By Shane Voss
Mountain Middle School
Our school system was designed in 1893 by the Committee of Ten, a working group of educators that recommended the standardization of American high school curriculum, and hasn’t significantly changed since.
The purpose of education as defined by the Committee of Ten was to teach students low-level cognitive skills, train them to perform repetitive tasks quickly and error free, and eliminate all traces of creativity and innovation in preparation for the world of manufacturing. Students were to jump through hoops, cover content, be sorted by ability and weeded out. Teachers were to teach the same lesson the same way multiple times a day because this was the most efficient way to educate large populations of students.
In 1587, the Catholic Church created the position of Devil’s Advocate in order to take a necessary skeptical view and look for holes in evidence during the canonization of a candidate. This concept was imperative in a bureaucratic system known for compliance and fear. The role of the Devil’s Advocate was a formal and protected one so that important questions were answered before canonization was granted.
In a similar way, charter schools act as the Devil’s Advocate to challenge the status quo. In the compliance culture of traditional education, it is difficult or impossible to question the status quo. A protected position with safety measures is required to question bureaucratic concepts designed for conformity via command and control. Throughout history, innovation and creativity has been stymied by numerous top-down bureaucratic systems designed to control people and outcomes.
There are currently over 225 charter schools in Colorado serving more than 108,000 students. In a recent U.S. News and World Report article ranking the best high schools in Colorado, most of the top 10 are charter schools. A charter school operates on a five-year contract to meet or exceed statewide performance indicators and is given state funding to seek progressive methodologies to do so. Charter schools are essentially shut down in five years if they do not perform. This is more aligned with the real world. Teachers do not have tenure and have to perform every day, yet they have the freedom to design curriculum that meets state standards. Charter schools have to do more with less, receiving 80 cents to each dollar traditional schools receive. The charter school concept is not a panacea, but a necessary check and balance on the traditional educational model and provides choice for students and teachers. This Devil’s Advocate concept is protected by law in order to be autonomous and challenge the status quo with authentic learning.
Many charter schools are small by design and have a capped enrollment to foster personalization. Students are known well and held to high standards as they are pushed to reach their social and academic potential. In a small setting, students develop a sense of belonging and feel safe to take academic risks in an environment based on respect and integrity. Another common thread is the focus on non-cognitive factors or “academic mindsets.” According to Camille Farrington from the University of Chicago, academic mindsets are psycho-social attitudes or beliefs one has about oneself in relation to academic work. Developing academic mindsets is the foundation of high-performing schools.
Much of the framework that instills these mindsets lies outside the focus of traditional education. One of the best levers for change in charter schools is the development of self-efficacy. According to the University of Chicago study, self-efficacy and the belief in one’s likelihood of success are generally more predictive of academic performance than one’s actual measured ability. Activities that promote the development of self-efficacy include: internships, formal end of semester presentations of learning, exhibitions of student work to a public audience, and a student-centered classroom where the students are required to collaborate and grapple with real world problems and create professional quality products.
Carol Dweck has echoed the importance of schools focusing on non-cognitive factors in her research on developing a “growth mindset.” Charter schools are capitalizing on this concept by allowing students voice and choice in how they demonstrate mastery of standards where they synthesize and create vs. simple recall with standardized textbooks, assessments and curriculum. Students who are engaged with work that has value and purpose are more likely to have a growth mindset because learning becomes fun. Many charter schools are using various makerspace technology to inspire the creative power of their students instead of using a one-size-fits-all curriculum.
Academic tenacity has been championed by Angela Duckworth in her research on “grit.” According to her research, students who develop grit are far more likely to succeed than those born with high levels of ability. Many charter schools believe in excellence for all with the concept of inclusion and a focus on effort. Ability grouping is looked at as an equity and social justice issue and not allowed. Students are pushed to develop grit by tackling meaningful challenges and presenting their findings to the public. They are required to collaborate and take on increasing responsibility with problems that mirror activities of working adults. Projects require students to transform information instead of simple memorization.
It is past time to challenge the status quo when it comes to education in America. John Dewey said, “If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.” It is interesting to note that he said this in the early 20th century, and it is more applicable today than ever. Charter schools have the freedom to challenge the status quo by facilitating the discovery of passions and purpose, developing critical skills and inspiring our future leaders.
Shane Voss is the head of school at Mountain Middle School in Durango. Reach him at shane.voss@mountainmiddleschool.org.
