Standards & Curriculum
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CERCER Op-Ed
ACCOUNTABILITY IS KEY TO REFORM
By Jeanne Allen
USA Today, August 24, 1999
Students across the nation are going back to school. And the same public schools are opening regardless of whether they successfully educated all of their students last year. The missing factor in this equation is accountability. Even the best-intentioned teachers, administrators and students in most places are not required to meet predetermined goals.
In American schooling, one thing has been proved: More is not necessarily better. More pay without a guarantee of performance isn't better. Fewer children in a classroom without a solid, proven program and skilled teacher isn't better. And incentives for teachers to teach poor children are nothing without a guarantee that those teachers be accountable for results.
Many school officials say they could do better with more resources. But that says the way public schools currently operate is sufficient. It is not. The public school system -- a necessary and cherished part of our nation's fabric -- does not reward excellence.
What is the fix for struggling schools?
High standards are essential. But while more than 40 states claim to have standards, only a handful actually require schools and students to meet them.
Consequences are critical motivators. Students say they're not challenged. Teachers concede the system doesn't reward excellence. Standards matter only when they count.
A variety of learning opportunities for children are needed. Schools must be free to select programs, approaches and personnel. Parents must have choices so they can find the best environment to challenge their unique child. Variety is important for teachers, too. They want choices, which is why they're flocking to charter schools. Proposals such as raising teacher-certification requirements or reducing class size won't result in excellence. We must enact structural changes that give each school the flexibility and authority to raise the bar for all participants, and require schools to then demonstrate success in exchange for being open.
The methods schools employ to reach academic success -- be they altering class size, curriculum or other programs -- shouldn't be the concern of politicians or unions. Their focus should be on making laws that invite ingenuity and breed successful schools.
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Jeanne Allen is President of The Center for Education Reform, a national, independent, non-profit advocacy organization founded in 1993 to provide support and guidance to individuals, community and civic groups, policymakers and others who are working to bring fundamental reforms to their schools. For more information, please call (202) 822-9000 or (800) 521-2118, or send e-mail to cer@edreform.com.