Education reform is a vital part of creating an educated and engaged citizenry. It is also critical to developing a workforce with the skills necessary to compete in a global economy. Education reform initiatives such as curriculum standards, teacher development and training, school choice, and student assessment and accountability are crucial components of a high-quality, future-ready education system.
Education reforms have been shaped by an ever-changing array of social and economic challenges. They have ranged from establishing cultural literacy and religious knowledge to assimilating immigrants, preparing students for the industrialized work force, and combating poverty and inequality through government funding.
Over the past two decades, a new wave of education reforms has been driven by national standards and accountability. This movement is based on the idea that all children should have the opportunity to achieve their fullest potential, regardless of race or economic status.
These trends have been supported by research indicating that high standards and achievement gains are most closely linked to quality teaching. In addition, there is wide agreement that education systems need to improve their ability to recruit, train, support, and retain teachers.
Unfortunately, many of the policies being implemented to improve the quality of teaching are flawed. For example, an obsession with standardized testing threatens to narrow the curriculum to only what can be tested, resulting in a low-level education that does not prepare students for college and career. The solution is not more tinkering with the educational process, but rather building a system that holds teaching in high regard and supports educators to do their best work.
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