A staff writer from The Seattle Times commented on our educational systems in America.  Of all the criticisms he heard, the one that he thought of  the most was the  particular study led by Arthur Levine, former president of Teachers College at Columbia University.  "Teacher education right now is the Dodge City of education: unruly and chaotic," he said.  Jerry said "That's why when you get a bunch of parents standing around a hallway they're likely talking about which teachers to avoid and which classes you want to maneuver your child into."

"Every institution has a mix of competent and incompetent people, but education seems especially plagued by poor teachers who rob children of the education they deserve.  We are always losing people with the potential to be good teachers because their colleges didn't prepare them for the real world. And when they arrive on the job they are enmeshed in a smothering bureaucracy too often bereft of real leadership," said Jerry.

Levine's last study found the quality of principals and superintendents to be lacking, which explains part of the problem.  We all just need to stop pointing the finger at one another.  We recognize the problem, so just let us all work together and solve the problem. 

This article appeared in the September 21, 2006 edition of The Seattle Times.

Published Monday, Sep. 25, 2006