The following is a Guest Post by teacher and colleague Mary Jo Coffman.
Here is something that has been on my mind and I find interesting in a social science kind of way. It is interesting to note that the federal support of education such as No Child Left Behind has been an abysmal failure and will likely be on the cutting block due to budget constraints since all education issues are up for the "chop". In this case it will not be much missed. The state support of education while substantial has been cut and cut and cut some more. It is unfortunate that many of state-mandated education "reforms" are politically motivated and aimed at undermining the free public education system in order to privatize and make profit from said educational system. Public education is certainly one of the last holdouts of progressive reform and social equality. So, with all of that said, I believe local control of education as it was originally intended is right-minded and more realistic. I have seen a recent resurgence of local investment in the education process and evidence of that local control. First of all I had occasion to visit with the county coordinator of the literacy project that is run through the library system. They have had all funding cut but her network of volunteers will continue the work with or without funding. Secondly, the library system itself, which is now a local, grassroots effort and stronger than ever. Finally, the PBL that many of us are involved with involves the community in a very real and important way. I would say things are looking up!
Reflections of the Siskiyou Union High School District presented by Superintendent: Mike Matheson
As I have read many posts on blogs on the "sad state of affairs in education," what comes to mind is the focus on what isn't being done, what isn't being funded, what can't be done. Your post is a good reminder that we need, as an educational community (and that includes the partnership of those NOT in the school - community members), that we can shift the focus on using the resources we do have and can creatively find to drive some change in our own schools. That will to overcome the barriers that come from many directions by those involved in the partnership of education (which is what we are striving for in our own local PBL school-community partnerships), can provide inspiration and hope to others. To me, that is empowering and helps us build the paradigm that we can create change, however, small, and make a difference. That's something NCLB has never accomplished, but it's something we can and will!
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