Michael, you make good points and ask fair questions. Until 2002, teachers ran their classrooms, coordinated curriculum in and between grade levels, and administrators ran the schools. In 2002, Congress passed George Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and flipped the K-12 education system upside down.
Suddenly, teachers and administrators were answering to Congress, instead of parents, schools and communities. Worse yet, Congress was punitive, and students who failed to meet NCLB standards impacted teacher’s incomes and job security. Teachers stopped educating students, and started teaching to the test. And underperforming students were sent to "alternative schools" or expelled or stamped with vague labels, like learning disabled.
Unfortunately, NCLB remained enforce until 2015. By then, NCLB had been institutionalized. The biggest obstacle to undoing the damage is in universities where NCLB had informed the education of teachers who will remain in classrooms for the next 30 years - or more.
When I say modernize public education, I am talking about things like placing “Master Teachers” in every public school to help overcome the “education of teachers” part of the NCLB problem. I am talking about returning public education to local control, where teachers, parents, administrators and local businesses and organizations can tailor education to their unique student populations.
I am talking about Parent Resource Centers on every school site providing such things as childhood development programs, technology classes, and family counselors. And experts to help parents access health, dental care and mental health services for their kids. And experts to help parents coordinate special education services and college and job training programs for their kids.
Students who are taught how to educate themselves do so very well. For example, disadvantaged students enrolled in the Advance Via Independent Determination Program (AVID) have a 97% rate of college graduation.
The humanities need to be returned to public schools as well, especially foreign languages, the arts, music, film labs, social media labs, etc. I can't remember the exact number, but well over 50% of scientists, mathematicians, aerospace engineers, physicists, etc. play a musical instrument and/or engage is the arts, including community theatre, poetry, painting, sculpture, etc.
I hope I've explained my thinking.
