Flypaper: Education reform ideas that stick, from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute

Flypaper: Education reform ideas that stick, from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute


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POSTED ON JANUARY 8, 2010 AT 10:47 AM BY ANDY SMARICK

The real RTT battles

The complexities and challenges of ensuring the Race to the Top’s success are expanding rapidly, and I’m hoping the Department is prepared for what lies ahead.
I’m concerned that, because so many of us have been focussed on the policy changes states have been adopting, two entirely more pressing issues have been given insufficient attention.


The first is the state applications themselves. What are states promising to accomplish—and much, much more importantly—are they actually going to carry them out when they win awards? Several months ago, I warned about “Trojan Horse” applications, proposals that seem welcome until you look inside. Given states’ desperate budget conditions and quotes I’m finding from state leaders, my anxiety has heightened. (In a soon-to-be-released article for Education Next, I revisit this matter.)


The second issue, which materialized recently and has grown like kudzu, relates to the MOUs states are trying to negotiate with education stakeholders, particularly unions.  Ideally, these documents—encouraged by the Department—would be commitments by local leaders to faithfully implement the state’s plans should it win a grant. But the complications here are legion.