Chapter 13: A New DEEL for an Old Problem: Social Justice at the Core

The knowledge base, research, and professional culture of the educational administration professorate and practitioners face acute pressure in the current era of high-stakes testing and standardization. Furthermore, pressures to conform to federal and state-wide education reform are forcing many educators to question their raison d’etre. As Fullan (1991) points out, the process of educational change often requires individuals to confront philosophical beliefs and values. May Sarton reminds us all that, “crisis may be one of the climates where education flourishes-a climate that forces honesty out, breaks down the walls of what ought to be, and reveals what is, instead” (Sarton, as cited in Katz, 1999, p. 138).