Nina K. Buchanan

Every school a school of choice: school choice in Ireland as viewed through American eyes

‘Choice’ and ‘freedom’ as measured by the ability of parents to select their childrens schools are deeply embedded in the national ethos of the United States of America. Wealthy American parents have always exercised school choice but minority and lowincome students are often trapped in failing schools. This paper is based on research conducted in a purposive sample of Irish primary schools into the nature of school choice. The authors examine five aspects of the Irish national primary school system that could provide models for American educators, whose vision often stops at the boundaries of the United States: education law, school choice for all, a national curriculum framework, the role of assessment, and the role of parents and educators in the creation of new schools. While arguably the five relate directly to school choice of different degrees, they collectively weave a web whereby school systems in the Republic of Ireland and the USA may productively be compared to the benefit of both.

Meeting the needs of gifted learners through innovative high school programs

In the past, the comprehensive high school model worked well for many G/T and other students, but times have changed. Today educators are redesigning high schools to be both equitable to diverse student populations and still achieve academic excellence. Instead of adding new structures to the traditional model of a comprehensive high school, recultured schools begin with fundamentally different assumptions about the role of the school in adolescent development and learning, and in the local community. In this article, we examine 5 high schools that successfully meet the needs of G/T students through innovative curricular programs, which feature small learning communities and supportive structures such as small advisory groups, real world connections, authentic assessment, and teachers who facilitate learning. The challenge is to conceptualize holistic education for G/T students that allows for meaningful choices while promoting intellectual growth and healthy personal development.

The Line between Cultural Education and Religious Education: Do Ethnocentric Niche Charter Schools Have a Prayer?.

When first conceived, charter schools were envisioned as local projects initiated by parents and/or groups of teachers seeking to improve the educational performance of students (Budde, 1996). In the past two decades, the phenomenon has expanded to more than 5% of all U.S. public schools and almost 3% of all students (Center for Education Reform [CER], 2009). During this time, groups have come onto the charter school landscape representing points of view that were not a part of the original rhetoric. In the area of charter school creation and management, the originally envisioned groups of parents and teachers have been joined by educational management organizations (Plank, Arsen, & Sykes, 2000) and charter management organizations (Lake, Dusseault, Bowen, Demeritt, & Hill, 2010). Another of these phenomena are the so-called ethnocentric niche charter schools (Buchanan & Fox, 2003, 2005; Institute on Race and Poverty, 2008) that seek to integrate the celebration of cultural, ethnic, linguistic, or philosophical concepts into the educational process. This chapter provides examples of two types of ethnocentric schools and examines whether they are able to operate within the legal constraints imposed on them by state charter school laws and the First Amendment of the U.S.

Charter School Attitudes and Practices in States with Diverse Public Sector Bargaining Laws: Arizona, Hawai'i, and Minnesota.

ABSTRACT Virtually all state charter school legislation addresses teacher rights and working environment. Relationships with teacher unions are either specified in the law, or approval of the charter requires suitable provisions for employee hiring, firing, grievances, etc. Charter school evaluation almost without exception includes some references to these issues. This study uses an online survey to gather information gauging the effect of the ambient union environment on charter school practices and attitudes related to teacher rights and teacher participation in school administration and governance. In the first phase of a projected national study, three states were selected whose public sector collective bargaining environments are very different. Analysis of attitudes, practices, and demographics showed significant differences in views about teacher involvement in school governance, but little difference in views or practices concerning teacher unions in charter schools. Limited survey response resulted in collection methods which will be corrected in an anticipated national study. The online survey method of data collection is discussed. Implications for public policy and future charter school legislation are explored. Further studies should address variations in the impact of union involvement between public, private, and charter schools.

Review of The Ax Grinders

Imagine yourself just out of college and clueless about your future. Then, see yourself applying for a position to teach in a one-room school house on the Montana prairie and facing the school’s elected school board. That is where I found myself in 1971. The board was not concerned with my academic qualifications but had two burning questions: Could I teach the new math and the old history? I was quite puzzled by the questions but answered that I had excellent math skills, skirting the question because I had no idea there was a new math; and that I had a bachelor’s degree in history so was confident that I could teach the old history. Little did I know then that I was entering the rabbit hole of public education which was as much or more about politics and economics as it was about instruction and relationships with students. One of the first books that explained the macro-level of education was The Ax Grinders: Critics of Our Public Schools (1962) by Mary Anne Raywid who later through twists of fate became one of my closest personal and professional friend in Hawai’i. I encourage all public school critics and advocates to revisit this eye-opening study. The introduction asserts that “Not only is American education under fire; the practice of criticizing our schools is well on its way to becoming a national pastime” (p. 1). Sound familiar? Raywid identified groups that were attacking the public schools, tried to distinguish between valid and invalid charges, examined the methods the critics use to publicize their claims and explored how to prevent invalid attacks and use valid criticisms to improve education. In 1962, about half of the 83 groups that responded to Raywid’s questionnaire were “patriotic” such as the American Association of Patriotic Societies and the Anti-Communist League of America; about two thirds endorsed a particular political or economic point of view such as the Committee for Home Rule in Vermont and Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce; four on the list were religious in nature such as the American Council of Christian Laymen; and about 16 were education-focused such as the American Education Association and the Wisconsin School Association. Of the groups represented in the original