RHSU Exclusive: The Five-Tool Policy Scholar
by Frederick M. Hess • Jan 3, 2012 at 8:30 am
Cross-posted from Education Week
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ShareTomorrow in this space, I'll be publishing the 2012 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Presence Rankings. Today, just like last year, I want to take a few moments to explain what those ratings are about and how they were generated.
The exercise starts from two simple premises: 1] ideas matter and 2] people tend to devote more time and energy to those activities which are acknowledged and lauded. The academy today does a passable job of recognizing good disciplinary scholarship but a pretty mediocre job of recognizing scholars who effectively help to move ideas from the pages of barely-read journals into the national conversation around schools and schooling. This state of affairs may work fine when it comes to the study of material science or Renaissance poetry, but it doesn't cut it for those wanting to encourage social scientists with something to say to wade responsibly into public debates.
In baseball, the ideal is the "five-tool" ballplayer. This is a player who can run, field, throw, hit, and hit with
