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BILL BOSHER
TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST Nov 12, 2000
The recent Standards of Learning accreditation results warrant
celebration by all who are interested in Virginia’s public
schools.
Even though the report, “A Nation at Risk,” may
have awakened the political and educational communities to
much-needed reform, it ironically introduced a new spectator
sport: public education “bashing.” Early in this
political season, every pollster and pundit acknowledged that
any successful candidate would have to run on improving education.
In order to pitch passionately and truthfully this position,
you must first establish that it is broken and needs to be
fixed. Many even picture the restoration of a system that
existed only in revisionist history.
Certainly there have been educational illnesses and some
have required critical care; however, we must also be cautious
of those who enjoy shooting the wounded.
The October, 2000, report on the statewide performance of
schools against new accreditation standards is another clear
example of how tempting it is to follow any statement of achievement
with “but . . . .” A recent e-mail from a member
of the Board of Education rang a bell that needs to be heard
beyond the virtual limits of a personal computer.
MARK CHRISTIE, an attorney and member of the Virginia Board
of Education, has been a candid analyst of public education
who has supported its strengths and acknowledged its weaknesses.
On October 26 his e-mail shared the following:
Most of the press coverage today focuses almost entirely
on the number of schools to reach ’full accreditation,’ a
requirement not in effect until 2007. While that number has
more than tripled from 6 percent last year to 22 percent this
year and is definitely good news, there are two other accreditation
categories in which results announced yesterday are more important,
in my opinion, and deserve more attention because they give
a much more comprehensive picture of where the Standards of
Learning program is at this point in time: provisionally accredited/meets
state standards and accredited with warning.
The day after this note came, a business leader asked me
to help him understand the very poor performance of schools
against the new accreditation standards. Perhaps a look at
Christie’s “other accreditation categories” provides
the best answer. In the summer of 2000 the Board of Education
established a new rating - provisionally accredited/meets
state standards - to define clearly annual “progress
benchmarks” that would lead to the 2007 goal. The purpose
of the Standards of Learning program from its inception has
been to recognize individuals and institutions that were moving
toward meeting or exceeding measurable expectations in English,
math, history, and science.
IN ADDITION to the 406 schools (22 percent) that have already
reached the 2007 threshold for accreditation, 698 schools
(38 percent) have met specific progress targets that will
lead to full accreditation. This means that with only three
years of assessment, 60 percent of the schools in Virginia
have met the goal or are on track to meet it when it becomes
a requirement in 2007.
The second category - accredited with warning - identifies
those schools that are having the greatest difficulty with
the requirements. The 234 schools (13 percent) with this designation
fall more than 20 percentage points below the performance
benchmarks, with typically two out of three students unable
to pass a grade-level reading or math test. These schools
are in trouble and need extraordinary help.
Having recently spent two days with Ken Blanchard, author
of The One Minute Manager, I find it easy to understand that
successful leaders “catch people doing things right and
reward them.” This approach seems to enhance morale,
create ownership, and motivate workers to try harder.
Perhaps this, too, would be a better approach for those who
are working to improve our schools: students, teachers, administrators,
and board members. We have caught them doing things right.
Wouldn’t it also be appropriate to reward them without a “but
. . . .”?
Bill Bosher, a 2000 Commentary Columnist, is executive director
of the Commonwealth Educational Institute at VCU.
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