Professors to co-edit prestigious education research journal

Three Arizona State University professors have been named co-editors of the 2012 and 2014 issues of the American Educational Research Association’s (AERA) annual journal, Review of Research in Education, the premier publication of international educational research.

Professor Arnold B. Danzig and associate professor David R. Garcia of ASU, will co-edit the 2012 issue along with professor Kathryn Bohman of the University of South Florida. ASU professor Terrence Wiley will serve as co-editor with Borman, Danzig and Garcia on the 2014 edition. The journal’s editorial team sets the research topic of each publication, selects article contributors and oversees the peer review process. Journal editorships are rotated each year based on a competitive proposal process.

“It’s an honor to be selected as part of the editorial team that will edit the 2012 and 2014 volumes of the review of research in education,” Danzig said. “It speaks well of the national and international reputation of ASU and its education research community.”

ASU education scholars have long been affiliated with AERA. Two faculty members previously served as its presidents and several have held prominent editorships. Many others have published in its highly ranked journals and served as scientific advisers on national and international committees. The association’s annual meeting draws the largest collection of educational experts whose research is broadly used in curriculum, administration, policy and evaluation.

The 2012 issue of the Review of Research in Education is titled “Education, Citizenship and the Public Good” and is inspired by a number of sociological, anthropological and policy constructs. The 2014 issue is titled “Language diversity, language policy and politics in education.” It will focus on language policies in education from an international perspective, considering that there are more than 6,000 languages in 200 countries around the world and many children are second-language learners of the language of their schools.

Danzig, a professor of education policy studies, has written and co-edited numerous books, including "Learner-Centered Leadership: Research, Policy and Practice" (2007). Garcia is an associate professor of education policy studies, whose research interests include school choice, school evaluation and the study of factors which facilitate or distort policy implementation across levels of the education system.

The editors already have chosen the themes, chapters and a list of potential authors. They will select an editorial board to help review submissions as well as write chapters expressing their own insights. In April, they met with authors for the first issue and received early drafts of the research to be presented for review and approval. Chapters will examine research about choice as an opportunity or an obstacle to advance the public good; citizenship and commercialization; public discourse, social outcomes and conceptualization of the public good; global concerns; and civic development in a democratic society. Privatization of education and its costs and benefits will be examined, as well as charter schools and how religion relates to the public and private good.

“The work itself is multidisciplinary and we’ve put together a good team of authors from all over the world,” Danzig said. “It’s time for people to decide how to understand and implement the notion of public good and the role of schools and educators in furthering that effort. Balancing individualism and community is part of that discussion.”

In 2014, the journal will focus on the politics of education, specifically the politics of language.

“In considering how you want to balance the public good and the private good, there are multiple political considerations. Who benefits? How do they benefit? What is the public will or resolve to support educational institutions that other people’s children attend?” Danzig said. “Connecting local politics to national politics and global concerns is the idea behind producing these volumes.”

He said the goal is to increase understanding and appreciation of the phenomena of schooling and the ways schools are connected to civic citizenship, democratic societies and the concept of a public good.

“My sense is that the popular understanding of schools and schooling and the data available on the benefits of privatization or charter schools are very different," he said. "Reading research and examining data allows you to move beyond your perceptions or misconceptions about the power of schools to contribute to the public good.”

Wiley said the appointment of the ASU editorial team indicates the stature of the university’s education scholars and the significance of their research.

“We are providing professional service and leadership," he said, "in the field by helping determine what research is important and gets published.”

Writen by Verina Palmer Martin