Education Report Card

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently released an Education Report Card assessing each of the states in numerous different areas.  The report assigns a grade in the various categories for each state.  Prior to reading the report, I wondered why the U.S. Chamber of Commerce would assess our educational system.  After reading the report, it became very clear why they engaged in such a large assessment.  There is obviously a lack of faith in our current system.  The quotes below come directly from the report. 

• "And those students who do receive diplomas are too often unprepared for college or the modern workplace."
• "our K-12 schools have stayed remarkably unchanged-preserving, as if in amber, the routines, culture, and operations of an obsolete 1930s manufacturing plant."
• "Despite such grim data, for too long the business community has been willing to leave education to the politicians and the educators-standing aside and contenting itself with offers of money, support, and goodwill. But each passing year makes it clear that more, much more, is needed. America's dynamic, immensely productive private sector is the envy of the world. Are there ways in which business expertise, dynamism, accountability, and problem solving could improve our schools? What would a business plan for reform include?"

So what does this mean for schools?  We must change the way that we do business.  For too long we have preserved a system that no longer aligns with today's workforce.  Schools that have made the move to one to one have begun to change the ways schools operate, but that change by itself is not enough.  If computers are only used to more efficiently do what has always been done, then our system truly will not change.  

Schools instead need to become a place where students are actively learning.  Teachers need to shift their role from the "keeper of the knowledge" to a facilitator.  Educational leaders must strive to put systems in place that encourage and support this type of change.

Comments

[twitter.com/DeronDurflinger]

I think you have hit the nail on the head. Laptop computers alone will not change schools. Educators need to think differently. Students have more access to content knowledge than ever before. It could be argued that the teacher's role as the content expert is no longer needed. Teachers must evolve into more of a facilitator of student learning. This change is critical to schools evolving into what is needed for students today and in the future. Administrators must be willing to lead this change. The future of education is in danger if a change to this type of system doesn't occur.