romances was not only his story but also the shared story with his beloved wife Lynn, who died in 2006.

Those of us at the Institute for Educational Inquiry, a not-for-profit organization founded by John Goodlad, Kenneth Sirotnik, and Roger Soder in 1992, grieved over what to do with this unfinished manuscript.  After long discussion, we decided that the best course of action was not to try to finish John’s new work but to keep the original text and add a Prologue and Epilogue to place John’s life work in the context of today’s educational environment.  Thomas Koerner graciously accepted this proposal, and the current text is a result of that work.

We undertook this project as a labor of love, and it is, most appropriate we think, the last major activity of the Institute for Educational Inquiry.

Roger Soder, President
Paula McMannon, Secretary-Treasurer
Gene Edgar, Chair, Board of Directors
Institute for Educational Inquiry

May 2016

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The NNER Mission

The National Network for Educational Renewal (NNER) leads by example as it strives to improve simultaneously the quality of education for thoughtful participation in a democracy and the quality of the preparation of educators. The NNER works through partnerships among P-12 schools, institutions of higher education, and communities. Four-Part Mission Members of the Network agree on a four-part mission to advance Education in Democracy, which is as follows:

  • Provide access to knowledge for all children (“equity and excellence”);
  • Educate the young for thoughtful participation in a social and political democracy (“enculturation”);
  • Base teaching on knowledge of the subjects taught, established principles of learning, and sensitivity to the unique potential of learners (“nurturing pedagogy”); and
  • Take responsibility for improving the conditions for learning in P-12 schools, institutions of higher education and communities. (“stewardship”).

Revised and approved electronically by the NNER Governing Council, February 16, 2007.

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National Network for Educational Renewal
  • About Us
  • What We Do
  • Who We Are
  • Publications & Research
  • Job Postings
  • 2021 NNER/NCCPEP Annual Conference
  • Donate