CURMUDGUCATION: Better Schools Dialogue Part III: Three Guiding Questions

CURMUDGUCATION: Better Schools Dialogue Part III: Three Guiding Questions:

Better Schools Dialogue Part III: Three Guiding Questions

I'm running a dialogue with Dmitri Mehlhorn in which we are looking for any common ground we might share on the topic of better schools. Here are links to Part I and Part II. I'll be along with my next response shortly, but in the meantime, feel free to speak up in the comments section.

Dear Curmudgucation,   

Thank you for engaging.  In response to my vision for public schools, you and your followers have raised three basic questions: (1) are these schools desirable, (2) are they possible, and (3) how can we get them?   

Are these schools desirable?   

My first post suggested that teachers should be paid more; freed from standardized testing and administrative chores; and allowed to focus on their students. Studentsshould learn from each other and on their own, using Montessori methods andoutdoor activities, in learning communities that span different ages and ability levels.They should eat healthy foods. Both content and pedagogy should be personalized to their needs. I cross-posted this vision on other sites (including Medium and Citizen Ed), and received positive feedback from parents and educators.  Given the choice, I’m confident most of America, its teachers, and its students would prefer this vision to the status quo.  

You and your audience raised concerns: that by relying upon mobile computing, this vision elevates technology at the expense of humanity; and that competency-based CURMUDGUCATION: Better Schools Dialogue Part III: Three Guiding Questions: