The following summary explores how the quiet evolution of DBAE began and progressed, what obstacles arose, and what insights emerged. The report itself presents a detailed analysis of the initiative and a series of vignettes and case studies that elaborate on the findings.

The knowledge gained through the DBAE experiment has the potential to strengthen other school change initiatives and advance the goals of educational reform. If, for instance, professional development initiatives in other subjects were as whole, authentic, and effective as those seen in DBAE programs, evaluators believe the quality of education would improve immensely.

They point to ten key findings in their assessment that have particular relevance to educational reform in general:

• Change initiatives succeed when change is systemic—specifically, when school district leaders steer the initiative, change communities share ownership, and multiple reform efforts reinforce and enhance one another.
  
• Professional development as well as curriculum and instructional planning must be pursued simultaneously.
  
• Change occurs because of a continuous process of evaluation and with sufficient time for evaluation to guide refinement of professional development programs, instructional development, and implementation.
  
• Ongoing communication and collaboration within and among change communities lead to further improvements.
  
• Effective programs emerge from collaboration between teachers and experts in particular subject areas.
  
• The teaching of school subjects is enriched when museums and other community institutions provide content for instruction and settings for immersion in their respective worlds.
  
• Skills—even those of the highest order relating to critical thinking and creative invention—are not ends in themselves. They are the means for understanding human purpose and creating new visions of it.
  
• The most important learning takes place when several school subjects are taught simultaneously within the context of the large themes that illuminate conceptions of human purpose and well-being.
  
• The content, organization of instruction, and inquiry processes associated with DBAE provide exemplary models for instruction and assessment in other school subjects.
  
• Ongoing assistance in the form of professional development institutes and workshops, expert consultants, opportunities for professional renewal, and other programs tailored to school and district needs are essential.
  

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