The Failure of Reform

O'Banion notes in Chapter 1 that school reform itself is in need of reform. Some evidence is provided by Leonard, who says, "The painful truth is that despite the spotlight on schooling and the stern pronouncements of educators, governors, and presidents, despite the frantic test preparation in classrooms all over the country and the increased funding, school achievement has remained essentially flat over the past two decades" (as cited in O'Banion, 1997, p. 5).

O'Banion goes on to cite several reasons for this failure, including: bureaucrats, faculty, administration, support staff, students, and parents. Granted, enlisting the support of all of these different sectors is crucial if reform has any hope of success; however, in my opinion, the two most important factors in lasting change involve funding and faculty.

Funding: I think O'Banion is quite insightful when he says, "The problem is that ... business and political leaders believe that colleges and universities have been treated well with state appropriations for decades, and they are demanding better results without corresponding increases in resources" (p. 35). Sadly, the "good old days" are never coming back. I came into the public school system as an educator at a time when Baby Boomer teachers were retiring. Many complained about how much more difficult teaching had become. In some ways I wish I had never learned that department secretaries and graders were commonplace. In my 13 years in the classroom, I saw a host of resources vanish -- everything from planning periods to trash bags. (Literally, we received an e-mail in early May saying that trash liners would no longer be replaced because there was no budget to buy them.) I got the distinct sense that what O'Banion is saying is true. Even though there are different teachers now and different students, the current generation will me made to pay for the alleged "sins of the fathers."

A connection O'Banion doesn't make, and one I think is very important, is the relationship between fewer resources and staff morale. No reform effort is going to be successful unless the faculty is on board. And as I mentioned in a previous post, the "us and them" approach that O'Banion seems to ascribe to will only serve to further stall any efforts at change.

I looked in vain at the table of contents hoping to see a chapter on how to enlist faculty in reform efforts. Chapter headings may be misleading, but so far, I see none. I believe a huge part of the solution involves recognizing how hard the majority of faculty members work -- with fewer and fewer resources. If staff members feel that reform goals are being imposed from above, they won't buy in.