1. Reforming America’s Schools5

2. Student Generated Responses
THE PURPOSE OF SCHOOL
5.1
Student Generated Responses
Examples
Purpose 1:
To transmit society’s knowledge and values
Purpose 2:
To reconstruct society
Which purpose most characterizes the schools you attended?

3. GOALS OF SCHOOLS
5.2
Figure 5.1

4. HISTORY OF REFORM p. 154
5.3
Committee of Ten (1892) Cardinal Principles of Secondary Education (1918) A Nation at Risk (1983) No Child Left Behind (2001)

5. PUBLIC ATTITUDES: REFORMING OR REPLACING PUBLIC SCHOOLS p. 157
5.4
Source: The Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools.
Figure 5.2

6. CHARTER SCHOOLS p. 158 5.5 Most charter schools:
Allow for the creation of a new or the conversion of an existing public school
Prohibit admission tests
Are nonsectarian
Require a demonstrable improvement in performance
Can be closed if expectations are not met
Do not need to conform to most state rules and regulations
Receive funding based on the number of students enrolled

7. PRINCIPLES OF KIPP CHARTER SCHOOLS p.159
5.6
(Knowledge is Power Program)
More Time. KIPP schools have longer school days and a longer school year.
High Expectations. Students, parents, teachers, and staff work to create a culture of achievement and support.
Choice & Commitment. Everyone in a KIPP school chooses to be there, and to put in time and effort required to succeed.
Power to Lead. The principals of KIPP schools have control over their school budget and personnel are held accountable for learning. There is no central bureaucracy.
Focus on Results. Students are expected to achieve a level of academic performance that will enable them to graduate and go on to the nation’s best high schools and colleges.

8. Tour of a Boston Charter School
VIDEO SEGMENT
Tour of a Boston Charter School

9. PUBLIC FUNDS, PRIVATE SCHOOLS, AND VOUCHERS pp. 160-161
5.7
The Lemon test (1973)
Secular purpose,
Must not primarily advance or prohibit religion, and
Must not result in excessive government entanglement with religion.
But in Zelman v. Simmons-Harris (2002), a narrow 5-4 Supreme Court ruling allowed publicly funded vouchers to send children to Cleveland’s private religious schools.
Chief Justice William Rehnquist: Vouchers permit a “genuine choice among options public and private, secular and religious.”
Justice John Paul Stevens: “Whenever we remove a brick from the wall that was designed to separate religion and government, we increase the risk of religious strife and weaken the foundation of our democracy.”

10. PRIVATE SCHOOLS AT PUBLIC EXPENSE
5.8
Source: The 2008 Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes toward the Public Schools.
Figure 5.3

11. Other Types of Schools
Magnet Schools Schools for Profit Home Schools Green Schools Full Service Schools

12. WHO ARE HOME SCHOOLERS? 5.9 Figure 5.4
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, “Homeschooled Students,” The Condition of Education, Indicator 6 (May, 2009).
Figure 5.4

13. FACTORS SUPPORTING EFFECTIVE SCHOOLS p. 177
5.10
Strong leadership
Clear school mission
Safe and orderly climate
Monitor student progress
High expectations

14. SCHOOL RELATED VIOLENCE
5.11
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2007 (Issued April 21, 2009).
Figure 5.5

15. FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR SCHOOL SAFETY
5.12
Staff works together
Shared authority and decision making
Sense of ownership by students
Rules/procedures encourage self-discipline
Curriculum is interesting and challenging
Staff assists students with personal problems
Strong school-home cooperation
School structure (physical/organizational) supports these factors
Other factors?

16. Family to School Connections
VIDEO SEGMENT
Family to School Connections

17. STUDENT OBSERVATIONS OF EFFECTIVE SCHOOL PRACTICES
5.13
Effective School Practices
Ineffective School Practices
Principal
Climate
Safety
Student Progress
Teacher Expectations

18. BEYOND THE FIVE FACTORS p. 181
5.14
Start early
Focus on reading and math
Make schools smaller
Make classes smaller
Increase learning time
Involve parents
Train teachers
Trust

19. KEY TERMS A Nation at Risk
A 1983 federal report that characterized U.S. schools as mediocre, putting the nation at risk of losing economic and technological ground to other countries. The report called for renewed emphasis on core academic subjects and ushered in the era of "back-to-basics" education.
acculturation  
The acquisition of the dominant culture's norms by a member of the nondominant culture. The nondominant culture typically loses its own culture, language, and sometimes religion in this process.
Americanization  
The acculturation of American norms and values.
charter school  
A school established by a charter between a local school board or a state government and a group of teachers, parents, and even businesses. A charter school is exempt from many state and local regulations. Designed to promote creative new schools, the charter represents legal permission to try new approaches to educate students. The first charter legislation was passed in Minnesota in 1991.

20. KEY TERMS distance learning
Courses, programs, and training provided to students over long distances through television, the Internet, and other technologies.
Edison Schools  
An educational company that contracts with local school districts, promising to improve student achievement while making a profit in the process.
five-factor theory of effective schools  
A theory, developed through school effectiveness research, that emphasizes five factors: effective leadership, monitoring student progress, safety, a clear vision, and high expectations.
full service school  
Schools that provide a network of social services from nutrition and health care to parental education and transportation, all designed to support the comprehensive educational needs of children.
homeschooling  
A growing trend (but a longtime practice) of parents educating their children at home, for religious or philosophical reasons.

21. KEY TERMS magnet school
A specialized school open to all students in a district on a competitive or lottery basis. It provides a method of drawing children away from segregated neighborhood schools while affording unique educational specialties, such as science, math, and the performing arts.
merit pay  
A salary system that periodically evaluates teacher performance and uses these evaluations in determining salary.
norm-referenced tests  
Tests that compare individual students with others in a designated norm group.
objective-referenced tests  
Tests that measure whether students have mastered a designated body of knowledge rather than how they compare with other students in a norm group.
open enrollment  
The practice of permitting students to attend the school of their choice within their school system. It is sometimes associated with magnet schools and desegregation efforts.

22. KEY TERMS privatization
The movement toward increased private sector, for-profit involvement in the management of public agencies, including schools.
Reconstructionists  
A view of education as a way to improve the quality of life, to reduce the chances of conflict, and to create a more humane world. Also called social reconstructionism.
service credit  
By volunteering in a variety of community settings, from nursing homes to child care facilities, students are encouraged to develop a sense of community and meet what is now a high school graduation requirement in some states.
Tenure  
A system of employment in which teachers, having served a probationary period, acquire an expectancy of continued employment. The majority of states have tenure laws.

23. KEY TERMS virtual schools
A type of distance education offered through the Internet. Virtual schools provide asynchronous learning and may offer specialized courses not typically found in traditional schools.
voucher  
A coupon, issued by the government, representing money targeted for schools. In a voucher system, parents use educational vouchers to "shop" for a school. Schools receive part or all of their per-pupil funding from these vouchers. In theory, good schools would thrive and poor ones would close for lack of students.

24. FOCUS QUESTIONS What are the goals of America's schools?
What school goals are important to you?
Why has school reform become a top national priority?
What new school options are replacing the traditional neighborhood public school?
What is the role of teachers and students in reforming our schools?
What are the characteristics of effective schools?