Today's conference--see the agenda below --brings together leaders of charter school networks, major funders, start-up curriculum companies (or "tool builders" in NewSchools-speak), policy types, and assorted "edu-preneurs."
Here are three questions today's gabfest should answer:
- Will anyone mention education? Like this conversation several months back, NewSchools events usually represent the ascendance of the "whatever works" view of education reform . Thus there's typically talk of "innovation" and "scalability" and "human capital" and "incentives" (no complaints there) but very little discussion of "curriculum" or "pedagogy" or "rigorous coursework" or "scientifically based reading instruction." That's a huge blind spot for people committed to improving teaching and learning. Certainly plenty of the attendees of the conference--those who run schools-think about these issues all the time. But will they be mentioned from the podium?
- Will anyone mention the crisis in Catholic schools? This crisis is relevant for multiple reasons. First, the growth of charter schools (which is at the heart of the NewSchools strategy) has largely been enabled by the decline of Catholic schools. Many a charter move into closed Catholic school buildings; they often serve students who used to attend those schools. To the degree that the charter school movement might be hastening the decline of Catholic schools, that's worth discussing. (If good Catholic schools are being replaced by good charter schools, is that a "win" for school reform?) Second, the most promising developments in the Catholic school world are the rise of independent networks of schools, such as Cristo Rey and NativityMiguel , which mimic the charter management organizations that dominate this conference. If the goal is to create excellent "new" schools, then Cristo Rey and NativityMiguel deserve to be here just as much as KIPP or Achievement First or Green Dot.
- Which will dominate: Silicon Valley chic or Washington, D.C. traditions? This is a self-centered question; I had a hard time figuring out what to wear this morning. For eight of its ten years, the NewSchools Summit was held in Googleland, and proper attire followed: no ties, maybe a jacket, never a full business suit. But Washington, D.C. is notoriously the most buttoned-up town this side of Wall Street. Last night's "intimate" pre-conference dinner for 250 (held at Smith & Wollensky) sent mixed signals. There were a whole lot of suits--though Dan Katzir of the The Broad Foundation (based in L.A.!) wore a fashionable black suit with a black tee-shirt, and Green Dot founder (and Rock the Vote creator) Steve Barr wore blue jeans and a jacket. And then there was Rick Hess, sporting elf shoes (i.e., dress shoes) instead of his trademark flip-flops. It's all very confusing!
