Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Teacher Reform Tug-of-War: Recruiting Talent vs. Using Talent � The Quick and the Ed

Teacher Reform Tug-of-War: Recruiting Talent vs. Using Talent � The Quick and the Ed

Teacher Reform Tug-of-War: Recruiting Talent vs. Using Talent

Sometimes anti-establishment education reform thinkers, like other visionaries sharing a loose outlook on the world, get lumped together in a monolithic ball of thought that is easily digestible to those who have a different outlook or no outlook at all. The tragic result of this is that details, diversity of ideas, and shades of perception are lost to external thinkers and policy makers.
Reading Public Impact’s several-month-old 3X for All: Extending the Reach of Education’s Bestyesterday reminded me of the importance of debating alternative models and theories—especially within a group with shared ideals. Like the DuBois-Washington debates on the future of black people in American society or the ongoing debate among libertarian thinkers on the proper role of the Federal Reserve, Emily and Bryan Hassel open up a course-charting discussion for education reformers on how best to use talented people in our worst performing K-12 schools.
Two leading models for improving teacher quality center around the recruitment of smart, persistent achievers