Every community is different. School systems are different
from one another, but the contrasts that distinguish one community from
the next are even greater. The differences that define communities--demographic,
economic, geographic, historic--dictate that coalitions to support middle
schools will take different forms and have different goals.
There is no one best way to structure such a coalition, as the composition
of successful coalitions proves. In Long Beach, for example, the coalition
has a fairly small membership, drawn mainly from the school district and
local colleges and universities. In Louisville, where much of the original
motivation for the coalition came from city government and social service
providers, the group is larger and more diverse.
Most towns, cities, or counties have some distinctive strengths to draw
on in establishing a coalition. Colleges and other institutions of higher
education have a direct interest in the quality of local schools, and their
faculty and staff have expertise that makes them valuable members of a coalition.
Social service providers share with the schools a commitment to children
and families and a recognition of the challenges institutions face in maintaining
morale and professionalism. Some schools are already getting strong support
from well-organized, sophisticated parents' organizations -- but even where
these don't exist, caring parents do. Business people are everywhere, and
a majority of them are well aware that the health of business and the health
of the community are vitally interconnected. Together, people from each
of these groups can contribute to a middle school coalition.
Who belongs in a community coalition?
-- Public and nonprofit service providers
-- Business partners
-- Civic and government leaders
-- Parent leaders
-- School board members
-- School administrators and teachers
-- Professionals in health, law, and other fields
-- Scholars in education and youth development
-- Police and safety officers
-- Clergy
Intelligent innovation is a good thing. In every school,
committed and innovative people are working hard every day. Some are lucky
enough to be working in systems that are already firmly committed to necessary
reform and high student achievement. It is important to remember, though,
that even systems that have not embraced a process of improvement still
harbor exemplary educators. A coalition can help give them the leverage
they need to transform their schools.
A community coalition for middle school reform can accomplish a number of
things a school cannot accomplish on its own. Most important perhaps is
the coalition's ability to demonstrate to people inside the schools that
innovation is visible and valued. When educators realize that they are not
operating in a closed universe--that other people are watching and seem
to care--all kinds of things begin to happen.
Paying attention to balance. People with a fresh viewpoint
tend to ask more questions than insiders do, and they're also less defensive
about facing up to honest answers. A coalition can help a school system
look squarely at patterns of inequity--by school, by neighborhood, by type
of student--and develop strategies for addressing them that call on resources
beyond those of the schools alone. Similarly, a coalition can help mobilize
the school system in support of broader goals, such as economic development,
crime control, or community service.
Simply by focusing on middle schools, a coalition takes an important step
toward redressing one of the most common and short-sighted imbalances in
American society: the historic neglect of the education of young adolescents.
When middle school staff members feel ignored (and in most school systems,
they do), their energy and commitment are eventually compromised. Visible
signs of community interest are especially important for staff, parents,
and children in schools where poverty, overcrowding, low student achievement,
or other problems have already created a sense of being left out.
Community support multiplies the capacity of the schools.
Public education depends on community support, both implicit and explicit.
By revitalizing that support and channeling it toward a specific goal--middle
school reform--a coalition strengthens the entire system, from kindergarten
through high school.
A coalition can build educational capacity by encouraging coordination
and a sense of shared mission among all middle schools in the community.
Middle schools with high standards challenge elementary schools to do better
for all children, while also ensuring that students arrive in high school
ready to make choices and prepare themselves for further education or work.
When middle schools raise the hurdles (by teaching algebra, for example),
the rest of the system is forced to respond.
Middle schools can also lead the way to broader reforms simply by opening
their doors to input from the community in a visible way. When Louisville's
middle schools began implementing a program to make themselves more "customer-friendly"
to parents and members of the community, the entire system took notice.
Principal Fred Harbison, whose school was the first to meet the new "friendliness"
standards, has articulated an important reminder for every public school:
"We don't own the schools; the public does."
A strong, well-defined initiative captures the attention of middle school
parents, giving them a reason to become involved. This produces benefits
not only for the children of active parents, but for their classmates as
well.
Building community capacity. Although their concern may
need to be awakened and directed, most people do care deeply about education.
People in business, for example, are well acquainted with the idea that
they ought to be contributing to their community. They realize that schools
are training their future workforce, that the economic health of their region
depends on a strong educational system, that schools can benefit from exposure
to private sector attitudes and procedures. But how, exactly, can they get
involved? Where is the starting point? A coalition can provide structure
for some early steps, which in turn can make later steps easier to imagine
and take.
Working together on behalf of middle school reform builds a store of skills,
knowledge, interest, and good will among participants, thus making a community
better able to mobilize in the face of future problems. When the Jackson,
Mississippi, school system was forced to hire its third new superintendent
in five years, the local middle school coalition was prepared to step in
and help measure candidates' educational credentials against the needs of
the district in a systematic way. Their booklet, "Toward Excellence
in Jackson's Middle Schools," articulated goals for students, schools,
and the district as a whole and set high standards for the selection process.
Participating in a coalition helps members understand the work educators
do each day and the challenges they face over the long term. They learn
to see their community's strengths much more clearly, while also recognizing
areas where better information, stronger services, or higher standards of
performance are needed.
Getting involved in middle school reform puts a community in the midst of
an exciting national initiative. A network of forward-looking teachers,
scholars, and other practitioners is developing, supported by conferences,
workshops, articles, the Internet, and other media. Being part of these
important changes can become a source of pride for everyone.
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