Community, the Missing Element of School Reform: Why Schools Should Be More like Congregations than Banks

Abstract

This article discusses the meaning of the idea that schools should be communities. It argues that the view that schools should be communities should be viewed as a distinct vision of school reform because it has a distinct vision of the problems that require solution (alienation and disengagement) and how they are to be solved. It contrasts this vision with standards‐based reform and with the emphasis on small schools. The article argues that schools that are communities should be rooted in a shared educational project—a conception of the vision of the education the school wishes to provide that is shared by all members of the community. There are four C's of community: coherence, cohesion, care, and contact. Coherence consists of a shared vision and a shared language—a shared educational project. Cohesion is the sense of community that results from the shared pursuit of such a project. Care is required for initiating students into this project. Contact concerns the structural features of schools, such as size, that facilitate personalization and care. Coherence is the central feature of community. In contrast, standards‐based reform privatizes educational projects and instrumentalizes education. The emphasis on small schools tends to see contact as the crucial feature of community rather than coherence.