Q&A with Marc Tucker: Why we need a new reform agenda to compete internationally
Marc Tucker
Why is the performance of students in other countries surpassing that of U.S. students? It’s a question thatMarc S. Tucker, president and CEO of the National Center on Education and the Economy in Washington, D.C., sought to answer at a symposium last month focused on education reforms in other countries, including Canada, China, Finland, Japan and Singapore. The report, “Standing on the Shoulders of Giants: An American Agenda for Education Reform,” provides some scathing criticism of the U.S. for allowing other nations to catch up and then surpass America in K-12 education.
After the symposium, I spoke with Tucker about what we can learn from his group’s findings. Below are excerpts of our conversation.
The report indicates that countries outperforming the U.S. have developed strategies we have not. What are the key lessons about high performance we can take away from what is being done elsewhere?
In one phrase, the key lesson is there are no shortcuts. If you look at the essence of what these other countries have done, they have made their funding systems equitable in that they have put more money behind the kids