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ERIC Number: ED533416
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Mar
Pages: 17
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Getting to 2014: The Choices and Challenges Ahead
Balfanz, Robert; Cohen, Michael; Hassel, Bryan C.; Hassel, Emily Ayscue; Hyslop, Anne; Odden, Allan; Tucker, Bill
Education Sector
Over the next few years, educators and policymakers have committed to implementing an array of challenging, but potentially transformative, reforms--reforms that could go beyond rearranging furniture to fundamentally restructuring and improving teaching and learning. Facing this much simultaneous change would be difficult even without the possibility that some of these changes may be in conflict--a proverbial iceberg in the path of reform. Collisions are more likely to happen when policymakers and educators plow full steam ahead, failing to look across the spectrum of reform and consider how each change affects the others. Thus, those overseeing these efforts must consider how multiple changes look when implemented together at the same time. If they don't, collisions could sink the opportunity to get school reform right. But if they do, they can anticipate challenges, make smart policy choices, and navigate the trade-offs that naturally follow. In this collection of essays, contributors discuss five of these dilemmas: (1) How do we successfully implement new accountability systems and interventions during the transition to new standards and assessments?; (2) How do we maintain the rigor of college- and career-ready standards without pushing more students out of the system?; (3) How do we adopt fair teacher evaluation systems based on student assessments when those assessments are set to change?; (4) How do we move toward more standardization while also promoting innovation?; and (5) How can we execute multiple, complex reforms in a time of limited resources? These are true dilemmas, without right-or-wrong answers. Thus, it is hoped that these essays provide a forum for provocative ideas: ideas that may not be particularly comfortable or comforting, but are nonetheless worthy of debate as policymakers, practitioners, and educators begin to tackle these challenges. Essays included in this volume are: (1) Getting Accountability and Implementation Right (Michael Cohen); (2) Doing It All: Raising Graduation Rates and Standards (Robert Balfanz); (3) Taking the Long-Term View on Teacher Evaluation (Bill Tucker); (4) Leaping Forward Without Holding Schools Back (Bryan C. Hassel and Emily Ayscue Hassel); and (5) Getting Results With Limited Resources (Allan Odden). Individual essays contain notes. [For related publication, "Getting to 2014 (and beyond): The Choices and Challenges Ahead. A Collection of Essays to Encourage Constructive Dialogue among Policymakers, Educators, and Practitioners Engaged in School Reform," see ED533415.]
Education Sector. 1201 Connecticut Avenue NW Suite 850, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 202-552-2840; Fax: 202-775-5877; Web site: http://www.educationsector.org
Publication Type: Collected Works - General
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: Teachers; Practitioners; Policymakers
Language: English
Sponsor: William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
Authoring Institution: Education Sector
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: No Child Left Behind Act 2001; Race to the Top
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A