The essays in this book deal with situations or issues in public
education which we need to address. While some of these situations seem
clear and almost obvious, making the necessary changes and admitting the
truth to ourselves is not necessarily going to happen easily. The
suggestions for education made here will require that Americans admit
certain flaws in the system, some of which involve their own actions and
attitudes. They will also have to be willing to make sacrifices for the
larger good, such as allowing shifts in power and control. In other
words, these changes will require political will, patience, and
dedication if they are to be successful. There are many ideas for fixing
our schools. They all demand a kind of faith, a promise to withhold
judgment for a while until the new strategies are fully tested to decide
whether or not they are effective. People can be impatient, wanting
instant answers. They can also want assurance of success before every
agreeing to allow a change to happen. These attitudes block
experimentation and the attempt at change and improvement. Everyone will
have to sacrifice, to take a risk, if we are to make real changes in the
education system. All constituencies (students, teachers,
administrators, parents, community members, institutions of higher
education, teacher preparation programs, and unions) should be at the
table. What they should be working toward is not their individual
agendas or preservation, but the delivery of the best education possible
to our youth.
