Transforming Learning on a Grand Scale
In the field of education reform, there is a lot of interest in leveraging pedagogical and organizational innovations informed by a spirit of engineering. The hope is to achieve measurable and substantial improvements in school-based learning that lead to high social returns on investment.
The problem is that these reforms leave many behind, and the gulf of opportunity continues to grow. The Role of Stakeholders
Many education reformers overlook a fundamental aspect of large-scale educational systems: that a student’s academic achievement is highly tethered to household economic circumstances. Despite all the rhetoric about equity, most educational systems are not structured to deliver on this promise. Achieving educational equity will require a significant investment in the design and implementation of comprehensive strategies to minimize the influence of social background on learning, including a range of system wide policies like equitable funding, common high expectations for all students, school-level interventions such as focused classroom-level literacy and math support, and a variety of family and community supports outside of school.
These approaches can be implemented by a variety of stakeholders in different ways. For example, some may choose to work in close collaboration with external “hub organizations” with a proven track record of successfully implementing education system reforms. Such partnerships could include comprehensive school reform providers and charter management organizations.
Another strategy might be to seek out and support local education professionals in the development and implementation of innovative initiatives within the system. Such work could include training local educators in new pedagogical techniques, and providing support for local schools and districts to implement reforms in the form of a school-based incubator or laboratory.
Identifying the right stakeholders is crucial to a successful education reform project. This includes teachers, both current and superannuated; students-both current and alumni; parents; non-teaching staff; and other public and private entities that rely on the institution for their supply of educated human resources.
The challenge is to balance the need to involve all these stakeholders with the reality of limited time and resources for implementing any new initiative. This can be done by articulating the essential purpose of any new policy in terms that are anchored to core values like national identity, economic survival or individual opportunity.
It is also important to recognize that power in educational institutions is diffuse, making it difficult to change how individuals act. This does not diminish the need to study how power is exerted and distributed in institutions, however, nor the importance of considering the broader contexts and societal dynamics when designing or implementing reforms. The Role of Teachers
Educators are often a key stakeholder in large scale reform efforts. They can help a reform succeed or fail depending on their actions. In some countries, education reforms are largely driven by the desire to address socio-economic problems. This is because the economic gains that come from education have been shown to have a high impact on other areas of society.
For example, literacy rates have been correlated with lower infant mortality rates and higher incomes. While this is not a direct causal relationship, many people believe that these correlations indicate an underlying cause-effect relationship in which a better educated population causes healthier children and wealthier citizens.
A well-educated population is also believed to be more likely to have the skills needed to innovate, create jobs and contribute to a country’s economy. This is why many countries are investing in education to provide students with the skills required to meet today’s workplace demands.
The quality of teachers is a key determinant of educational outcomes. Several high-performing systems have policies designed to attract, support, retain and advance high-quality educators. These include system-wide policies like equitable funding and shared, high expectations, and classroom-level interventions like focused early literacy and math support. While these initiatives can be a great starting point, they won’t bring about significant changes in learning unless they are implemented in the classroom.
In order to implement reforms successfully, teachers must be convinced of the rationale for change and committed to pursuing its goals. This can be accomplished through the development of visions that appeal to a teacher’s sense of morality and professional integrity. It can also be achieved through the establishment of a system that is supportive of and rewards exemplary teaching and leadership.
Some systems attempt to bridge the gap between national and state/district level policy intent and what happens in classrooms by using a high-fidelity model. This approach tries to standardize instruction by providing teachers with scripted lessons and materials to follow. However, this approach can lead to a loss of trust in the capacity of teachers and school leaders to implement new ideas. In contrast, some systems that focus on establishing an enabling environment for innovation have been successful in engaging teachers in a more collaborative process of learning and improvement. The Role of Parents
The primary educators of children are parents (or caregivers). Their support of their children's learning impacts educational outcomes. This includes the support they provide before and during formal education, the direct facilitation of their children's learning in schools, and their involvement in school-decision making bodies. This can be seen in a number of ways, from the use of technology to communicate with teachers, to parental attendance at school events and the support of their children in classrooms.
The success of large-scale reform depends on the input and acceptance of the many people affected by the changes. As such, education reform efforts should seek to engage as many of these individuals as possible. This is especially important when attempting to improve academic performance in the most underperforming schools.
Current education trends in America are creating a wide gulf of achievement gaps across socioeconomic levels and regions of the country, with serious implications for economic growth. This is a result of both the systemic shortcomings in our public education system and the widening inequality in the economy as a whole. The gulf of opportunity caused by these inequalities threatens the social fabric of our nation.
In the past, reformers have often focused on improving the system for those at the top of the economic pyramid. This approach has aided the highest-performing schools but has left the most-disadvantaged students behind. Moreover, it has contributed to the widening income gap in our nation and the growing deficit of human capital.
Successful education systems are based on a strong commitment to equity. Our mediocre international standing is due in part to our failure to address the educational needs of all students. High-performing systems minimize the impact of social background on student achievement by providing equitable funding, having common high expectations for all schools, and utilizing a range of classroom-level interventions to address specific educational needs.
It is also important for education leaders to build trust and engagement with teachers, parents, and other stakeholders in order to make sure that everyone's views are heard. This can be done by building partnerships with these groups and by promoting a culture of transparency. It is also important to make it easy for stakeholders to get involved in reform efforts. This can be done by using technology to facilitate communication and offering flexible schedules for meetings. 大規模修繕 The Role of Administrators
Large-scale reforms of schools and education systems are not a matter of applying a cookie-cutter solution. These efforts require the involvement of a broad range of local education professionals, parents and community members as well as external “hub” organizations with a track record of success in school reform. These people must collaborate closely to create and sustain new teaching methods, curricula and learning environments. Moreover, they must develop strong leadership to manage the pressures of implementing change and ensure that their efforts produce results.
These efforts are often based on the premise that the root cause of many socio-economic problems is a lack of education. Consequently, education is seen as a key social service that can address these problems by improving the overall quality of life through increased health, wealth and prosperity. This has motivated numerous large-scale education reforms.
The first wave of these reforms aimed to improve educational standards by raising the expectations of students, teachers and parents. They also sought to implement innovative curriculum frameworks, standards-based assessments and teacher evaluation criteria. These policies were largely driven by economic development strategies that saw a highly educated workforce as essential to national competitiveness and global economic growth.
As time went on, however, the emphasis shifted from education as an economic catalyst to an essential social service. This led to the implementation of universal public education systems. These large-scale reforms sought to make education more accessible and equal, and to provide a common curriculum for all children.
In addition to introducing innovative teaching methods and learning approaches, these larger reforms included measures to increase student enrollment. Some of these strategies included providing funding to low-performing schools and forming alliances with charter and magnet schools. They were also based on the premise that schools could learn from each other, and that successful schools should be replicated.
Despite gains in enrolment, however, learning outcomes in many countries remain low. The challenge is to understand why, and to identify effective strategies for boosting learning equitably. This article examines how a comprehensive research programme, the General Education Quality Improvement Programme with a focus on equity (GEQIP-E), has been working to achieve this in Ethiopia.
AUTHOR: JAZZY EXPERT – Search Engine Optimization Team Head at Linkendin