William Doyle - author, Fulbright Scholar, media and education lecturer - takes a look at the state of education in America and what he thinks the Trump administration ought to do to fix troubled schools. Doyle first states that American schools are performing at or near the top internationally, but only after high-poverty, especially inner city, schools are not part of the consideration. His focus of change is on these non-performing schools, but with an ideology that would benefit all schools. His plan is broken into five steps:
- Sharply improve standards - parents and teachers in charge, not outside political, business, or social people with no classroom experience
- Unleash rigor and competition - treat teaching profession with the same respect and autonomy as the medical profession, including improvements in training with a research and "clinical" classroom practice
- Deliver maximum school choice - give all parents choice by providing high quality neighborhood schools instead of school lottery or voucher systems
- Give children what they need to learn best - many specifics listed, but essentially treat all children as valued, capable individual learners and provide a academic rich but low stress environment
- Require strict accountability - hold federal and local politicians accountable to provide minimum standards
Doyle proposes that $20 billion to fund these changes is available by redirecting funds now used for "unnecessary mass standardized testing of children, unproven technology products and ineffective teacher development."
What I appreciated about Doyle's approach is that it is somewhat comprehensive and does not portray the teachers as the fulcrum of the problem as many politicians have been apt to do. His teacher focus concerns elevating the profession through teacher selection, improved practical training, autonomy and empowerment. He recognizes the parent as a stakeholder who, along with teachers, supersedes the interests of politicians and other outside of education entities. I get the impression that he is encouraging utilization and implementation of research and evidence based practice to improve teaching and schools by closing the research-practice gap. I fully support collaboration and sharing of best practice by the schools as it leads to more widespread improvements and stretching of limited resources. He has a different take on "school choice" than what it currently represents and I am not sure that I fully understand what he means, but I surmise that he is promoting that all public schools are neighborhood based and equally resourced, safe, and high-quality so that choice will be equal no matter the location. Doyle appears to be promoting that students are met on their level financially and academically with the expectations that each will be equally cherished and nurtured as an individual learner. As a former teacher, I really appreciate his shift of accountability to those providing the funding, resources and support instead and allowing the teachers the room to teach.
I found Doyle is sticking to the traditional view that learning takes place at school as he fails to include any discussion of the family and community beyond the parent as a stakeholder. His focus is also limited to K-12 without consideration for preschool and transition to post-secondary options. Aside from "proper sleep and nutrition" Doyle does not discuss the many other social and economic factors that affect a child's ability and readiness to learn. No mention is made of the many mental health issues faced by children that also need to be considered.
Doyle points out the top-down approach that has been used the last twenty-five or so years to reform education has not really resulted in an improved public school system, and he advocates for local control and parent and teacher empowerment. He's calling for a cultural shift where teachers and the teaching profession are held in the same high esteem as in countries with the highest student achievement. His position is one of positive change and not another negative blame game. He has developed an intriguing framework that could result in real change but only, in my opinion, if it is expanded to include the other systems such as community and family that also directly impact a student's ability to realize his/her potential.
I really enjoyed this article and the concrete changes that it proposes. Most articles that I have read about the education system just discuss the problem or the desired outcome, there are usually no suggestions that are made. This article really speaks to the education system at large and suggests measurable and realistic goals. I believe that all teachers should be held to higher standard. In the article that I read it talks about how more diverse, innner-city schools do not pay their teachers half as much as they do in suburban or private schools. The rate of teachers also being correctly licensed to practice is low. More experienced teachers are shown to be teaching in predominantly white schools. I think that holding teachers to a higher standard will solidify the respect and dignity that the community has for its teachers. All children should have the opportunity to attend good schools with good resources. It is that simple. So how do we get there? This article really lays down the foundation. Thanks for sharing!
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