Looking Beyond High School Reform (New York City)

This week's editorial in the New York Times wisely points out that all the high school reform in the world -- small schools, themed schools, exit exams, et al -- won't make much of a difference if federal, state, and -- I would argue -- local laws governing teacher training, evaluation, and assignment aren't addressed forcefully:

"No matter how hard localities try, the best-designed high schools in the world will still fail unless the states and the federal government finally bite the bullet on teacher training."

It's an issue that everyone's found understandable reasons to avoid. The USDE hasn't done much to uphold the teacher quality requirements of NCLB. The states have generally laid low on doing more than setting minimal certification requirement.

But it's not just those two conveniently distant agencies that are on the line here. Colleges and universities with inadequate teacher preparation programs play a key role. Districts with seniority, transfer, and other provisions on the books or part of the bargaining agreement are also part of the mix.

The Times editorial rightly focuses attention at an issue deeper than high school reform, but then narrowly limits responsibility for teacher quality issues to states and the federal government: Reinventing High School (New York Times)

Best of the Rest:

Teachers Protest the Methods of a Regional Supe NYT
The Mayor's Odd Strategy On Schools New York Sun
Small Schools to Grow by 52 in September NYT
Six new small schools to open in boro Flushing Times Ledger
Teachers want talk Newsday
City a vast shcool of lower ed New York Daily News
Randi Weingarten, Kingmaker New York Sun
New York Plans Test to Affirm Fitness for Jobs New York Times
The Real Power In NYC's Schools New York Post
Stripping kids routine - aide New York Daily News