The stated goal of Prepare Maine is "remodeling education for a stronger economy, better jobs and a brighter future." It is not only a big initiative for the Coalition, which is comprised of leaders from the business, non-profit, and education sectors, but a potentially important starting point for a real shift in how we view the link between education and economic development. I urge you to go their website, which does the best job of any I've seen of framing the issues with data and relevant research.
I also appreciate that they attempt to suggest solutions, and I hope that the seven recommendations on the solutions page lead in that direction. But here's where the challenge of building and leading a bi-partisan, cross-sector coalition comes in.
The recommendations below are neither controversial nor even, for the most part, arguable. Who will take a stand against quality early learning, high standards, engaged parents and community, effective teachers, expanded access to college and workforce training, better collection and analysis of data, and efficient and equitable investment of resources?
That does not diminish the hard work that went into this - any of us who have worked on initiatives that require lots of smart, accomplished folks to agree on statements of mission, principle, or strategic action know how complicated even arriving at language everyone agrees on can be. But the questions remain: How do we create the learning experiences that reflect these recommendations? What specific structural moves (funding, regulation and certification, leadership and governance, etc.) will enable shifts from what we have to what we need?
An example: Sources tell me that there is a group within the Coalition that is open to approache that dramatically jump start innovation (perhaps through something like charter schools). There is also a group that believes change needs to come through the existing system (perhaps in partnership with the non-profits and universities who've tended play that role in Maine for the last twenty years or so.)
Both approaches have compelling, and contradictory, data: some real successes for charters, but also some that are not much better than the traditional schools they're supposed to outperform. Some improvement in some schools through partnerships, but a rather discouraging overall pattern of one step forward, two steps back. It is no surprise that rather than recommend an actual structural solution, the group was able to come to consensus on this: neither rule out, nor rule in.
What if, though, the answer is not either/or, but both/and? In fact, it is. The systems that beat the curve in improving student achievement do so by starting new schools (Casco Bay High School) and by re-inventing existing ones (Forest Hills in Jackman, for instance). What do they have in common? Partnerships with organizations that specialize in a particular model: Expeditionary Learning Schools and the Re-Inventing Schools Coalition, respectively. How, then, do you replicate such stories statewide?
One way you do NOT do it is by having a State Education dept, or the business as usual partners who contract with them, implement the kind of grant-funded, top down strategies that have been favored in Maine. Lots of reasons why, explained elsewhere.
What will work is for non-profits (often through a charter agreeement) to contract with authorizors (school districts, universities, or state ed. departments) to implement very specific models with very clear fiscal and accountability standards. The most effective of such initiatives ensure that schools are open to ALL students by lottery, that each school has a budget comparable on a per student basis to that of other public schools, and that each school have the autonomy to hire and fire teachers based on how effective they are, not how long they've been teaching.
That's where the MCEE, by virtue of the talent and collaborative spirit already assembled, could come in. "What! you say?" Not the governor, or the Commissioner of Education, or the legislature? Certainly they are part of the process, but, despite the excellent intentions of those who serve, bold action of the kind we need does not tend to start, or thrive, in such places. The lobbying might of those who would have to give something up in such a proposal - SOME teachers, principals and superintendents, for instance - is too great.
In Maine, though, the distance from the legislature to the MCEE is not that far. What if the MCEE were to function as a bi-partisan, results-not-politics lobby of it's own? Well, let's just say that many legislators from both sides of the aisle are ready to be persuaded.
What is the MCEE, after all? A former commissioner of education under an independent governor. Executives of mid-sized and large Maine employers - bankers, builders and publishers. Award-winning K-12 and university educators. The kinds of folks who can not only make seven recommendations, but could, with some more work, come to consensus on the steps needed to bring those recommendations to pass...including, once such a plan is agreed upon, bringing it to a new governor and legislature with a unified campaign.
REMODELING MAINE'S EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM
Around the state, the country and the world, people are working together to remodel their educational systems to prepare the next generation for the challenges ahead. Best practices emphasize seven priorities.
The early years matter because early experiences affect the maturing brain’s architecture, establishing either a sturdy or a fragile foundation for later development and behavior. We can maximize children’s development at a lower cost if we invest in quality programs that promote cognitive, physical, social and emotional development, and limit excessive, toxic stress that can damage the architecture of our young children’s brains.
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Research shows that students learn better when schools have high expectations, make students partners in learning and broaden conventional boundaries of time, space and talent. When the location for learning is the larger community, when community resources focus on education, and when we use brain scientists’ research about learning, we maximize every resource on behalf of the wide diversity of learners in the system.
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Everyone knows a teacher who made a big difference in their lives. Nothing does more to increase achievement than quality teaching and the professional development that fosters it. Moreover, educational systems need strong leadership at all levels to keep the focus on learning for all students.
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When parents and the entire community are engaged in defining and taking responsibility for excellence, student achievement increases. High expectations at home and in the community raise young people’s expectations of themselves, and in turn raise attendance and achievement. Learn more.
Nothing raises incomes more than increasing the number of college degree and occupational certificate holders in the workforce. Maine has the lowest incomes in New England because we have the lowest proportion of degree holders in our workforce.
We can provide more Mainers the knowledge and skills they need for success by making college more affordable, giving people the supports they need in post-high school education and training and breaking those programs into smaller chunks that working adults can manage. Learn more.
The most successful educational systems gather data to measure their progress, identify problems and improve continuously. From Head Start programs to high schools to our university and community college systems, we need to figure out what’s working, what isn’t and why. Learn more.
Educational opportunity should be the same regardless of where families live. We must make every part and level of our educational system more efficient, focusing resources on proven strategies that provide all learners with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed. Learn more.
See a snapshot of how Maine’s educational system stacks up.
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