Bio


Research and practice focuses on teacher education, elementary education, educational equity, and the design and purpose of education and schooling, as well as the exploration of the educational experience of students often marginalized by the school context.

Academic Appointments


Administrative Appointments


  • Professor, Stanford Graduate School of Education (2021 - Present)
  • Faculty Director, Stanford Teacher Education Program (STEP) (2021 - Present)
  • Associate Professor, Stanford Graduate School of Education (1986 - Present)
  • Director, Stanford Elementary Teacher Education Program (2019 - Present)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations


  • Executive Director, Teachers for a New Era, Bank Street College of Education (2005 - 2007)
  • Associate Director, STEP Elementary, Stanford University (1999 - 2004)
  • Elementary Classroom Teacher, - (1993 - 1999)

Professional Education


  • Ph.D., Stanford University, Curriculum Studies and Teacher Education (2003)
  • M.S.C., College of Notre Dame, California Multiple Subject Credential, Clear (1994)
  • M.A., Stanford University, Education (1991)
  • B.A., Stanford University, Political Science (1990)

Research Interests


  • Diversity and Identity
  • Elementary Education
  • Parents and Family Issues
  • Special Education
  • Teachers and Teaching

All Publications


  • The Threads They Follow: Bank Street Teachers in a Changing World. Lit, I., Darling-Hammond, L. Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education. 2015
  • Bus Kids: Children's Experiences with Voluntary Desegregation Lit, I. W. Yale University Press. 2014
  • Teaching young English learners Handbook of Research-Based Practice in Early Goldenberg, C., Hicks, J., Lit, I. 2013
  • A balancing act: Dilemmas of implementing a high-stakes performance assessment The New Educator Lit, I. W., Lotan, R. 2013; 9 (1): 54-76
  • Principles and Exemplars for Integrating Developmental Sciences Knowledge into Educator Preparation. National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education Snyder, J., Lit, I. 2010
  • If It ain't broke, why fix it? Framework and processes for engaging in constructive institutional development and renewal in the context of increasing standards, assessments, and accountability for university-based teacher preparation Teacher Education Quarterly Lit, I., Nager, N., Snyder, J. D. 2010; 37 (1): 15-34
  • Feelings count: emotions and learning The learning classroom: Theory into practice Darling-Hammond, L., Orcutt, S., Strobel, K., Kirsch, E., Lit, I., Martin, D. 2003