Message to the next president: Common sense is the best school reform

September 21, 4:35 PMSF Education ExaminerCaroline Grannan

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Education activists in New York City and Chicago have teamed up to send an urgent letter to the presidential candidates calling for "common-sense reforms for our schools."

The Huffington Post summarized the message:

The letter criticizes the deification of school choice as a panacea for low-performing students and warns against distorting the politically friendly term "accountability" into even more standardized testing. It offers four areas where the next president can help schools:

    1. Safe and uncrowded schools with more counselors.

    2. Smaller classes.

    3. Adequate resources and teacher support to assure that all students receive a rich, well-rounded curriculum including the arts, physical education and project-based learning in a curriculum connected to their own lives and culture, with progress evaluated by high-quality, appropriate assessment tools that are primarily classroom-based.

    4. More parental involvement. [T]he more involved parents are at the school level, the better the outcomes for students. And yet the top- down, corporate approach to school governance currently used in cities throughout the country such as Chicago and New York has consistently and systematically worked to eliminate the ability of parents to have a real voice in decision-making and thus to be true partners at the school and district level.

New York's Class Size Matters and Chicago's Parents United for Responsible Education teamed up to create the letter and the project Common Sense Reforms for our Schools. Thanks to tireless New York advocate Leonie Haimson for her good work and for keeping me posted.