As part of ASCD's annual Issues Process, now in its fourth year, we invite our members to voice their opinions on the education issues important to their work and help determine the direction the Association will take in the coming years.
This year's process began last fall, when more than 13,000 ASCD members responded to the 1996-97 Issues Survey. In early November, ASCD's Issues Committee used the survey to generate a list of five critical topics to present to the Board of Directors. Members of the committee and the ASCD staff developed preliminary position statements for each topic.
On Monday, March 24, during our Annual Conference, ASCD's Board of Directors will decide which of these five positions to adopt as part of the Association's influence agenda. Following the Annual Conference, ASCD staff members will develop action plans for two, or fewer, of the adopted positions (those designated by the Board for special attention in the year ahead).
Before the Board makes its decisions, however, ASCD members will get a chance to discuss, debate, and reflect on the issues at four Town Meetings at the Annual Conference (see your Program book for details). ASCD members can also give feedback on the proposed positions through ASCD's Web site (http://www.ascd.org) or by mail addressed to Don Ernst—1997 ISSUES, ASCD, 1250 N. Pitt St., Alexandria, VA 22314 USA.
Only with widest possible participation of ASCD members can this important work truly reflect the views of our membership and have a meaningful effect on ASCD's efforts to improve the education of every student.
Proposed position: Teacher Education and Professional Development
ASCD supports efforts to substantially improve the preservice preparation and continuing education of teachers and other educators. Teaching is a complex and highly demanding occupation, requiring thorough knowledge of academic content as well as mastery of a professional knowledge base that includes human growth and development, teaching strategies, counseling, and communication skills.
Preservice teacher education. Standards for admission to preparation programs should be comparable to those for other respected professions, and course work in education and related fields should be of the highest quality. Preservice programs should teach pedagogical skills as well as knowledge and understanding, and initial certification should be based on performance, meaning demonstrated mastery of a body of pedagogical knowledge and skills.
No person should be assigned to a regular teaching position (rather than an internship or other limited position) who has not demonstrated initial teaching competence, whether or not the person has completed an approved course of study. We support efforts of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) to enforce quality standards, and we believe substandard programs should be closed.
Continuing professional development. Teachers and other educators should be expected to learn and grow throughout their careers. Certification to teach should be for a limited period; and recertification, like initial certification, should be based on demonstrated performance. Teachers in all schools must be provided the time and other resources necessary to reflect on their experiences, investigate new approaches, learn new skills, and plan with their colleagues. In most schools this will require redefining financial priorities as well as rethinking organization of the school day and year.
Relationship between preservice education and professional development. Responsibility for both preservice and continuing professional development is shared among school systems, institutions of higher education, and the professionals themselves. We endorse the concept of professional development centers: public elementary and secondary schools at which professional training and development is a major focus.
Proposed position: Parents' Rights
ASCD opposes legislation that would permit legal action against school officials for "interfering" with parents' rights to direct the upbringing of their children.
Expected effects. No one knows how the courts would interpret parents' rights legislation or what the impact of such legislation might eventually be. It would undoubtedly add to the present burden of litigation, distracting educators from their duties and using taxpayers' money that should be spent for education.
Educators' multiple loyalties. We believe that teachers and other educators should cooperate with parents and respect their wishes as often as feasible. School officials are, however, responsible to the broader community represented by the state and the local board of education. Moreover, as professionals, they have a legitimate interest in the welfare of the children they teach.
Need for cooperation. While we urge respect for parents' rights, we regret the distrust and antagonism that leads to calls for legislation on this matter. Educators and parents both want what they believe is best for children, and neither should act arbitrarily. If differing perspectives cause occasional conflicts, the conflicts should be resolved in a climate of understanding and respect.
Proposed position: Equity
In accord with democratic principles and basic fairness, ASCD supports policies and practices intended to achieve greater equity in education.
- safe, healthy, and comfortable school facilities;
- well-qualified teachers and other staff members;
- high-quality curriculum and learning materials; and
- adequate supplies and equipment, including computers and other technology.
- teacher expectations,
- grouping, and
- testing and grading.
Availability and use of technology. In this information era, we are especially concerned about the availability and use of computers. Wealthier schools commonly have more computers and other technology than poorer schools. The computers that are available in high-poverty schools tend to be used more for drill and practice than for other purposes. We strongly believe that all children should learn to use the computer as a tool for investigation, problem solving, composition, and presentation.
Community factors. Equity in schools is closely related to adequate housing and economic development in the surrounding community. To support teaching and learning, parents and other adults must have jobs, safe streets and homes, and stable living conditions.
Proposed position: Choice, Vouchers, and Charter Schools
ASCD believes that a full market approach is inappropriate for public education. We favor provisions for limited parent choice, and we support the general concept of charter schools. We oppose voucher programs that divert public funds for private schooling.
Balancing individual and public benefit. We disagree with those who advocate a market approach to education. Public schools serve both private and public purposes. They benefit individual children and their parents, but they also benefit the entire society by producing an educated populace. That is the reason all members of the tax-paying public are required to help maintain public schools whether or not they use them. We strongly support the existence of schools and other public institutions to which all members of the community are expected to contribute for the common good.
Competition. We question the argument advanced by some choice advocates that competition alone can be a powerful force for improvement of public education. We recognize that availability of attractive alternatives tends to make existing institutions more responsive, but we believe that the difficulty of assessing the effects of education makes it unlikely that most parents will choose schools primarily on the basis of their academic quality. For that reason, we dispute the contention that choice will inevitably produce school improvement, although we may support it for other reasons.
Variety desirable. We support a degree of choice because we accept the desirability of variety in schooling. We believe there is no one type of school that is best for all students, parents, and teachers. We also recognize that in a modern democratic society, people expect to choose among options, rather than having a single model imposed on them. Where circumstances permit, therefore, we endorse provisions for parents to choose among publicly governed schools.
- it takes needed money away from public schools;
- if religious schools are included, it violates separation of church and state;
- by encouraging the most active parents to leave the public schools, it increases inequity; and
- it does not provide accountability for use of public funds.
Charter schools. We support the concept of charter schools, meaning schools of choice (chosen both by parents and by teachers) freed from adherence to most external regulations in exchange for a specific commitment to an authorized agency to perform a particular educational mission. Although we support the concept of charter schools, we believe that their relative independence invites abuse. We urge agencies authorized to establish charter schools to monitor them closely to ensure that they fulfill their charters, avoid religious or political indoctrination, and refrain from illegal discrimination.
Proposed Position: Early Childhood Education
ASCD supports provision of quality care and education programs for young children. The need for preschool programs is particularly acute for children with disabilities or whose socioeconomic status and social history decrease their likelihood of school success. In today's world the parents of many other children also seek to place them in early childhood programs, often because both parents are employed outside the home or they want their children to have the benefit of early schooling.
Early development is critical. We support early childhood programs because recent research in neuroscience has revealed the learning potential of very young children, the plasticity of the young brain, and the astounding mental growth that ordinarily takes place in the first few years of life. Unfortunately, many children are not getting the nutrition, encouragement, and mental stimulation they need to become healthy, motivated learners. Sound early childhood programs can prevent problems that would otherwise be the object of expensive and less effective remediation later.
Early education available to all. Although children with specific risk factors should have highest priority, and parents should always have a variety of options from which to choose, we believe public schools should offer, at public expense, quality care and education for all young children whose parents want them to have it. We also recommend that public school systems offer voluntary parent education programs to help parents with the demanding responsibilities of parenthood. We recognize that extending the availability of such programs would substantially increase the cost of public schooling, at least temporarily. On the basis of research documenting the contribution of quality early education programs to prevention of learning and behavior problems, however, we believe such programs are cost-effective in the long term.