Second Edition of Owings and Kaplan’s ‘Educational Foundations’ Textbook Published

Owings and Kaplan with Monique Volman, left, head of the University of Amsterdam’s College of Education Sciences.

October was an eventful month for Old Dominion's William Owings and his wife and co-author, Leslie Kaplan.

On Oct. 14, they were invited to speak about the condition of American public education at the University of Amsterdam's College of Education Sciences, where they addressed approximately 30 professors and school administrators.

Also, earlier in the month, the second edition of their 2010 "Educational Foundations" textbook was published by Wadsworth/Cengage.

It is the 10th book or monograph Owings has written with Kaplan, a full-time education writer and retired school administrator in Newport News. A member of the ODU faculty since 2002, Owings is a professor of educational leadership in the Darden College of Education.

With a focus on the future of American education - and the goals and nature of teaching in a global economy - "Educational Foundations" provides teacher candidates with a comprehensive overview of the foundations of modern American schooling. The book's premise is that education in the 21st century must facilitate more complex, deeper and more varied learning that will enable students - and us - to survive and thrive in an ever-changing world.

In presenting traditional topics and important educational issues - including diversity and equity, the accountability movement, effective schools, instructional best practices and alternatives to public schools - the authors cultivate in their readers the very skills and knowledge base that they believe are critical for success in a "flat" world.

With the overarching goal of furthering higher-order thinking, they model the principles of evidence-based practice and the critical-thinking process by examining issues and controversies in depth and presenting supporting research to validate their conclusions.

Owings, who has taught at ODU for 11 years, has worked as a public school teacher, an elementary and high school principal, assistant superintendent and superintendent of schools. His books co-authored with Kaplan include "Teacher Quality, Teaching Quality, and School Improvement," "The Effective Schools Movement: History, Analysis, and Application" and "American Public School Finance."

They also have co-written articles that have appeared in National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) Bulletin, Journal of School Leadership and the Journal of Education Finance. They co-edit The Journal for Effective Schools.

Owings speaks about the condition of American public education to professors and administrators at the University of Amsterdam's College of Education Sciences.