Richard Elmore

Abstract

Among the things treasured by those whose lives Richard touched are his sharp intellect, his generous heart, his contagious laughter, his profound respect for and belief in young people and his growing irreverence for the school systems that constrain them. (Santiago Gallardo-Rincon, former doctoral student)

The engagement of youth in meaningful learning drove Dr. Richard Elmore to begin his early scholarship and teaching in educational policy. His focus later shifted to work with low-performing schools. He confronted educational systems that have held fast to old learning paradigms as neuroscience provides new perspectives about how people learn goes unheeded. Dr. Elmore observed the failure of policymakers’ goals and intentions to yield the kind of reform expected. He saw his frequent work in schools as palliative care as he watched the persistence of a reluctance to embrace the science of learning, engage in open and transparent dialogue around the problems of practice in schools, and the infrequent understanding of educators at all levels in the system that their decisions had an impact on classrooms and teachers (Houchins, G. 2021, October 21). The front line for learning is the classroom; it requires that all decisions affecting the classroom consider the impact on the teacher’s ability to engage the students with the content to be learned.

Dr. Elmore’s influence continues to reach students through the many aspiring educational leaders he mentored and interfaced with over the years. Identifying the Instructional Core of learning clarified the relationship between teacher, student, and content visual. The Instructional Core and the Coherence Framework make it easier for those who would influence education to understand the complex relationships of the core to the other actors influencing the learning environment. His development of Instructional Rounds and the tools supporting educator agency that creates transparency of practice has helped low-performing schools to confront problems of practice openly through shared language and collaborative study as they search for solutions. His MOOC, Leaders for Learning, challenges people of all walks of life to dig deeply into their learning, leadership, and innovation perspectives.