1. Professionalism
1.1. Changing the educational culture to encourage academic freedom.
1.2. Teacher autonomy.
1.3. Treat teachers like other professionals, like physicians, attorneys, etc.
2. Brief History of Education Reform
2.1. Sputnik and the National Defense Education Act (NDEA)
2.2. A Nation at Risk
2.3. No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)
3. Current Education Climate & Why We Need Reform
3.1. Human capital ideology and an economic focus
3.2. Globalization and the struggle to remain competitive
4. Testing
4.1. Teaching to the test.
4.2. Emphasis on high stakes testing that has unintended consequences for students and teachers.
4.2.1. Teacher created assessments that are ongoing rather than once a year so teachers can collect information and improve instruction (Stiggins, 2002).
4.2.1.1. Assessments that use a variety of skills, such as writing, analyzing, and critical thinking skills (Edutopia, 2010).
4.3. Standardized tests that do not require higher order thinking skills.
5. Standards & Curriculum
5.1. At present, standards are disjointed and vary from state to state.
5.1.1. The creation of standards alone is not enough, there must be overall alignment (Wong & Nicotera, 2007).
5.1.1.1. Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and the effort to make alignment easier by allowing schools to choose curriculum and teaching methods ("Common Core State Standards", 2012).
5.1.1.2. CCSS differs from prior reforms as the initiative is state-led and optional, though more than 40 states have opted in ("Common Core State Standards", 2012).
5.1.1.2.1. Important to make the distinction between national standards and national curriculum!
5.1.1.3. CCSS pares down previously bulky standards to leaner expectations, which is more in alignment with what Darling-Hammond recognizes in high-performing nations (Edutopia, 2010).