Big Cities, Small Schools, and a Return to Systemic Reform

There are a pair of stories about how things are going in NYC: The Chancellor's Midterm Exam (New York Magazine), and Mayor Runs on Schools, but Verdict Is Still Out (NYT).

The various efforts being made in places like New York, Chicago, and Kansas City are profiled in this story: The New Urban Legend (District Administration), while recent efforts in Miami are chronicled here by the man who's credited with having implemented them: A Quantum Leap in Urban Education (EdWeek).

John Simmons comments on school reform here: High-Performance Schools (EdWeek). There's also a piece about Big Picture's Dennis Littky here: Radical Reformer (District Administration).

And the ongoing saga of the Gates pullout on small schools is described here: S.F. small schools left to "sink or swim" by Gates (Mike Klonsky's Small Talk).

Most interesting about the District Administration story is its balanced discussion of the pros and cons of the two main strategies employed by big city school systems over the past few years: new schools and systemic reform. Clearly, there's a move back towards systemic efforts in many places.