Unless school leaders do more to help teachers, students, parents, taxpayers, and other key groups understand the need for change and the key roles they can play, school improvement will be spotty and nearly impossible to sustain, writes Public Agenda senior fellow Jean Johnson. Citing multiple surveys of these groups conducted by Public Agenda, Johnson reveals that people have many differing questions and concerns about education reforms. For example, many education policymakers view the Common Core standards as a positive step, but many parents say that they don't want classes to become more difficult--their children already work hard enough in school. The nationwide movement toward more rigorous teacher evaluation based on standardized test scores bumps up against the views of many teachers who consider such scores a poor indicator of teacher quality. Johnson discusses four steps school leaders can take to make their key constituencies into allies and partners in school improvement. First, reach out to understand communication gaps through both formal surveys and informal discussions. Second, move the conversation from debate (in which the purpose is to argue for the "right" solution) to dialogue (in which the purpose is to broaden perspectives, build trust, and find common ground). Fourth, invite teachers to the table to talk about such issues as tenure, evaluation, and teacher salaries. And finally, reach out to the community for help. (Contains 1 figure.)