Saturday, January 25, 2003
EDPros will confront the consequences of mediocre educational performance...complaints by employers about underskilled, unreliable workers.
Wading into the morass of education reform is a daunting challenge. Everyone blames everyone else. Employers blame teachers. Teachers blame parents. Parents blame administrators. And administrators blame politicians. So it goes in an endless cycle.
EDPros should not throw up our hands. Instead, we need to focus on simple, clear messages: For example, early childhood education for all children. Every child needs to read and comprehend well by the fourth grade. High school is no longer a ticket to the middle class. And every child needs a K-14 career plan.
Last week, Cailfornia's Senate Select Committee on Central Valley Economic Development held a hearing to explore why some high poverty schools perform so well. Research has shown that these schools can perform well when they follow a few basic guidelines. Read more. Go The hearing was based on a report by Pacific Research Institute. Download the report.
posted by Ed Morrison |
links
Some Background on EDPro Weblog
The purpose of this weblog is to help economic development professionals -- EDPros -- keep up with the changes sweeping our profession. Strap on your goggles. It's a whole new game. There are no experts any more. The only place to learn about economic development is from other EDPros who are doing it.
One other point: the prevaling approach (paradigm, if you like) in economic development is shifting from competition to collaboration. There are a lot of reaasons underlying this shift, but here's the important insight: You, your community, and your region will do better by collaborating and sharing information.
If you are using a news reader, here is the link to syndicate this site:
Here's the link if you are a bloglines subscriber:
Speaking and workshops on Open Source Economic Development
As the idea of Open Source Economic Development starts spreading, more people are asking about it. Visit the I-Open web site to learn more. My colleagues and I are happy to explain the basic concepts in a talk or a workshop. E-mail Susan Alshuler if you'd like to learn more about workshops and speaking.
Background on Ed Morrison
Download some background information on me here.
In education, focus on a few clear messages
