Whittle may be one of the most demonized men in education today. When origianally formed, Edison was lambasted as a private company trying to make money off the public dollar. But while Edison Schools have had its ups and downs, the company is still around 13 years later.
I am currently reading Whittle's new book, Crash Course (see link in the sidebar) and many of the ideas make sense. He has a very strong case for more education Research and Development. From the interview:
There is a good deal of "R" out there in education. There's almost no "D." "D" is when you operationalize "R." "R" might lead you to an insight. "D" is now what do you do to actually bring that into a school, change how a school operates, change how a school behaves, and actually get some results changed. So "R" might tell you leadership at the school level is critical. "D" might show you how to double or triple principal pay so that you actually get the kind of leaders that you need at those schools.
This is of course just one of the many ideas that Whittle puts forth in his book. Whittle does what all innovators do--challenge the status quo.
My fraternity, Phi Sigma Pi, has a saying, "Merely because a practice is prevalent may be the poorest reason for continuing it." Whittle keeps asking the question, is what we are doing in public schools actually working. If the latest news, is any indication, even the much admired and maligned No Child Left Behind Act appears to not be changing in any drastic manner the educational achievement of our kids.
Maybe Whittle is right, maybe his ideas will work. I am not a Whittle convert just yet, but if he keeps asking the questions, maybe people will start to talk about really changing our schools, which is, I believe, Whittle's intention.
Snacking at Jo's Cafe
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