Aleta Margolis on WAMU 88.5

On Monday, September 15 WAMU 88.5 aired a commentary sharing Inspired Teaching's views on education and the presidential election.

(Clicking the above link will take you to an audio file of the commentary.)

Here is a transcript of the commentary:


Of all the issues Senators McCain and Obama debate between now and November, few are more important to the future of our country than education. Solving the challenges we face: the war, the economy, national security, global warming, high gas prices, to name a few, will require a highly creative, well-educated populace.

Both candidates have spoken of the need for change. Today I’d like to offer them some concrete talking points on what that change might look like in our country’s education system:

Number 1: Raise our Expectations for Students

It is time to establish a higher, and more meaningful, standard for student success. It is not enough for young Americans simply to do well on standardized tests that assess a narrow set of basic skills. The graduates of our K-12 system must be prepared to engage fully in civic life.

This means cultivating the 21st century skills required in today’s world. In addition to learning reading, writing, and arithmetic, all of our children deserve a rich, relevant, and rigorous school experience that prepares them to think critically, demonstrate understanding, solve complex problems, and apply their learning to the challenges facing our communities and our world.

So how can we make this happen?

Number 2: Raise our Expectations for Teachers

A higher goal for students requires a new role for teachers. It is time to redefine the role of the teacher from deliverer of facts to developer of future citizens in our democracy. Students will learn to read, write, add, subtract, and think better if they are learning those skills so they can defend their opinion on universal healthcare for children, or propose a well-researched solution to ending our dependence on foreign oil. The 21st century teacher must spend more time asking students to stretch and search for information and less time spoon-feeding them the answers.

But if we raise expectations for our teachers, we must re-think the way we measure their effectiveness. We cannot rely solely on the blunt instruments of credentials and test scores to evaluate teachers. Instead we must look at the quality of actual classroom instruction, and the impact of that instruction on students’ abilities to think, make smart and well-informed decisions, and find creative solutions to problems, as they work toward becoming knowledgeable, productive citizens.

I urge the candidates to make their plans for education reform a focus of the upcoming presidential debates. It is my sincere hope that our next president will make raising expectations for students and teachers a top priority for our country.