Living In An Age Where Common Sense Is Cutting Edge: Example #4,569

Having a kid in the Dallas Independent School District gives me reason to be a bit more informed about what goes on there even though I live in a suburban Robin-Hood school district.

Today a Dallas Morning News article was unavoidable because it discussed how the mayor and school board president are studying the highly-regarded school system in Finland to find areas where they can improve. Bully for them, man. Nothing wrong with that.

And, sure, the Fins have some advantages that are inherent. Things like a smaller population. Things like geography that demands practical use of a number of languages. Things like fewer immigrants. Simply put, a lot of things the Fins are doing won't necessarily transfer.

But, here's what let me know that the Finnish educational system isn't all that radical. Noting what the Dallas folks learned about the success of the public schools in Finland:

They focused on establishing a single, straightforward curriculum for all schools.

They expected good results from all students and providing extra teaching resources to get those results.

The believed in giving well-trained teachers respect and freedom to teach.

So, lemme make sure I got this right. If you want to give kids a good education, you'll need to have clearly defined objectives, set the bar reasonably high and challenge kids to rise to it, give them the resources they need to reach those goals, and then give gifted, highly-trained and talented teachers the nobility they deserve and allow them to be creatively innovative in their classrooms.

Hmph.

Imagine that.