The "so-what"

We could continue down this road of simplistic and too-narrowly focused solutions – charter schools, “higher standards”, state graduation exams, pay for performance, the elimination of tenure, etc.. And while there may be some merit to each of these ideas, none of them will get us where we want to go.

As I said last time, so what?

Several weeks ago, I stumbled across a segment on the Newshour that described the Easton, PA school district’s effort to connect teacher compensation to student test scores. (This was in order to meet one of the criteria of the federal “Race to the Top” grants.) This went along predictably, with the teacher’s association responding less than enthusiastically to the school board’s initiative. But what struck me was this comment by a school board member: “the problem is, there’s just not enough trust.”

There’s the so-what.

If we’re going to succeed at the highly complex and interconnected undertaking of reforming America’s schools, it’s going to require all the stakeholders – teachers, students, parents, administrators, community members and policy-makers – to push in the same direction. And that’s going to require a level of trust that cannot be imposed from Washington or Harrisburg.  Trust has to be built locally.

As Anthony Cody put it in his terrific blog, The Missing Ingredient in School Reform, “Trust is perhaps the single most important element in a successful school.”

For me, the issue of school reform – perhaps “transformation” is the better word – boils down to how we answer two questions:
·    What does every student need to know and be able to do in order to be successful?
·    How do we create the best learning environment for that to occur?

As I see it, the learning environment – or “school climate” - is the obvious, but often overlooked foundation for everything else. And if a positive school climate is the foundation of school reform, then trust is the cornerstone.

In many places, that would require a different way of thinking.

Take, as just one example, contract negotiations. The traditional view is that the teacher’s association sits on one side of the table, trying to get the best deal for their members, while the school board sits on the opposite side, trying to give away as little as possible.

The problem with the traditional – confrontational - approach is that it doesn’t help to create an atmosphere in which teachers will feel inspired to go above and beyond the call of duty for their students. (In this sense, it is neither cost-effective nor aligned with organizational goals.)

But in highly-functioning school districts, the goal is to come to an agreement that everyone sees as fair - admittedly, easier said than done, and an unrealistic expectation unless you’ve spent time working on the foundation.  In order for any “side” to think beyond its own self interest, there has to be a fairly significant level of trust – enough that people begin to believe that we’re all actually on the same side.

This atmosphere needs to be developed and sustained throughout the entire organization. In fact, developing a climate of trust and collaboration around a common goal is the central task of school leadership.