Michael Peterson

Michael Peterson, Ph.D.

Dr. Michael Peterson is Director of the Whole Schooling Consortium, an international network of schools, faculty, teachers, and administrators dedicated to creating schools and classroom based on both excellence and equity, where students of substantial difference learn well together. Michael is presently a consultant and retired Professor from the College of Education at Wayne State University . You may download his VITAE here.

Background and experience

Michael has 41 years experience educating professionals related to school and community inclusion of individuals with special needs. He taught adolescents related to transition from school to work and has 32 years of university teaching experience in both rehabilitation counseling and special education where he taught courses related to inclusive teaching and transition from school to adult life.

His most significant work has been the collaborative development of an approach to envisioning and creating effective inclusive schools, an approach called “Whole Schooling”. In 1998 he formed the Whole Schooling Consortium in collaboration with other university faculty colleagues and leaders in local schools in Michigan and Wisconsin. In the work with the Whole Schooling Consortium he has:

Worked with a team of individuals across several countries to plan and implement international conferences centering around the principles of Whole Schooling

Worked with a collaborative Leadership Team in Michigan to organize the Michigan Network for Inclusive Schools that developed partnerships among schools to improve practice and conduct professional development conferences and workshops

Worked with many local schools and school districts to implement various aspects of the principles of Whole Schooling

Worked with colleagues to develop a refereed online journal with articles based on the principles of Whole Schooling

Michael taught teachers regarding inclusive teaching practices based on the principles of Whole Schooling at Wayne State University and has also implemented professional development. With Mishael Hittie, an elementary school teacher and Michael’s daughter, he wrote the book: Inclusive Teaching: the Journey Towards Effective Schools for all Learners. Originally published in 2008 by Pearson, this book is in its second edition. This text provides a comprehensive approach to teaching and schooling based on the principles of Whole Schooling. He has further served as a Critical Friend in some 15 schools working to implement the principles of Whole Schooling.

Skills and knowledge for consultation

Following area areas of knowledge and expertise and skills and capacities that Michael can use in providing consultation to schools and other organizations.

Areas of knowledge and expertise:

School improvement processes utilizing the principles of Whole Schooling as a framework

Strategies for inclusive teaching in elementary, middle, and high schools

Strategies for effective classroom organization and design to benefit all students

Strategies for individualized differentiation for students with special needs

Community building in the classroom

Positive behavioral support

Authentic, multilevel, differentiated instructional strategies for inclusive teaching

Transition from school to adult life

Person-centered planning

Neighborhood connections

Serving as a Critical Friend to a school or school district. Michael has worked as a critical friend with numerous schools and school districts. Typically, this involves consultation and developing a plan with a school team and administrator. Whole Schooling tools may be used to conduct a strengths and needs assessment. Michael may meet with teams of teachers, observe in classrooms, conduct individual consultations with teacher, provide recommendations for practices and resources, and conduct professional development workshops. Michael has particularly worked with teams to develop collaborative school improvement plans. He is an excellent facilitator of dialogue and discussion.

Conducting professional development workshops. Michael has conducted numerous workshops and professional development sessions for teachers and other educators on topics listed above in his areas of expertise.

Conducting program evaluations. Michael has worked with schools and organizations who were interested in evaluating the effectiveness of particular strategies or programs in process. He has skills to use both qualitative and quantitative approaches to program evaluation.

Technical writing: grants, literature reviews, and related areas. Michael has significant skills in technical writing of various sorts from describing best practices to conducting literature reviews and

Serving as an expert witness. Michael has served as an expert witness in legal proceedings where his expertise was used to evaluate and comment on specific cases, particularly related to inclusive education.