The Split Screen Strategy

American Education could be getting far more that it is from its teachers, and for young people. But only when it accepts that it has a design problem, and broadens its concept of change. 

Today the dominant idea is to drive standards and assessment into the existing - inert- system, in the hope this will get schools, teachers and students to improve their performance... While not challenging what makes K-12 an inert system. The effort to 'do' improvement is good, but is only half a strategy. The idea should be to make K-12 a self-improving system, by introducing arrangements that encourage districts and teachers to try things outside the traditional givens of system and school. 

Such a strategy would open K-12 to innovations that will stimulate performance internally; especially those maximizing teacher and student motivation. Such Challenges cannot be imposed. The Happen in self-improving systems, as we all see. 

This book sets out an education policy aimed to get K-12 evolving the way successful systems evolve; with non-traditional arrangements and approaches to learning spreading gradually. Realistically, visibly, that is the way successful systems change. 

Clearly, there are problems in the districts and in the schools. Today, though, policy is the primary problem. Success requires a strategy that adds innovation to the effort now working to improve performance 'within the givens'.

Dettagli