From the Editorial Board

Abstract

From the Editorial Board Jennifer Job At The High School Journal, we have begun an effort to use our editorial space for addressing current events. In our last issue, we discussed Arne Duncan's take on Schools of Ed. But when Newsweek published an editorial by Bill Gates ("A Quiet Revolution", 1/25/2010) addressing the roles of foundations and technology in education, we decided to do something slightly different. Many important issues are raised in Gates' piece (taken from a longer letter to the Gates Foundation)—incentive pay, the use of technology in the classroom, the place that foundations have in our schools, how outside funding should be used—just to name a few. In a larger sense, Gates' essay is a timely address on the purpose of schooling. Considering President Obama's State of the Union speech calling for competition with China and India, and the new Race to the Top initiative, policy seems to be turning towards production of a labor force, rather than the social justice agenda promoted by many Schools of Education. Thus begins an interesting and urgent paradox: What happens when the goals of those training teachers are fundamentally different from those who are funding schools? More specific, yet no less important, questions also arose in our analysis of Gates' piece. What role should businesses play in the strategic design of schools and curriculum? How should technology be used—to assist curriculum or drive it? Should teachers be paid on merit or experience? Can foundations buy a seat at the table of education policy just because they have the money? Is teacher quality defined by student success on tests or more holistic aspects that are harder to identify? And finally, is there a way teachers, scholars, and the policymakers can work together to further an educational platform that works for all? These questions can hardly be answered in one editorial. Education is experiencing a paradigm shift, and it is imperative that scholars, as well as educators, be part of that conversation. In this issue, we have provided a space to begin a discussion between scholars and businesspeople, students and policymakers, teachers and community members. We begin with a piece from our own Editorial Board, written by Meredith Sinclair, our Managing Editor, followed by a response from Tom Vander Ark, a member of our National Board and Managing Director of Revolution Learning (as well as author of edreformer.com). You will see that although both come from HSJ they are very different in opinion! We encourage you to join the debate—either by submitting a piece to HSJ or commenting on our Facebook page. We intend to publish at least one more piece in each of the next few issues, and hope that the conversation will continue online. There is obviously a lot left to say, and the direction secondary education will take is far from certain. [End Page 93] Jennifer Job The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill jgjob@email.unc.edu Two Viewpoints Meredith N. Sinclair (bio) and Tom Vander Ark (bio) Teacher quality and virtual learning both figure heavily in current discussions around education reform. It is little surprise then that both were featured in the education portion of Bill Gates' 2010 annual letter to the Gates Foundation (also excerpted in Newsweek). While the Gates Foundation is certainly not the only voice in education reform, we find the ideas articulated in the annual letter representative of many foundations and private entities interested in education reform - ideas we would like to both promote and problematize. First, we applaud the work of the Gates Foundation, both in education and in other areas; this commitment to innovative philanthropic work has certainly touched the lives of many. The foundation's work in education has served as an interesting model for what may be possible outside of the traditional education system. Perhaps equally as important, the high-profile work of the foundation has brought much needed attention to problems pervasive in education. Like Gates, we feel the US must address the inadequacies in our education system, specifically those that propagate inequalities in our society. However, we caution using global competitiveness as an impetus for education reform...