[untamedmedley]

Articles about education too often end with platitudes about how we need real debate to make changes occur. I'd argue we need action... preferably from the private sector.

Judging by the lack of comments on this article so far, not many people here follow this issue. The DC public schools are a microcosm of the whole ed reform movement, and an example of how difficult it can be to navigate the politics of reforming a corrupt system.

Rhee has done a lot to improve the efficiency of the district (in terms of getting books and supplies where needed, and using school resources wisely), but at the end of the day, her approach to reform (command and control vs. consensus building) is what will likely end her tenure early.

Right now, the mayor who backed her (Fenty) is in a tight race with a candidate who is exploiting people's distrust in a government that, for better or worse, acts based on what it believes is right for the people, not what the people believe is right for them.

Or, in the tl;dr edition:

When working within the confines of politics, you can get short bursts of successful but temporary reform, or you can be safe politically while accomplishing very little. There's gotta be another way.

[DanielN]

Could you explain how action from the private sector might help to reform the public education system. Unless you're referring to vouchers I'm not sure I understand the connection you're trying to make.

Also, I'm not sure its accurate to claim that Rhee might lose her position if Fenty isn't re-elected. His opponent seems to be on the same side of education reform as him and most of his claims to "anti government" policies are more in the realm of police and tax reform (at least as I understand it; I don't live in DC)

[untamedmedley]

I apologize for the lack of clarity. Didn't want to get too far into the weeds, but I think after school is a great place to start. My favorite example of this are Japanese cram schools (Juku), which serve a much larger and varied function than most people who have heard of them realize.

Japan has an extensive network of for-profit after school programs that act as a check on the standards enacted in Japanese public schools. When the Ministry of Education decided to change its standards (which affect curriculum across the nation), the juku responded by offering tougher courses, balancing out any perceived weakening of the public schools. Rosegaard's book is my favorite on the subject of Juku: http://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Education-Cram-School-Busines...

There is some inherent unfairness to that system, mainly having to do with parents who can and can't pay for juku. But there are ways to mitigate the issues caused by socioeconomic differences. Some of those issues have already been somewhat addressed in America by the Supplementary Educational Services (http://www2.ed.gov/nclb/choice/help/ses/index.html) portion of NCLB. The program essentially forces failing schools to pay for after school tutoring.

I'd prefer a better designed SES program, but I think after school could be more promising than charters or vouchers for several reasons:

1. After school addresses the reality that children are as, if not more, affected by experiences outside of the normal school day 2. It would help avoid many of the contentious issues surrounding teachers unions 3. It would allow for innovative approaches to curriculum and teaching without the burdens of having to supply everything we expect from a school (music, art, gym programs; extracurriculars, tricked out facilities) 4. It might stimulate a growth of small, education-oriented businesses in poor/minority communities (there are several successful, minority-owned tutoring companies in my hometown that rely on SES)

This isn't to say nothing should be done to reform schools from the inside. I just think we could use a two-pronged approach.

[potatolicious]

As someone who went through the tortuous education system in Taiwan, where the culture of cram schools also existed, and standardized testing was king, I would not wish it upon anyone. In fact, I think cram schools are one of the worst ideas ever conceived in education.

All it does is created socially retarded (in the non-derogatory way) children unable to deal with anything that doesn't come out of a textbook, with no discernible life skills whatsoever.

I've spent years unlearning things from that stage of my life, and I'm still not done. Every day I'm learning social norms and life knowledge that I honestly should have found out at age 12, not age 24. When you send kids to a public school for 8 hours, then spend the next 6 hours not interacting with people, and instead cramming for their next exam so they won't be hopelessly left behind, you're creating a massive social problem for later. When your children's only free time in a day is spent wolfing down packed dinner while the taxicab speeds from one cram class to another, you are doing yourself and your children a grave disservice.

There is a fundamental difference between school and education, one would be wise not to confuse the two.

More schooling is an absolutely ass backwards solution to our educational problems. The solution is better education, not slapping de facto mandatory private schools on top and making our kids work more hours than an EA employee.

[untamedmedley]

Given a choice between what we have now and a cram school culture, I would prefer the latter. At least then the (predominantly poor, black, and latino) students our public education system routinely fails would have a fighting chance at a decent life.

That said, I don't want to give the impression that cram school culture should accepted and imported wholesale to America. I used cram schools as an example of outside forces based in capitalism acting as a self-correcting mechanism for a public school system. Given the political difficulties of transforming public schools, I think it would be helpful to have at least one place students can go to receive an education.

[untamedmedley]

I missed your second point. Gray, Fenty's opponent, has been elusive about his thoughts on Rhee; silence is undoubtedly playing in his favor here. Rhee has already made it clear that she won't stick around long without the level of support (and freedom) Fenty has given her so far.

[DanielN]

ah, put it like that and I would probably agree with you. The way you phrased the issue the first time I was under the impression you were suggesting that fenty's opponent might be anti-Rhee. I was confused by this because I was under the impression that Rhee has pretty overwhelming political clout and public support. Currently it's just bad politics to be anti-Rhee in DC (unless you're a union leader). It would make more sense that Rhee would threaten to walk without continued support and unilateral power.