PLUS: BARGAINING PERA • SPUTNIK AND PUBLIC EDUCATION

M A Y / J U N E 2 0 1 3 Vol. 81, No. 3

Education in other countries ...

Is it really better or just different?

How are we doing? That’s what

every well-run organization

wants to know. They build this ques-

tion into their philosophy and process,

so that continuous improvement is

not only possible, but so that it can

be given maximum attention and

weight.

The same question, however,

when posed by organizations that

are not well-run or accustomed to

refining even its best work, can be

daunting. In fact, they might even

ask additional questions, like:

Why; who wants to know?

Who or what are we being com-

pared to?

Introspection can reveal much

about the strength or weakness of

any organization. It’s only when this

practice of soul-searching becomes

compulsive or fixated on finding faults

that it becomes corrosive and self-

defeating. Which brings us to the

theme of this issue: comparing the

quality of public education between

the U.S. and other countries.

There is no shortage of critics –

both internal and external – whose

sole mission seems to be finding what’s

wrong with schools in America. Nev-

er mind that the comparisons are

unfair or that the data is selective-

ly pared to support a pre-purposed

mission and message. Nonetheless,

our authors have attempted to find

suitable sources for comparing pub-

lic education systems.

Our cover story focuses on Japan,

and features an American who teach-

es English as a second language in

Japan. He sees similarities but sig-

nificant differences between the

countries and their concept of pub-

lic education. While the data from

student performance may tilt in

Japan’s favor, he notes that their sys-

tem is very selective and the cur-

riculum tightly controlled.

Expectations for and support of pub-

lic education does not depend on

local control or community val-

ues. A sidebar to this article features

his daughter, who is a foreign

exchange student at a high school

in Nebraska. Her observations reveal

even more about our different cul-

tures and education values.

Finland’s system of public edu-

cation has undergone significant

reforms and is now considered to be

one of the world’s modern success

stories. Two Illinois professors of edu-

cational leadership spent several

months examining the reasons for

this transformation. They suggest

that a culture of innovation is the

key to enabling U.S. schools to make

similar reforms.

How long has America been fix-

ated on its potential for failure? Many

would say that it began on October

4, 1957, when Russia successfully

launched the first satellite into orbit.

The latest installment in the series

highlighting IASB’s 100-year anniver-

sary discovered numerous articles

published in this very magazine that

examined the impact Sputnik had

on U.S. public education.

“That a 24-inch ball circling the

earth where no such object was to

be seen before should have a pro-

lific effect on the education program

of an entire nation is amazing,” wrote

the director of research for North-

ern Illinois University in the May-

June 1958 issue of The Journal. “That

it should take some such impetus to

make a people examine carefully one

of their most important institutions

is in some ways absurd. And yet that

is what has happened.”

Fifty-five years later, many would

believe that we are stuck in a specter

of permanent introspection, obsessed

more on failures than successes of

U.S. public education.

To help correct this apparent

imbalance, this issue also reprints

from the American School Board

Journal an excellent article by the

director for the Center for Public

Education, “Ten good things about

U.S. public education.” The author

acknowledges that public schools

have their work cut out for them,

especially as they tackle the job of

preparing all of their students for

success after high school in this

increasingly complex 21st century

world. “Policymakers at the federal,

state and local levels all have a role

to play. But the supportive involve-

ment of the community – from one

district to the next – is our strongest

guarantee that the challenge will be

met.”

A timely feature article is also

presented by a well-known Chicago

school attorney on what to expect

when bargaining PERA evaluations.

Elsewhere in this issue, be sure

to catch up on our regular features,

including Practical P.R., Ask the staff,

Milestones, and the ever-popular Boil-

er Room.

Vol. 81, No. 3

M A Y / J U N E 2 0 1 3

ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL(ISSN-0019-221X) is published every other month by the Illinois Associationof School Boards, 2921 Baker Drive, Springfield, Illinois 62703-5929, telephone217/528-9688. The IASB regional officeis located at One Imperial Place, 1 East22nd Street, Lombard, Illinois 60148-6120, telephone 630/629-3776.

The JOURNAL is supported by the duesof school boards holding active member-ship in the Illinois Association of SchoolBoards. Copies are mailed to all schoolboard members and the superintendentin each IASB member school district.

Non-member subscription rate: Domes-tic $18.00 per year. Foreign (includingCanada and Mexico) $21.00 per year.

PUBLICATION POLICYIASB believes that the domestic processfunctions best through frank and opendiscussion. Material published in the JOUR-NAL, therefore, often presents divergentand controversial points of view which donot necessarily represent the views orpolicies of IASB.

James Russell, Associate Executive Director

Linda Dawson, EditorGary Adkins, Contributing EditorDiane M. Cape, Design and

Production ManagerDana Heckrodt, Advertising Manager

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

Cover by Corbin Design, Petersburg

July/August Classroom technologySeptember/October Suicide prevention

COVER STORY

12 | Education in other countries …Is it really better or just different?An American teacher working in the Japanese education system shares his observations aboutthe differences between the two countries.

Linda Dawson

14 | Sidebar: A Japanese student in America sees school with different eye16 | Sidebar: How does Japan govern its schools?

20 | Can a Finnish education model yield similar success in the U.S.?In spite of our best efforts, improvements to public education have been slow, at best. So what is the key to Finnish educational success?

John Hunt and Sandra Watkins

FEATURE STORIES

4 | Centennial celebration …Space race and public education follow same trajectorySputnik 1 had an immediate and lasting impact on public education as IASB and local school districts progressed from the 1950s to the 1970s.

James Russell

6 | Bargaining PERA evaluations:What to expect at the tableIt’s important to start thinking about what teachers’ unions might demand when it comes to including data and indicators as a factor in rating teacher performance.

Thomas M. Melody

10 | From 1956, IASB’s thoughts on policies, rules and regulationsRead what IASB’s first full-time executive director had to say on why school boards need to have written policies.

Robert M. Cole

24 | 10 good things about U.S. public educationThe director of the Center for Public Education reflects on what we’re doing right and where we should go next.

Patte Barth

28 | A firm foundationThe urgent need for effective school boardsIn order for a school district to succeed during times of great challenge, it not only needs great teachers and administrators, it needs great school board members.

Robert G. Grossi

T O P I C S F O R U P C O M I N G I S S U E S

REGULAR FEATURES

Boiler Room. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Practical PR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31Milestones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36Ask the staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Inside back cover

2 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

You know, I’m proud of our

school. I think our teachers do

an excellent job of preparing the stu-

dents for the future. As a matter of

fact, I think teachers are among the

most dedicated and hardest working

folks in any profession.

That’s why I get upset when I

hear critics say the U.S. lags behind

the school systems of other nations.

Since the current recession set

in a few years back, I’m hearing these

criticisms more and more…as though

the critics think the schools have sud-

denly slacked off in their efforts just

when the nation needed them most.

I ran this by Mr. Keck and, as best

I can recall, the conversation went

somethin’ like this.

“You know, Gus, it’s not that the

teachers in foreign school systems

work harder than ours do, it’s more

a matter of how their school systems

are set up.”

“What do you mean, boss?”

“Let’s take high school test scores.

People sometimes get bent out of

shape because students in foreign

schools sometimes test higher than

our high-school students do. Does

that mean their young people are

sharper or that their teachers work

harder? No…it’s because their school

systems are set up differently than

ours. Many nations have very high

drop-out rates in their high schools,

and some even have high drop-out

rates at the elementary level. These

students are not pursued by the author-

ities through truant officers and court

orders like we do in our country, but

tend to enter their blue-collar work-

force. This has a marked impact on

test scores. If only the cream of the

crop remain in their schools, their

test scores are bound to be higher

than ours, for the simple reason that

we make every effort to keep the poor-

er-performing students in the sys-

tem.”

“I see.”

“In addition,” Keck continued,

“let’s look at the kind of tests admin-

istered. Many other nations have high-

ly-centralized education systems,

with curriculum and teaching method-

ology dictated by the national gov-

ernment. This means their high school

tests are criterion-referenced, and

the questions on those tests go to the

heart of what was actually taught. In

the United States, every school dis-

trict and every state has a different

approach to learning, with subjects

being introduced at different grade

levels, school districts free to design

their own curriculum and method-

ology, etc. That’s why we can only

administer normative-referenced,

standardized tests to our high school

population. Students tend to perform

better on criterion-referenced tests

than they do on standardized tests.”

“Sounds like the deck is stacked

against our kids,” I responded.

“It gets worse, Gus, let me explain

it this way. Schools don’t exist in a

world of their own. Their main pur-

pose is to give the students the skills

they’ll need later in life, when they

enter the workforce. True, we have

classes in art, for instance, but that’s

because we want to broaden a young

person’s perspective of life, and not

because we actually think they’ll

grown up being professional artists.

That’s why we put a far greater empha-

sis on subjects like science, math,

and computer education…knowledge

they’ll need in any number of career

paths. We do this rather well.”

“OK, I follow you so far,” I

responded.

“But here is the ‘fly in the but-

termilk.’ In order to prepare students

for the world of work, we have to have

Gus, the custodi-

an at Eastside

Grammar, is the

creation of

Richard W.

Smelter, a retired

school principal,

now a Chicago-

based college

instructor and

author.

Being realisticby “Gus”

B O I L E R R O O M

a rather accurate prediction of how

many jobs, and what types of jobs,

will be available in the near future.

Our students need this information

before they enter college. One of the

reasons the current recession has

been so bad is due to students hav-

ing had an unrealistic view of the

number of jobs that would wind up

being available when they graduat-

ed. For instance, in 1996, over 46,000

students competed for 16,200 open-

ings in medical school, while almost

71,000 competed for 43,000 open-

ings at law schools. How many doc-

tors and lawyers do we need? Do we

actually have a firm grip on this? Out

of the students who actually got into

medical and law school, and went on

to graduate, how many found posi-

tions in the workforce? Maybe some

of these students should have been

counseled into a different career path.

Instead, many took a job for which

they were already over-qualified,

bumping a person who only had a

high school diploma.”

“I see, Mr. Keck...sorta like the

pre-recession housing market... when

more “spec homes” were built than

there were folks who could actually

afford them.”

“That’s a good analogy, Gus.”

“Do other nations prepare for

the future more realistically, boss?”

“Well, some do. Let’s take Ger-

many, for example. There are actu-

ally three different types of German

high schools…the Gymnasium, that

takes in the most gifted students, the

Realschule that takes in a broad range

of students, and the Hauptschule,

which is centered on vocational train-

ing. The German government keeps

a strict tab on how many jobs will be

available in various careers so that

high school students can be direct-

ed into the type of high school that

will best serve them in the future.

Many German high school students

also work as apprentices in the work-

force while they attend high school,

which helps to further refine their

skills in a particular area. True, they

may land their first full-time job much

later than do American high school

graduates, but they don’t need as

much on-the-job training.”

“Yeah, I see. You know, Mr. Keck,

they’re holdin’ auditions for our high

school musical. I think it’s Oklahoma

this year. I hear that over forty kids

are auditioning for the four or five

leading roles.”

“Well, they’d better have a back-

up plan, Gus…just like a college foot-

ball player who has his heart set on

being the star quarterback and some-

day playing for the NFL. You know,

we teach young people that they can

be anything they want to be in our

society, but that’s really only a gen-

eralization. Being highly skilled is

necessary, of course, but that’s only

part of the equation. What we should

be saying is they can be anything they

want to be if it’s available. I always

wanted to be a school superinten-

dent, but there are only a relatively

small number of superintendents in

each state and only a finite number

of positions that are actually open in

any given year. Somewhere along the

line, I found a certain comfort level

in being a school principal, and count-

ed myself fortunate to have gotten

this far. One has to be realistic, unless

you want to spend your entire life

being frustrated and unemployed!”

Somehow, I can’t imagine Mr.

Keck ever running around like a wet

hen having some fit of frustration.

He’s too level-headed. He’d bet-

ter be…after all, he’s the principal.

PresidentCarolyne Brooks

Vice PresidentKaren Fisher

TreasurerDale Hansen

ImmediatePast PresidentJoseph Alesandrini

IASB is a voluntary association of local boards ofeducation and is not affiliated with any branch ofgovernment.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Abe LincolnRoger Edgecombe

BlackhawkJackie Mickley

Central Illinois ValleyThomas Neeley

Cook NorthPhil Pritzker

Cook SouthTom Cunningham

Cook WestJoanne Zendol

Corn BeltMark Harms

DuPageRosemary Swanson

EgyptianJohn Metzger

IlliniMichelle Skinlo

KaskaskiaLinda Eades

KishwaukeeMary Stith

Lake CountyJoanne Osmond

NorthwestBen Andersen

ShawneeRoger Pfister

SouthwesternJohn Coers

Starved RockSimon Kampwerth Jr.

Three RiversDale Hansen

Two RiversDavid Barton

Wabash ValleyTim Blair

WesternSue McCance

Chicago BoardJesse Ruiz

Service AssociatesSteve Larson

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 3

4 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

The world was changing dra-

matically in the twenty year

period following the end of World War

II. The “Baby Boom” generation was

in its infancy and all of its ramifica-

tions were felt most in local school

districts. Enrollments were bulging,

as were expenses to keep up with the

staffing and construction required to

house the new population.

Technology was also making its

impact on local schools – with tele-

vision becoming a significant new

tool, or distraction, according to many.

But it was another technological

advance that had an even greater

impact on U.S. public education and

one that continues to this day.

The Russians successfully

launched Sputnik 1 on October 4,

1957, the first-ever satellite to orbit

the earth. The impact of this mile-

stone would be felt for decades, cred-

ited by many as the pre-cursor to

the space and arms race in what

became known as the “Cold War”

between Russia and the United States.

This competition not only altered

national public policy and politi-

cal strategy, but it became the focal

point for how the public viewed its

schools.

The first of what would be many

articles on the subject appeared in

the May-June 1958 issue of The Illi-

nois School Board Journal. Dr. Charles

Howell, director of research for North-

ern Illinois University, saw the poten-

tial for damage to the image of public

education. “That a 24-inch ball cir-

cling the earth where no such object

was to be seen before should have a

prolific effect on the education pro-

gram of an entire nation is amazing,”

he wrote.

“That it should take some such

impetus to make a people examine

carefully one of their most important

institutions is in some ways absurd.

And yet that is what has happened.”

The source of introspection came

not so much from the success of Sput-

nik; rather, it was the failure of the

U.S. to beat or match the Russian

effort that caused the consternation.

American efforts to duplicate the

satellite launch failed several times,

resulting in significant embarrass-

ment. Another Journal author, Robert

E. Pruitt, superintendent of Forest

Park Public Schools, captured this

sentiment when he described the

frustration this way:

“In December 1957, we were star-

tled when our own Sputnik dribbled

out over the beaches of Florida that

we were not to catch up just by decid-

ing that we would. Russia credits good

education for their accomplishments,

so we turn also to education with

numerous quick, cheap answers.

There is no doubt that the answer is

education, but the process will not

be quick or cheap.”

His words were prophetic. Less

than a year after the launch of Sput-

nik 1, Congress passed the National

Defense Education Act, pouring bil-

lions of dollars into U.S. education.

Today’s ongoing debate over how U.S.

students match – or fail to match –

their overseas counterparts in math

and science scores can be attributed

directly to the Sputnik launch and

the Cold War era of the 1950s and

James Russell is

IASB associate

executive

director for

communications.

Centennial celebration ...Space race and public educationfollow same trajectory

by James Russell

Part III — 1953-1972This is the third in a year-long series that will detail the histo-

ry of the Illinois Association of School Boards from its inception in

1913 through its 100th anniversary on December 13, 2013.

F E A T U R E A R T I C L E

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 5

60s.

Of course, that was not the only

thing occupying the attention of Illi-

nois educators and school boards.

School finances and state fund-

ing were part of an ongoing debate.

The state’s School Problems Com-

mission concluded in 1953 that cal-

culations of federal and state aid

should be changed, so that districts

that depended on both were not penal-

ized. And in 1970, IASB outlined

its position and rationale on public

school financing in the state Consti-

tutional Convention debate. The Asso-

ciation recommended that the

convention readopt Article VIII, Sec-

tion 1: The General Assembly shall

provide a thorough and efficient sys-

tem of free schools, whereby all chil-

dren of this state may receive a good

common school education.

The rationale was equally emphat-

ic: “It is essential that the state’s

responsibility for education be

acknowledged in the constitution

because the General Assembly mem-

bership is subject to change. If the

responsibility is not stated in the con-

stitution, a general assembly could

enact legislation placing the complete

burden of financing, etc., on the local

district.”

School finances were not the only

concern of the Association during

this era. In 1955, a joint commission

of IASB and IASA concluded an 18-

month study on the working rela-

tionship of school boards and their

chief administrators. The result of

this study was a document entitled,

“Statement of Principles Basic to

Effective Cooperation,” that was pre-

sented to and adopted by both asso-

ciations.

The state’s first Open Meetings

Act took effect in 1958 and was met

with little resistance or fanfare. “The

new state law dealing with official

meetings of public agencies of the

state, including school boards, is noth-

ing new, but merely reaffirms what

had been considered good public pol-

icy,” according to an article in the

June 1958 issue of the School Board

News Bulletin.

That year, IASB board of direc-

tors appointed a committee to eval-

uate member services and concluded

two things: 1) that present services

could be improved and enlarged; 2)

that many members do not know

what Association services are avail-

able.

This era also saw a boom of new

school construction.

In 1959 alone, Illinois voters

approved 209 out of 230 bond issue

elections. This 89 percent pass rate

encompassed elections in 57 differ-

ent counties. Similarly, voters approved

99 of 120 proposals to increase local

education tax rates. But finding enough

space to house a burgeoning enroll-

ment was frustrated by the fact that

the state was experiencing a severe

teacher shortage.

Between 1952 and 1972, Illinois

public school enrollment skyrocket-

ed by 1 million students (1.2 million

to 2.3 million). However, teacher

ranks were slow to keep pace. One

reason was cited in an article pub-

lished in the July-August 1953 issue

of the Journal: “If our teachers con-

tinue to leave the profession to enter

business and if our young people go

directly into business, our teacher

shortage will be increasingly hard-

er to cope with,” said Arthur Adams,

assistant superintendent of public

instruction. His suggestion was to

increase salaries, improve housing

facilities for teacher families, encour-

age teacher participation in local com-

munities, maintain school facilities,

add funds for teacher training, and

spread the message that “teaching is

a basic need for the preservation of

our way of life.”

As public school enrollment grew

in this era, so did the Association. In

fact, membership topped 1,000 dis-

tricts in 1961. This included 954

school districts, three non-high school

districts, and 43 county boards of

school trustees. It was appropriate;

therefore, that Association services

and staff grew accordingly. In Decem-

ber 1972, at the conclusion of this

twenty-year period, IASB named

Harold P. Seamon to succeed B.B.

Burgess as the Association’s third full-

time executive director. Robert M.

Cole, the Association’s first director,

retired at the end of 1968, conclud-

ing 25 years of service.

IASB presidents1952-53 Robert Krebs, Mt. Vernon

1954-55 Harold Dean, Mendota

1956 Donald M. Stevenson, Elburn

1957-58 Harold S. Dawson, Champaign

1959-60 Joseph Ackerman, Chicago

1961-62 Junius Califf, Rock Island

1963 Reid R. Tombaugh, Pontiac

1964 Owen Marsh, Springfield

1965-66 Martin L. Cassell Jr., Barrington

1967-68 John Illyes, Palestine

1969 Robert A. Jamieson, Peoria

1970-71 George H. Wirth, New Athens

1972-73 Edward C. Epstein, Crete-Monee

6 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

F E A T U R E A R T I C L E

With PERA implementation

dates on the not-too-distant

horizon, it is important to start think-

ing about what teachers’ unions might

be expected to demand when it comes

to including data and indicators of

student growth as a significant fac-

tor in rating teacher performance. In

fact, contracts that are being bar-

gained right now may well extend

beyond a district’s applicable imple-

mentation date, and thus would have

to address this issue. This article is

intended to make some predictions,

hopefully reasonable ones, as to pos-

sible union positions on various issues

related to the negotiation of post-

implementation date teacher evalu-

ations.

At the outset, it is important to

remember the role of the joint com-

mittee as expressed in the PERA itself:By no later than the applicable

implementation date, such school

district shall, in good faith coop-

eration with its teachers or, where

applicable, the exclusive bar-

gaining representative of its teach-

ers, incorporate the use of data

and indicators on student growth

as a significant factor in rating

teaching performance, into its

evaluation plan for all teachers,

both those teachers in contrac-

tual continued service and those

teachers not in contractual con-

tinued service. The plan shall at

least meet the standards and

requirements for student growth

and teacher evaluation estab-

lished under Section 24A-7, and

specifically describe how student

growth data and indicators will

be used as part of the evaluation

process, how this information

will relate to evaluation stan-

dards, the assessments or oth-

er indicators of student

performance that will be used in

measuring student growth and

the weight that each will have,

the methodology that will be used

to measure student growth, and

the criteria other than student

growth that will be used in eval-

uating the teacher and the weight

each will have. To incorporate

the use of data and indicators of

student growth as a significant

factor in rating teacher perfor-

mance into the evaluation plan,

the district shall use a joint com-

mittee composed of equal rep-

resentation selected by the district

and its teachers or, where applic-

able, the exclusive bargaining

representative of its teachers.

105 ILCS 5/24A-4.

In addition to these provisions,

Illinois State Board Education reg-

ulations require the joint committee

to determine the types of assessments

(Type I, II or III) to be used for each

category of teachers, subject to the

general limitations set forth therein

(23 Ill.Admin.Code §50.110). The

joint committee is also required to

determine how certain student char-

acteristics shall be used for each mea-

surement model chosen to ensure

that they best measure the impact

that a teacher, school and school dis-

trict have on students’ academic

achievement.

This is the role of the joint com-

mittee. It is expected that the unions

will try to expand the role of the joint

committee beyond what is provided

for in the statute and the regulations,

and to expand the requirements relat-

ing to the joint committee to a posi-

tion that all aspects of an evaluation

plan have to be negotiated. This is

obviously to be avoided. While teacher

evaluation plans have always had

to be done in cooperation with the

teachers’ union, allowing the joint

committee to have more authority

than it actually has would unduly

expand the role of the union in the

creation and the operation of the plan.

It has long been the case that the

procedural aspects of an evaluation

plan are mandatory subjects of bar-

gaining, but the substantive aspects

of the plan are not (Alton Education

Thomas Melody

is a partner with

the Chicago law

firm of Klein,

Thorpe and

Jenkins, Ltd. His

practice is

concentrated in

labor and

employment law.

He is a member

of the executive

committee of the

Illinois Council of

School Attorneys

and contributes

regularly to IASB

activities.

Bargaining PERA evaluations:What to expect at the table

by Thomas M. Melody

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 7

Association and Alton Community

Unit School District No. 11, 9 PERI

¶ 1085 (IELRB, 1993)). PERA did not

change this. In fact, PERA specifi-

cally provides:Nothing in this subsection (a)

shall make decisions on the use

of data and indicators on student

growth as a significant factor in

rating teacher performance

mandatory subjects of bargain-

ing under the Illinois Educational

Labor Relations Act that are not

currently mandatory subjects of

bargaining under the Act. 105

ILCS 5/24A-4.

PERA did, obviously, call for the

creation of the joint committee and

specify its duties. But this does not

mean that substantive aspects of an

evaluation plan are now mandatory

subjects of bargaining, or that all

aspects of an evaluation plan are now

subject to approval by a committee

that has a 50-50 split of teachers and

management. Thus, even though the

use of data and indicators on student

growth is required to be incorpo-

rated into the evaluation plan in good

faith cooperation with the teach-

ers’ union, this does not mean that

all aspects of the evaluation plan,

or even those aspects of the plan under

the “jurisdiction” of the joint com-

mittee, are now mandatory subjects

of bargaining.

It is also expected that the unions

may attempt to use PERA to encroach

on other management rights or to

otherwise expand their rights and

powers in the realm of teacher eval-

uations. For example, they may claim

that there should be some kind of

appeal procedure by which a teacher

can challenge his or her evaluation

rating. There is no requirement that

any such procedure exist and it should

not, at least in my opinion, exist. Eval-

uation ratings, as substantive com-

ponents of an evaluation plan, do not

have to be negotiated and are not sub-

ject to arbitration (Board of Educa-

tion of DuPage High School District

No. 88 v. IELRB, 246 Ill.App.3d 967,

617 N.E.2d 790 (1st Dist., 1993)).

As another example, the unions

may claim that the joint committee

should be involved in RIFs or in fill-

ing vacancies. Just because the RIF

revisions in Senate Bill 7 now relate

RIFs to evaluations does not mean

that the joint committee should have

anything to do with RIFs. Similarly,

the fact that vacancies now have to

STAFFOFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Roger L. Eddy,Executive DirectorBenjamin S. Schwarm, Deputy Executive Director

Meetings ManagementPatricia Culler, Assistant to the Executive DirectorCarla S. Bolt, Director-designeeSandy Boston, Assistant Director

Office of General CounselMelinda Selbee, General CounselKimberly Small, Assistant General Counsel

Executive SearchesDonna Johnson, DirectorDoug Blair, ConsultantThomas Leahy, ConsultantDave Love, Consultant

ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES

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Production ServicesDiane M. Cape, Senior Director

ADVOCACY/GOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS

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AdvocacyCynthia Woods, Director

BOARD DEVELOPMENT/TARGETING ACHIEVEMENT THROUGH GOVERNANCE

Angie Peifer, Associate Executive Director

Board DevelopmentSandra Kwasa, DirectorNesa Brauer, Consultant

Targeting Achievement through Governance

Steve Clark, Consultant

COMMUNICATIONS

James Russell, Associate Executive DirectorGary W. Adkins, Director/EditorialLinda Dawson, Director/EditorialJennifer Nelson, Director, Information ServicesGerald R. Glaub, Consultant

FIELD SERVICES/POLICY SERVICES

Cathy A. Talbert, Associate Executive Director

Field Services

Larry Dirks, DirectorDean Langdon, DirectorPatrick Rice, DirectorJeff Cohn, DirectorBarbara B. Toney, DirectorLaurel DiPrima, Director

Policy Services

Anna Lovern, DirectorNancy Bohl, ConsultantAndrea Dolgin, ConsultantJackie Griffith, ConsultantWayne Savageau, ConsultantBrian Zumpf, Consultant

IASB OFFICES

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8 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

be filled based on qualifications and

not just seniority does not bring

the joint committee into that dis-

cussion. The joint committee has

nothing to do with either of these top-

ics and if any such effort is under-

taken it should be resisted.

Also, it is important to remem-

ber the reason PERA was adopted,

which is set forth in the findings at

the beginning of the Act:

The General Assembly finds and

declares all of the following:

(1) Effective teachers and school

leaders are a critical factor con-

tributing to student achievement.

(2) Many existing district performance

evaluation systems fail to ade-

quately distinguish between effec-

tive and ineffective teachers and

principals. A recent study of eval-

uation systems in three of the

largest Illinois districts found that

out of 41,174 teacher evaluations

performed over a five-year peri-

od, 92.6 percent of teachers were

rated “superior” or “excellent,”

7 percent were rated “satisfacto-

ry,” and only 0.4 percent were rat-

ed “unsatisfactory.”

(3) Performance evaluation systems

must assess professional com-

petencies as well as student

growth.

(4) School districts and the state

must ensure that performance

evaluation systems are valid and

reliable and contribute to the

development of staff and

improved student achievement

outcomes.

The General Assembly seems

to have realized that when every

employee, or nearly every employ-

ee, gets the highest possible evalu-

ation rating, then the whole evaluation

system becomes virtually worthless.

Evaluation ratings should accurately

reflect the skills and abilities of the

employee being evaluated and, just

like every member of the group can-

not be the worst, every member of

the group cannot be the best. When

all employees are rated “excellent”

then the meaning of “excellent” is

necessarily and automatically watered

down. Thus, in working with the joint

committee to incorporate the data

and indicators on student growth, I

believe it is important to remember

that the purpose of evaluations is

not to make all the employees as

happy as possible but to ensure that

our teachers are continuing to devel-

op and our student achievement out-

comes are improving. Efforts to “water

down” the impact or outcome of

using data and indicators on student

growth should, in my opinion, be

avoided.

It is also expected that the unions

may try to expand the 180-day time-

line. This should be avoided. PERA

requires that if the joint committee

cannot reach agreement on the things

it is supposed to reach agreement

within “180 calendar days of the

committee’s first meeting,” then the

district shall implement the mod-

el evaluation plan established by the

state board of education with respect

to the use of data and indicators on

student growth. The 180-day time-

line, and the required consequence

of having to adopt the state plan, is

a built-in protection against the

unions requiring never-ending nego-

tiations and thus avoiding the imple-

mentation altogether. In my opinion,

the 180-day timeline is a strict and

clear timeline and cannot be avoid-

ed by arguing that some committee

meetings are “informal” or “unoffi-

cial.” The fact that there is a maxi-

mum time frame for the joint

committee’s work to be completed

is, in my opinion, a benefit to man-

agement that should not be aban-

doned.

Finally, the unions may also try

to claim that they have some right

to select or to participate in the

selection of the management rep-

resentation on the joint committee.

Nothing in PERA changed the well-

settled labor law principle that both

sides have complete discretion to

select their own representatives.

Just like management has no right

to determine who the union brings

to the table, the union has no right

to determine who management brings

to the table. The number of repre-

sentatives from each side has to be

equal. This does not mean that either

side gets to pick who is on the oth-

er side.

In conclusion, a lot remains to

be seen with respect to union strate-

gies relating to the negotiations of

PERA evaluations. These predictions

hopefully will provide some item of

what we can expect as the imple-

mentation dates get closer.

Evaluation ratings, as substantive

components of an evaluation plan,

do not have to be negotiated and are

not subject to arbitration.

10 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

F E A T U R E A R T I C L E

The Illinois Association of School

Boards has consistently urged

school boards to establish written

policies, rules and regulations. We

have done so for several reasons.

The first and foremost reason is

that the School Code (Chap. 122 Sec.

6-20 — Illinois Revised Statutes 1955)

specifically charges school boards

with the mandatory duty “To adopt

and enforce all necessary rules for

the management and government of

the public schools of their district.”

Our courts interpret this section by

repeatedly saying it is assumed that

boards have carried out this provi-

sion of the law and failure to do so is

fatal.

The second reason for having

written policies is because they are

fundamental to the morale of the

whole school system — teachers,

non-teachers, pupils, parents and

school boards. Any school board that

will first set its own house in order

by letting everyone know the condi-

tions upon which it will operate com-

mands the confidence and respect of

all who work with them.

The third reason for having writ-

ten policies is that they clarify for all

concerned the educational aims of

the district and the methods by which

they may be achieved. In addition, a

set of policies, rules and regulations

put together into a single document

establishes an orderly process of devel-

opment and a common source for

procedure where all may look for

guidance. Bringing previous board

actions together under appropriate

headings eliminates contradictions

and misunderstandings.

There are several points about

policies, rules and regulations which

we believe are basically important.

While the law says that there shall be

rules established, yet on the other

hand the record must not be clut-

tered with a lot of unnecessary rules.

There is no need to have rules just

for rules’ sake. A rule is good only if

it serves a purpose.

Another point is that policies,

rules and regulations serve best only

if they are stated in a positive man-

ner so as to accomplish a positive

purpose. Too many times there are

included items that belong strictly to

administrative detail and have no

place in a policy statement.

Finally, it must be understood

that policies are subject to change.

Therefore, they must be consid-

ered flexible to the extent that they

may be changed, altered or revoked

whenever conditions warrant, and

that new policies may be added as

need for them arises. Whenever one

of these occurs, thought and consid-

eration must be given to the date upon

which they will become effective.

Ample notice of changes or additions

will cause them to be more readily

accepted with good grace by those

who are affected.

We believe there is a distinction

between a policy and a rule or regu-

lation. It is not always easy to recog-

nize the difference; however, as a

general rule, the school board usu-

ally develops policies while rules and

regulations are developed by the staff

with approval by the board. Experi-

ence has shown that participation in

the development of rules and regu-

lations by those who have worked

under them will mean more than rules

and regulations developed in any oth-

er manner.

Robert M. Cole

was the first

executive direc-

tor of the Illinois

Association of

School Boards,

serving from

1943 to 1969.

He authored this

article for the

September 24,

1956, issue of

the School Board

News Bulletin.

His ideas are

consistent with

the way IASB

continues to

work with school

boards around

policies, rules

and regulations.

From 1956, IASB’s thoughts on policies, rules and regulations

by Robert M. Cole

12 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

C O V E R S T O R Y

Why Johnny Can’t Read, but

Yoshio Can” represents just

a portion of Richard Lynn’s 1988 book,

Educational Achievement in Japan.

When published in National Review,

the excerpt of the Northern Ireland

author’s work punctuated what had

been touted when A Nation at Risk

was released in the United States in

1983: students in the U.S. did not

measure up to some other foreign

students, especially those from Japan.

In his writings, Lynn said evi-

dence of high Japanese education

standards began to appear in the 1960s

and that students schooled in Japan

consistently scored first on science

and math tests, while American stu-

dents were consistently last or next

to last. Most European students fell

somewhere in between.

“There can be no doubt that

American schools compare poorly

with Japanese schools,” he wrote. “In

the latter, there are no serious prob-

lems with poor discipline, violence

or truancy; Japanese children take

school seriously and work hard.”

Lynn went on to say that the U.S.

could emulate success in Japan by

instituting a strong national cur-

riculum, strong incentives for stu-

dents and stimulating competition

between schools.

So why, if these things have been

evident for 25 years or more, do many

American students still seem to strug-

gle and Japanese students still seem

to excel? Is it as simple as Lynn’s diag-

nosis? Or do more factors come into

play?

Is public education in foreign

countries — especially in Japan —

better than that in the U.S., or is it

just different?

One teacher’s journey

Marlin Hughes, a native of Nebras-

ka, went to Japan in search of a change.

What he found was a wife, a daugh-

ter and a business life that has put

him in a good position to see the dif-

ferences between education in Japan

and his homeland.

Hughes currently teaches Eng-

lish privately to Japanese students

as the head of English Traveler Fukuo-

ka ’95. In addition, his 16-year-old

daughter Aika has been educated

in the Japanese system and is now

an exchange student at the high school

Linda Dawson is

IASB director/

editorial services

and editor of The

Illinois School

Board Journal.

Education in other countries…Is it really better or just different?

by Linda Dawson

“

Hughes attended. He has also taught

in public junior high and elementary

schools in Japan, as well as pub-

lic/private kindergartens and nurs-

eries.

A resident of Itoshima City,

Fukuoka prefecture, since 1995, he

has logged more than 25,000 class

hours and has taught more than 5,000

children and adults from all walks of

life.

Hughes initially wanted to go to

Africa with the Peace Corps after he

graduated from Hastings College, now

the University of Nebraska at Hast-

ings. But during his interview with a

Peace Corps agent in Lincoln, he

found himself unable to commit to

giving up a dating relationship in order

to leave.

While dating in general wasn’t

bad, the agent told him, the notion

of maintaining a relationship while

serving in a host country would only

prove to be a mistake and lead to

many problems. “He said that being

a Peace Corp volunteer means a 24/7

job the entire time you serve,” Hugh-

es recalled.

Still thinking about working over-

seas, Hughes had the good fortune in

1991 to run into a fellow York High

School graduate who advertised in

the local newspaper for help with run-

ning an English school in Japan. With

support from family, co-workers and

friends, he boarded a plane for Japan

on February 13, 1992 … and has lived

there ever since.

“I worked with Michael (Con-

nely) for two and a half years, learn-

ing the tricks and trades of teaching

English as a foreign language,” Hugh-

es said, “then I branched out during

my days off, found students, found

supporters, found offices, and split

from Michael’s school in the winter

of 1995.”

At first he thought he was crazy

for such an undertaking, but after

starting out with just four students,

he expanded to more than 50 with-

in months. He has become a student

of Japanese culture even as he teach-

es his native English.

The Japanese system

Some things about education in

Japan are very similar to that in the

United States, Hughes said.

“The Japanese have a similar sys-

tem in regards to when children start

school, pre-K through grade 12, and

a nursery system that takes kids as

young as three months,” he said.

The pre-K system in Japan “enter-

tains kids so that they can enter ele-

mentary school somewhat prepared,”

and is for children ages 3 to 6. The

Education Statistics Japan US

Duration of education 12 years 12 years

Compulsory education 10 years 12 years

Secondary enrollment 7,894,456 24,185,790

Secondary teachers 612,629 1,615,032

Primary enrollment 7,257,223 24,559,490

Primary teachers 378,950 1,728,192

Total expenditure % GDP 4.6 7

Spending per secondary student $5,890 $7,764

Spending per primary student $5,075 $6,043

Math literacy 557 493

Science literacy 550 499

Reading literacy 522 504

% primary PE instruction 10 12

% primary arts instruction 11 7

% primary language instruction 14 17

% primary for. lang. instruction 13 7

% primary math instruction 12 16

% primary science instruction 11 14

% primary social studies instruction 12 12

% primary technology instruction 8 3

Source: NationMaster

Marlin Hughes is an American teacherworking in Japanese schools.

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 13

14 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

big difference is who can attend pub-

lic pre-K/kindergarten and who attends

private … and the cost.

Public pre-K/kindergarten costs

about $200 a month, while similar

private schools cost about $350 a

month. While the private pre-K/kinder-

gartens are superior, both systems

require that the mother be a stay-at-

home housewife and not work.

“If this rule is broken,” Hughes

said, “the family will be asked to

change to a nursery system.”

The nursery system, on the oth-

er hand, takes children from 3 months

to 6 years, and those moms must be

employed. Cost of the nursery sys-

tem ranges from $120 to $500 a month,

depending on the age of the child.

Babies get almost a 1:1 ratio of teacher

and child, Hughes said, so the cost is

greater.

Children reaching age 6 are

enrolled in primary school. Accord-

ing to the Japanese Ministry of Edu-

cation, Hughes said, students must

be in school from the primary grades

(1-5) through junior high (6-9) or age

15. These are generally neighborhood

schools and attendance is compul-

sory.

The school day in Japan is based

on a seven-period day; it begins at

A Japanese student in Americasees school with different view by Aika Mishel Hughes

My life in a U.S. high school has had some very inter-

esting turns, including attending the Japanese Tea

Ceremony and being part of two sports teams that have

gone to a state tournament.

I have also had the privilege to be a part of a unique

system only approached by a few: an International

Exchange program. You see, I am of a mixed race, my

father is an American and my mother is a Japanese nation-

al. Let me tell you what I have perceived as good and bad

about the programs in the U.S. and my homeland.

Academics have been encouraged by both my own

parents and my current homestay parents. As a Japan-

ese high school student, I was very busy studying for my

classes and had no time to think about anything else,

even on the weekends. You see, in Japan you don’t have

small quizzes like in the U.S., so we have to take care

of our own grade.

In Japan, we have mid-terms and finals, and that’s

it! If you get a bad grade on your mid-terms or finals, you

will fail the class.

Also, in Japan, you have the same class schedule for

a whole year. Even if you fail the semester test, you

still have a chance to get the grade back by scoring

better on the next test. In the U.S., students change their

schedules when the semester is over. That is fun, but

also troublesome.

If you scored badly on tests during the first semes-

ter, you don’t have a chance to bring your grade back up.

I have noticed, though, that not all classes in the U.S.

have quizzes. The teacher either chooses to have them

or chooses to primarily grade students from their tests.

Both Japanese and American students learn from

teachers, but how classrooms are set up differ quite a

bit.

In the U.S., students don’t have their own textbooks,

but in Japan we do. This expense is picked up by our par-

ents, and textbooks can get quite costly at times. But

they are ours to write in, rather than texts in the U.S.

that are turned back to the school at the end of the semes-

ter.

But Japanese students are careful what they write

in their textbooks, because their teachers sometimes

ask to see the students’ books. If they drew pictures rather

than take neat notes, students are reprimanded for keep-

ing a sloppy book.

Teachers in Japan not only grade you on what you

score, but also how you did on worksheets that are con-

stantly handed out every class. They also grade you on

how your textbook looked. Bad notes — not-so good

grade.

The good thing about having your own textbook is

Aika Mishel Hughes, 16, is the daughter of Marlin and

Takiko Hughes of Itoshima City, Japan. She is a foreign

exchange student at York High School in York, Nebraska, for

the 2012-13 school year. She wrote this to accompany the

cover story, which features her father, Marlin Hughes.

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 15

8:40 a.m. and ends at 4:30 p.m., with

40 minutes for lunch. Students in

grades 1-3 only have six periods, while

grade 12 students may have as many

as nine periods.

The school year generally runs

from April through March and is bro-

ken into three terms, with brief spring

and winter breaks as well as the month-

long “summer holiday,” according to

www.education-in-japan.info. This

holiday coincides with the height

of cherry blossom time, which is con-

sidered a time of renewal in Japan.

Other than the longer school

year, another big difference is the

way schools are funded in Japan.

Everyone in Illinois is familiar

with the basic way public schools are

funded. The bulk of tax money for

education comes from local proper-

ty taxes, with additional funds from

the state and federal government. All

real estate is taxed to support schools,

regardless of whether the property

owner has children in school or not.

In Japan, Hughes said, funding

comes from the prefecture, which is

comparable to state government in

the U.S. However, only those with

children in the system pay taxes to

support the schools. The elderly and

single adults are exempt.

you can use this note taking/classroom text to prepare

for upcoming mid-terms or finals and that makes test

prep easier. On the other hand, when you have your own

textbooks, you have to carry them home every night and

that is a pain.

In Japan, we don’t have the same schedule every

day. My dad told me that in U.S. colleges they do the

same as we do in Japan, regarding daily classes. A neg-

ative about studying in Japan is that students don’t have

the freedom to choose their own schedules — the schools

do it for them.

Another difference is that Japanese teachers come

to the students’ classroom, not the other way around like

here in the States where the students change classrooms.

In American high schools, many students get involved

in sports and other after-school activities that make life

more interesting. In Japan, we have fewer chances to

participate in these things because we are programmed

to primarily study.

Here, students seem to really enjoy school because

they have the freedom to choose what they want to study

for a semester, and they have the chance to get involved

in many things that make a teenager’s life more enjoy-

able.

In Japan, it’s very important to have a good grade

and keep it. While Japanese schools do have sports teams,

it is hard for the student to do both because of the home-

work load they have every night. Students go to school

early and come home late from studying. So if you play

a sport, you come home even later, like 9:30 p.m. or even

10 p.m.

Playing sports in America requires students to try

and mix both fun and competition. In Japan, fun is for

another time. Japanese students practice sports all week-

end, too. Because uniforms are owned by the students

in Japan, parents must also pick up this fee. Like I

said, it can get quite costly.

We also play the same sports in Japan the year round,

not like the U.S., which switches according to the sea-

son. I love this system here in America. I think a lot of

my friends in Fukuoka, where I go to school, would

like this, too.

The last thing that I’d like to talk about is the thing

I miss most about student life in Japan.

In Japan, it is important to have events that make

parents want to get involved along with their kids, and

one of them is the annual school festivals/sports festi-

vals. These require students to practice weeks before the

event in order to look good in front of the parents, because

some schools ask parents to run, jump or even dance

right along with the kids.

If sporting events aren’t your thing, then you can

participate as a cheerleader to help your class team out.

This is something that I have really missed, because I

feel that students really get close to each other at this

time. It is however, one of the few times we do get this

close.

16 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

Private schools, he said, run on

the same guidelines as those in the

U.S., i.e., hefty tuition with no gov-

ernment assistance.

The high school experience

While the primary system is sim-

ilar to the U.S., things start to change

at the junior high level.

“When high school rolls around,”

Hughes said, “all students must take

an entrance exam to get in … and the

high school doesn’t always lie with-

in the boundaries of their neigh-

borhood to town.”

The competition for spots in many

of these high schools is fierce, he said,

and the competition to attract stu-

dents can even get a little dirty.

Hughes said he and his wife feel

fortunate that their daughter tested

well and was accepted at a private

high school once she finished junior

high. Her placement is what has

allowed her to study in the United

States this year.

In terms of cost, the Hughes may

pay more dearly, however, for choos-

ing a private school. Costs range

from a low of $250 a month to as

much as $3,000 a month. However,

the advantage of a private high school

is that it often is paired with a uni-

versity.

Successful completion of the pri-

vate high school can give a student a

“green light” for college entrance

exams, which Hughes described as a

“bearcat” compared to the ACT/SAT

system used in the United States.

In the U.S., a student can still be

admitted to college, even with a low

score. In Japan, “if one can’t score

high enough in the preliminary rounds,

they are rejected and told to either

try a lower ranked school or not even

go to school at all after graduating

high school.

Much pressure is endured dur-

ing the senior year, and Hughes

acknowledged that the country expe-

riences higher student suicide rates

as a result.

And that brings us to another

twist in the Japanese system: the

“cram school.”

According to the education in

Japan website, many students attend

private afterschool study sessions

(juku or gakken) while they are in

junior high and high school. A sep-

arate cram school (yobiko) operates

for those students looking for help

before they take university entrance

exams.

These schools come with yet

another extra cost beyond the cost

of attending junior high or high school;

the yobiko can cost as much as $10,000

a year, Hughes said.

In a paper written in 1995 at

Carnegie Mellon University, James

Kim compared Japanese and Amer-

ican education systems and cultures

and theorized that the only reason

Japanese students are more successful

is because of these cram schools, not

because their public schools are so

much superior.

“The sole purpose of a juku school

is to provide the student with the

information and knowledge in order

How does Japan govern its schools?

The Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture represents the

central educational authority in Japan. It gives assistance to all levels of

education throughout the country. Japan is composed of 47 “prefectures”

(prefectures are similar to U.S. counties). Each prefecture has a board of

education that coordinates education in that geographic unit. Each

school board is comprised of five members who are appointed by that pre-

fecture’s governor, approved by the legislative assembly and serve a four-

year term.

While some of the duties of the board are similar to school boards in

the United States (such as overseeing the drafting of budgets), other duties

far exceed those of school boards domestically. Such duties include issuing

certificates to teachers, promoting events and activities related to physical

education and managing the wide variety of educational units in the pre-

fecture, including museums and public libraries.

Public education is also handled at the municipal level by a municipal

board of education. Each board, consisting of five members selected by the

mayor, holds office for four years. They have the responsibility of selecting

a municipal superintendent of education from among their own member-

ship, managing the educational institutions, and selecting textbooks.

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 17

to pass the entrance exam and be

accepted into a top university,” Kim

wrote. “Americans need to pay clos-

er attention to where Japanese stu-

dents acquire their much admired

education.”

By securing a spot in a top Japan-

ese university, Kim wrote, such a stu-

dent also “guarantees a job for life.”

Dropouts, GEDs and testing

Once a Japanese student has

completed junior high, he or she has

the right (with their parents’ per-

mission) to leave school, although

data shows that 95 percent of stu-

dents go on to high school and grad-

uate.

While this graduation rate is high

for a major power, Hughes said the

number is deceiving.

“Most think that all Asians, espe-

cially the Chinese and Japanese, are

superior in academic talent than their

western neighbor,” he said, “but one

teacher told me, ‘a fifth of these stu-

dents might as well not have attend-

ed because during classroom study,

they were in a different world and

because of this thinking, the coun-

try will be in turmoil in the not so dis-

tant future.’”

Japan does have a system simi-

lar to the General Education Devel-

opment (GED) test used in the United

States, but it’s rarely used just because

its purpose is counter to everything

in Japanese culture.

Hughes said children are taught

at an early age to be part of the group.

“To be singled out in Japan means

that one is not in acceptance of the

group’s decision and therefore is cast

out so that group cohesion will not

be interrupted.”

In other words, students are not

held back, nor are they put into accel-

erated classes.

All curriculum in Japan is nation-

alized for the public schools, but pri-

vate institutions follow their own

guidelines, and are often a grade above

public schools in what students are

taught, Hughes said.

In the public primary grades,

he said, the emphasis is on basic

mathematical thinking and build-

ing strong group cohesion. As stu-

dents advance, more emphasis is

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18 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

placed on taking pride in Japanese

cultural tradition: diet, self-control

and nature.

Once students enter junior high,

they are constantly tested to find

out where they rank in the class —

even though they are taught not

to draw attention to themselves. A

typical junior high testing schedule

for a seventh grader might look like

this:

• National placement test

• Book company test

• Book company test

• A-JHS placement test

• A-JHS mid-term

• Book company test

• Prefecture test

• A-JHS final

• National placement test

Of these, Hughes said, only two

are used to determine a student’s

grade.

Editor’s note: Marlin Hughes

acknowledges the input from Tomoko

Shojima, a teacher at Nijyo Junior

High School in Itoshima City; Yukiko

Murakami, a cram school teacher;

Yukiko Satoh and Fumiko Yoshida,

both retired junior high school teach-

ers; and Atsuko Yamaguchi, a cram

school teacher and school organiz-

er for Maple English, Karatsu City,

Saga Prefecture.

References

Education in Japan, http://www.

education-in-japan.info/ sub1.html

James Kim, “Japanese Education

vs. Amerecan Edukashun: A Compar-

ative Account of Literary Education

between Two Cultures,” http://eserv-

er.org/courses/fall95/76-100g/papers/

kim/default.html

Richard Lynn, “Why Johnny Can’t

Read, but Yoshio Can,” National Review,

October 28, 1988

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20 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

C O V E R S T O R Y

While much has been written

recently about the alleged

failure of the U.S. public school sys-

tem, Finland’s system of public edu-

cation has been highlighted as one

of the most successful in the world.

Finnish students consistently score

at the top or near the top on inter-

national tests of student achievement,

while the scores of U.S. students on

the same exams are mediocre in most

cases.

American policymakers have

expressed concern over the perfor-

mance of U.S. students on these tests

and have called for a range of account-

ability measures in an attempt to turn

this situation around.

Beginning with the publication

of A Nation at Risk in 1983 and

through the No Child Left Behind Act

(2001) and the more recent Race to

the Top program (2009), teachers,

administrators and school boards

have been under extreme pressure

to raise test scores. Accountability

in the U.S. public education system

is now focused on how well students

score on state-mandated tests.

In spite of our best efforts,

improvements have been slow, at

best. So what is the key to Finnish

educational success?

Visiting Pasi Sahlberg

We decided the best way to exam-

ine Finnish educational success was

to travel to Finland and to interview

the chief spokesperson for the Finnish

model, Pasi Sahlberg. Sahlberg is the

author of numerous articles on the

Finnish success story and is most

widely known for his 2010 book,

Finnish Lessons: What can the World

Learn from Educational Change

in Finland?

On August 7, 2012, we met with

Sahlberg in his office in Helsinki. In

a wide-ranging interview, which con-

sumed much of the afternoon, he gave

us a comprehensive overview of what

he perceives as the reasons for the

success of the Finnish educational

system.

Reform of the Finnish educa-

tional system began around 1970 with

the implementation of what the Finns

call, peruskoula. This is a universal

system of public education in which

all students are treated equitably,

regardless of their residency, eth-

nicity or innate ability.

Prior to peruskoula, the Finnish

people were not very well educat-

ed. In the 1950s, educational oppor-

tunities were unequal in Finland, with

most young people leaving school

after six or seven years of formal edu-

cation, Sahlberg said. Only those liv-

ing in larger towns and urban areas

even had access to middle schools.

With the implementation of this

new program, all Finnish students

receive the same education through

the second year of high school. At

that point, they either take a voca-

tional track or a college-bound track.

No stigma is attached to the voca-

tional track and 43 percent of Finnish

students exercise this option. Anoth-

er 52 percent pursue the college track

and about 5 percent drop out of school.

Major characteristics

Sahlberg outlined the following

characteristics of the current Finnish

educational system:

• All schooling is free, including pre-

school. Mothers (or fathers) may

stay home and actually continue

to receive pay for the first year after

giving birth. Their specific job is

protected for three years, but they

do not receive pay for the second

and third years of their childcare

leave.

• Finnish students begin public school

at age seven. There is no organized

attempt to teach reading before

age seven.

• When a student first enters school,

the teacher assesses his/her read-

John Hunt is

associate profes-

sor of education-

al leadership at

Southern Illinois

University-

Edwardsville and

a former school

superintendent.

Sandra Watkins is

professor of edu-

cational leader-

ship at Western

Illinois University,

Macomb, and a

former assistant

school superin-

tendent.

Can a Finnish education modelyield similar success in the U.S?

by John Hunt and Sandra Watkins

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 21

ing level and then asks the student

what he/she would like to read. The

student is then grouped in the class-

room with students functioning at

the same level or across the grade

levels with similar students.

• Students do not receive written

grades before the fifth grade. Feed-

back is given by teachers in nar-

rative and verbal form.

• Curriculum is determined at the

building level by the principal and

teachers, and there is no Common

Core-type curriculum in Finland.

• School boards are appointed by

each municipality and the school

board selects the CEO, or super-

intendent.

• No external high-stakes tests are

employed before the end of grade

12.

Sahlberg said most Finnish ele-

mentary and middle schools have

fewer than 300 students. The largest

high school in Finland, in fact, has

just 1,400 students.

Finnish teachers are well trained

and entrance into teacher education

programs is extremely competitive

and coveted by the very best students

in the country. Teachers are drawn

from the top quartile of secondary

school graduates and only 15 percent

of those are accepted. They receive

a three-year graduate-level teacher

preparation program with a living

stipend.

In addition to receiving intense

instruction on how to teach, they also

spend a year in a university labora-

tory school, honing their skills on real

students. Most teachers in Finland

now have master’s degrees in both

their content area and in education.

In addition they are given sufficient

planning time for both individual and

joint planning.

Expanding on the idea of plan-

ning time, Finnish teachers meet at

least one afternoon each week to work

jointly on curriculum. From an inter-

national perspective, Finnish teach-

ers devote less time to formal classroom

teaching than do teachers from most

other countries.

At the middle school level, for

example, Finnish teachers spend just

more than half the hours in the class-

room as do American teachers at the

same grade levels. Finnish teachers

are also given much more time for

professional development activities

than teachers in many other coun-

tries.

The Finnish public is reported

to have an 80 percent confidence lev-

el in its teachers. Because of this,

even though the community coun-

cils, or school boards, help develop

the thrust of particular schools, they

often defer to the expertise of teach-

ers and principals in curricular mat-

ters. Teachers are well-compensated

and highly respected, both of which

contribute to the very low attrition

rate. Furthermore, it is estimated that

only 10 to 15 percent of teachers leave

the profession during the course of

their career.

Could this work here?

Critics of the Finnish educational

system attribute much of its success

to the fact the country has a relatively

small population and is not very

diverse, suggesting that the measures

which work there cannot practical-

ly be transferred to a country such

as the U.S.

Sahlberg counters by stating that

Finland’s population of approximately

5.5 million is comparable to that of

some U.S. states. He also claims that

Finland is becoming much more

diverse due to its growing immigrant

population.

With this said, are there elements

of the Finnish system that could be

— or should be — considered for

implementation in the U.S. public

school system?

One strategy that is not likely to

be considered is the redistribution

of wealth that is used in Finland. When

the country was first moving to perusk-

oula, the rural and poorer schools

were upgraded first, and then improve-

ments were subsequently imple-

mented in the wealthier suburban

and urban areas. A larger portion of

the public money was spent on the

poorer schools. With the heavy reliance

on property tax in many U.S. states,

including Illinois, such a shift in wealth

is unlikely.

What about other areas? Cer-

tainly, the issue of smaller school size

could be examined. While the typi-

cal Finnish class size is not smaller

than ours, with 25 students being typ-

ical, their schools overall are much

smaller.

Smaller schools enable teachers

and principals to better know and

understand their pupils. Smaller

schools make it more likely that

the school welfare teams in each build-

A reasoned and thorough discussion of

public education is needed and can

only happen if all elements of the edu-

cational community begin working

together.

22 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

ing will identify students with spe-

cial educational needs, helping to

ensure that needy students are not

overlooked.

Educators and much of the pub-

lic have long understood the value of

smaller schools in the U.S. Even some

larger schools have divided them-

selves into houses or other smaller

units in the attempt to gain the ben-

efits of smaller school size. Natural-

ly, moving to smaller schools comes

with a cost in terms of administra-

tion, facilities and perhaps busing.

Teacher quality is another major

issue to consider. Illinois made one

move in this direction when it

increased the cut score on the Basic

Skills Examination for entrance into

teacher education programs in Sep-

tember 2010. Between September

2008 and August 2010, 85.5 percent

of candidates passed the Basic Skills

Examination on the first attempt.

However, after the cut score was

increased, the percent of candidates

passing the examination between

September 2010 and August 2011

dropped to 28.3 percent.

Once enrolled in teacher edu-

cation programs, it would be hard to

argue against increased experience

working with public school students

in pre-clinical experiences. Indeed,

pre-clinical experiences have increased

for teacher education candidates over

the past three decades.

It also would be hard to argue

against an increased internship, or

student teaching experience. Ironi-

cally, many teacher education insti-

tutions once housed laboratory schools,

similar to those now found in Fin-

land. Unfortunately, most of the U.S.

lab schools were eliminated during

the past 40 years.

Legislation is making strides with

efforts to improve the caliber of teach-

ers. In 2010, Governor Pat Quinn

signed the Performance Evaluation

Reform Act (PERA) into law. This bill,

along with Senate Bill 7, ties a por-

tion of teacher and principal evalu-

ation to student achievement. This

action is an attempt to improve the

quality of teachers already in the field.

Another Finnish concept that

could be considered in the U.S. is the

autonomy given to teachers. This has

led to a level of creativity among teach-

ers that was once the hallmark of U.S.

public education.

However, many current U.S.

teachers know nothing other than

the type of NCLB-induced account-

ability that equates quality to student

performance on state-mandated tests.

In Finland, the teachers and prin-

cipal, working with the local council

or school board, determine the focus

and curriculum for the school. All

subjects are considered to be impor-

tant, not just those addressed by state-

mandated tests.

This is possible in the U.S., but

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MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 23

only if we are prepared to approve an

element of risk-taking in order to

restore creativity and innovative prac-

tices in the U.S. schools. It would also

necessitate restoration of the sta-

tus of teachers as educational experts

and a major rebuilding effort for

the public perception of education.

Conclusions

There is no doubt that Illinois

faces a huge problem in terms of its

budget. A bleak financial picture col-

ors every decision and every con-

versation regarding education in the

state.

However, an educated citizenry

is essential for the survival of the state

and the nation. A reasoned and thor-

ough discussion of public educa-

tion is needed and can only happen

if all elements of the educational com-

munity begin working together. This

includes not only teachers, admin-

istrators and parents as individu-

als, but also their professional and

community organizations.

By regaining a moral and pro-

fessional high ground, as a unified

community, professional educators

and their constituents can establish

the groundwork for Finnish-style edu-

cational reforms in the U.S. sys-

tem.

This task seems monumental,

but we cannot assume that it is impos-

sible, because the stakes are too

high.

ReferencesIllinois Certification Testing Sys-

tem. General Assembly Report: ICTS

Basic Skills and Content Area Test Pass

Rate Summary: Initial and Cumula-

tive. September 2008 to June 2011,

http://www.isbe.net/certification/html/tes

ting.htm

National Commission on Excel-

lence in Education (NCEE), A Nation

at Risk: The imperative for educational

reform, Washington, D.C., 1983

No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)

Act of 2001, Public Law 107-110, 2002

Performance Evaluation Reform

Act (PERA), Senate Bill 315, Public Act

96-0861, January 2010

Race to the Top (RTTT) Program,

signed into law as a portion of the Amer-

ican Recovery and Reinvestment Act

(ARRA) of 2009, Public Law 111-5,

2009

Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish Lessons:

What Can the World Learn from Edu-

cational Change in Finland? New York,

N.Y., Teachers College Press, 2010

Pasi Sahlberg, personal commu-

nication, August 7, 2012.

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24 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

F E A T U R E A R T I C L E

Policymakers and pundits have

decried “our failing schools”

so often it’s become an accepted truth.

But the naysayers are wrong. To be

sure, our schools need to do better.

But we have much to be proud of, too,

and it’s on this foundation that we

can build a 21st century system that

will work for all kids.

It’s time that we recognize our

accomplishments and give our pub-

lic schools a collective pat on the

back. Here is my personal Top 10 list

of things we’re doing right and where

we should go next.

10. A tradition of universal edu-

cation

Beginning in 1642 when Mass-

achusetts enacted the country’s

first education law, Americans

have placed a high premium on

producing an educated populace.

As Thomas Jefferson wrote,

“Whenever the people are well-

informed, they can be trusted

with their own government.”

Indeed, the history of Ameri-

can education is one of expand-

ing educational opportunity. From

the push for compulsory school-

ing in the last half of the 19th cen-

tury through Brown v. Board of

Education in the mid-20th, it’s a

story that continues to this day.

What’s next? The Common

Core State Standards define expec-

tations for all students that will

prepare them for their next steps,

whether they lead to a four-year

college, two-year credentials or

training for 21st century jobs. At

this writing, 46 states and the Dis-

trict of Columbia have adopted

the Common Core State

Standards.

9. Beginning reading

Over the last decade, our

fourth-graders have improved

their reading skills by six points

on the National Assessment of

Educational Progress (NAEP). If

that doesn’t sound like much, con-

sider that 10 points on the NAEP

scale is approximately one year’s

worth of learning. More signifi-

cantly, the gains have largely been

from the bottom up, and the

achievement gap is narrowing

between children of color and

their white classmates. As a bonus,

American fourth-graders rank

among students from the top-scor-

ing nations in reading literature.

What’s next? Middle- and

high-schoolers aren’t making the

same gains. We need to do more

than just teach kids how to read,

but also focus on developing crit-

ical readers, especially of infor-

mational texts.

8. Civics

On the 1999 international

assessment in civics, U.S. ninth-

graders were No. 1 in civics skills.

By a lot. But what about now?

There hasn’t been an interna-

tional look at this topic since then,

but NAEP offers a clue. Over the

last decade, American fourth-

graders have improved their civics

performance by seven points. His-

panic students improved the

most—by a whopping 17 points.

What’s next? As with read-

ing, middle and high school stu-

dents are not showing the same

progress as their younger siblings.

This deserves our attention, con-

sidering that high school seniors

are able to cast their first votes

or will be voting soon.

7. English language learners

An original study for NSBA’s

Center for Public Education (CPE)

compared the reading achieve-

ment and characteristics of lim-

ited-English-speaking students

in the U.S. to other industrial

nations with high proportions of

Patte Barth is the

director of the

National School

Boards Associa-

tion’s Center for

Public Education.

Her article origi-

nally appeared in

the June 2012

issue of NSBA’s

American School

Board Journal

and is used with

permission.

10 good things aboutU.S. public education

by Patte Barth

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 25

immigrant children (“PIRLS of

Wisdom,” 2009). While English

Language Learner (ELL) students

in American public schools tend

to come from poorer families com-

pared to those in other countries,

their schools nonetheless pro-

vide resources not available to

their international counterparts

and their performance is as good

or better as a result. The big advan-

tage? The U.S has more teachers

trained to teach ELL students.

What’s next? The number of

ELL teachers, though larger than

other countries, is still too small

to meet the need. Another big

issue: Evidence-based instruc-

tion for ELL students too often

takes a backseat to politics. Yet

the research is clear in this regard:

Dual-immersion programs pro-

duce the best long-range results

for ELL students, followed by lan-

guage support in elementary

school. Despite its appeal to some,

English-only submersion has been

proven to have the least effect

(CPE, 2007).

6. ESEA and IDEA: Monumental

laws

In 1965, the country passed

the first Elementary and Sec-

ondary Education Act (ESEA) as

part of President Lyndon John-

son’s war on poverty. Its intent

was to provide poor children equal

access to a solid public educa-

tion. As such, ESEA did noth-

ing less than establish education

as a civil right, and every presi-

dent since then has supported

the provision of Title I funds to

schools serving poor children.

These goals were further extend-

ed to children with disabilities in

1975’s Education for All Handi-

capped Children Act, now the

Individuals with Disabilities Edu-

cation Act (IDEA), which guar-

antees a “free and appropriate”

education to all special-needs

children.

What’s next? Under Presi-

dent George W. Bush, ESEA

became the No Child Left Behind

Act (NCLB). It added a sharp focus

— and school accountability —

on narrowing achievement gaps

among groups of students based

on race, ethnicity, family income

and special needs. While the idea

of accountability no doubt will

continue, both NCLB proponents

and critics recognize that adjust-

ments need to be made.

5. High-level high school courses

One of public education’s

biggest successes is the increase

in high school academic rigor. In

1990, fewer than a third of high

school seniors (31 percent) had

a core curriculum that includ-

ed math through at least Algebra

II and three lab sciences. By 2009,

that number was 59 percent. More-

over, the course-taking gap

between white and black students

has disappeared.

What’s next? The Office of

Civil Rights recently reported

that there are still 3,000 high

schools in the country lacking

the capacity to offer Algebra II,

meaning their graduates will not

be college-ready or qualified to

enter training programs for many

21st century jobs. Making sure

all students have access to high-

level courses and support to suc-

ceed must be among our highest

public priorities.

4. High-quality kindergarten

No educational investment

pays off more than making sure

children are ready for school when

they enter the kindergarten door.

Recognizing the potential return

on investment, states have been

expanding access to and increas-

ing the quality of pre-K programs.

Over the last decade, the num-

ber of 4-year-olds enrolled in state-

supported programs has doubled

to the current 27 percent. When

including Head Start, we now have

39 percent of 4-year-olds in pub-

licly funded programs. And it’s

not just access that’s improving.

States have been more active in

ensuring the programs attend to

children’s educational prepara-

tion as well as to their social and

emotional development.

What’s next? Despite the

recession, states have attempt-

ed to preserve their pre-K fund-

ing. However, last year witnessed

the first decline in state funding

for pre-K since 2002. These are

painful setbacks, as the nation

still has a long way to go to ensure

universal access for families who

wish to participate in pre-K.

3. High school graduation rates

Researchers have uncovered

student characteristics—such as

poor attendance, failing grades

and disciplinary actions—that

are highly predictive of students

who may be in danger of drop-

ping out. In response, states and

districts have implemented data

systems to flag these “early warn-

ing signs” and provide effective

interventions, often in collabo-

ration with community-based

organizations. The result is that

26 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

graduation rates are beginning to

improve. Since 2002, on-time

graduation rates have increased

from 72.6 percent to the current

75.5 percent. According to an

analysis by CPE’s Jim Hull, includ-

ing late graduates in the calcula-

tion would raise that rate by

another 5 to 8 percentage points.

What’s next? Even an 80 per-

cent to 83 percent graduation

rate leaves too many young peo-

ple out of jobs paying a decent

wage. President Barak Obama

has set a goal for the nation to

reach a 90 percent high school

graduation rate by 2020. Reach-

ing this mark will require the com-

bined efforts of schools and their

communities to keep kids in school

and on track to graduate.

2. Mathematics

Yes, really! We may not be

No. 1 in mathematics interna-

tionally, but math progress is still

the great untold story in Ameri-

can education. Since 1990, Amer-

ican fourth-graders have gained

a phenomenal 28 points on NAEP

math. Eighth-graders weren’t far

behind, posting a 21-point boost

over the same period. And progress

was evident in every student group.

Still not convinced? Scores on

the mathematics portion of the

SAT are significantly higher than

in 1972, while the number of test-

takers has more than doubled so

that the scores no longer repre-

sent the academic elite alone.

What’s next? Education tech-

nology may be the engine that

propels the math achievement of

all students, and can be especially

helpful in remote or hard-to-staff

schools. Innovators like Sal Khan

are developing new ways to make

even the most sophisticated con-

cepts understandable to students

using online platforms. Moreover,

access is not determined by geog-

raphy.

And my No. 1 good thing

about public education is …

1. Community support

Approximately nine out of 10

school-aged children attend pub-

lic schools in this country — a fig-

ure that has remained fairly stable

for 40 years. Communities main-

tain their support of their local

schools even as their opinion of

public education in general

declines. In 2011, only 17 per-

cent of Americans told Gallup

pollsters that they would grade

American public education as an

A or B. In contrast, 51 percent

would give an A or B to their local

schools. Parents were the most

satisfied, 70 percent of whom gave

their child’s public school these

high grades. When asked to explain

the discrepancy, respondents cit-

ed familiarity and local pride.

What’s next? Public schools

have their work cut out for them,

especially as they tackle the job

of preparing all of their students

for success after high school in

this increasingly complex 21st

century world. Policymakers at

the federal, state and local levels

all have a role to play. But the sup-

portive involvement of the com-

munity — from one district to

the next — is our strongest guar-

antee that the challenge will be

met.

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new members or a new superintendentBenefits of a Starting Right workshop include:

• Building quality communications and relationships,

• Creating agreement about roles and responsibilities,

• Improving board meetings,

• Establishing a better board-superintendent partnership, and

• Securing effective leadership for the district.

Contact your Field Services Director today for more information!

Springfield Office • 217/528-9688Lombard Office • 630/629-3776

Starting Right: Board-building for the new Governance Team

28 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

F E A T U R E A R T I C L E

As elected officials of the entire

community, the board of edu-

cation has a unique role that is often

overlooked. They are not only respon-

sible for the students who are cur-

rently in their buildings, they are

responsible for the little brothers and

sisters of those students who are still

in diapers and for the children who

will become part of the community

five, 10 and 20 years down the road.

But without a solid plan and vision

to navigate through an extended fis-

cal crisis, some school boards may

be making decisions, often on the

recommendation of their adminis-

trators, which put their district on a

path of unsustainable deficit spend-

ing. The end result will be that future

boards will be forced to eliminate crit-

ical programs and valuable staff mem-

bers in order to pay for these poorly

made decisions.

We are seeing from countries in

Europe the impact of policies that have

no focus on long-term implications.

This “kick the can down the road”

form of governance is threatening to

destroy many once great countries. I

am convinced that this same type of

management philosophy will similarly

destroy school districts in our state

unless immediate systematic changes

are made to the decision processes

within school districts.

School board’s role

Most of us have heard the bal-

cony seat analogy to describe the role

of the school board. The implications

are that the board should not be “on

the dance floor” micromanaging the

district, but rather should rely on the

superintendent to manage the dis-

trict and ensure quality education. I

couldn’t agree more.

Micromanaging by board mem-

bers, whether with good intentions

or bad, can adversely impact a dis-

trict both financially and academi-

cally and can unnecessarily distract

administrators from their mission.

However, I often think that this

analogy is misunderstood, with some

people believing that not micro-

managing means that the board should

be in a separate, windowless room

rather than an open balcony — watch-

ing, listening and evaluating the dance.

Not being involved in establishing

what the dance should look like or

not being able to effectively evaluate

the quality of the dance can be as

destructive as micromanaging the

district, especially during these dif-

ficult times.

Build a sense of urgency

“Those who are most successful

at significant change begin their work

by creating a sense of (real) urgency

among relevant people. Without enough

urgency, large-scale change can

become an exercise in pushing a gigan-

tic boulder up a very tall mountain.”

— John P. Kotter, professor emeritus,

Harvard Business School

In order to integrate the value of

strategic planning and a culture of

long-term fiscal and academic sta-

bility within the organization, there

must first be a real sense of urgency

developed at the board of educa-

tion level.

The challenges facing our grad-

uates are harsh. Our students are

entering a work force that has more

than 23 million people either unem-

ployed or underemployed. Individu-

als with less than a high school diploma

are unemployed at a rate three times

greater than that of individuals with

at least a bachelor’s degree.

Robert G. Grossi

is treasurer of the

Bloom Town-

ships Trustees of

Schools in South

Chicago Heights.

His article origi-

nally appeared in

the Winter 2012

issue of Update,

a publication of

the Illinois Asso-

ciation of School

Business Offi-

cials, and is used

with permission.

A firm foundation

The urgent need foreffective school boards

by Robert G. Grossi

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 29

We must improve the skills of

our students in order for them to have

a chance to successfully compete in

a global workforce and give them a

chance to live the “American Dream.”

This is only half the challenge.

Not only must we improve the qual-

ity of education we provide, we must

do so during a time of decreasing

financial resources.

In a perfect model, effective super-

intendents work with staff to devel-

op a plan to address student needs.

The superintendent would then add

staff, programs and professional devel-

opment as necessary with the goal of

improving student learning. During

times of increasing revenues, school

districts can both implement these

plans and balance the budget.

In this new world where revenues

do not increase, the objective of

improving the quality of education

and the objective of balancing the

budget will often clash. This is the

new dynamic that all school districts

must effectively navigate to survive.

This is the new dynamic that reaf-

firms the role of the school board

member as a critical partner in estab-

lishing long-term financial and aca-

demic stability in the school district.

Embed long-term goals

The only way to effectively inte-

grate long-term stability and success

into the district’s decision-making

process is to embed those objectives

within the district’s stated goals. In

effective school districts, every part

of the organization is aligned with

the district’s mission, vision and goals

as articulated by the school board in

its strategic plan.

The strategic plan must focus on

improving the current level of student

learning while ensuring goals and objec-

tives can be met efficiently. With a

focus on efficiency and effectiveness,

districts can preserve quality pro-

grams, staff members and facilities so

that future students will continue to

be afforded the level of education they

need to succeed in life.

Quality data = quality decisions

In order for school boards to make

better decisions, administrators need

to provide their boards with data that

is clear, timely and relevant to the

decisions required of the board.

Before making any major finan-

cial decisions, the district must have

a living document that projects the

future financial condition of the dis-

trict over the next three to five years

based on reasonable assumptions.

The document should include threats

that are specific to the school district

and a plan to stabilize the district’s

financial condition — should one be

needed. This document then should

be shared with all stakeholders in the

district, so that a common under-

standing can be reached to build con-

sensus for potentially difficult financial

decisions.

I must note here that the finan-

cial projections/plan is worthless

unless the information is grounded

in reality and is presented in a for-

mat that is clearly understood by the

board of education and other stake-

holders.

What else does the school board

need to effectively participate in the

district’s financial strategy? Consid-

er the four bold-faced items below.

The budget needs to be discussed

in conjunction with the long-term

financial plan. An effective presen-

tation of the budget should be able

to convert this collection of numbers

into an understandable document

that links the district’s resources to

an expenditure plan that best match-

es the established goals of the dis-

trict, especially its educational goals.

The board of education also should

be provided with information on how

the proposed tax levy impacts the

average taxpayer and how the tax

levy supports the vision, mission and

goals of the district. By having a focus

on long-term stability when consid-

ering the tax levy, the board of edu-

cation can better justify decisions

that may include maximizing its tax

levy during difficult economic times.

The most difficult question busi-

ness managers are ever asked by a

board of education during contract

negotiations is, “What can we afford

to give?” The board must know the

anticipated long-term impact of a pro-

posed contract offer, before it is made,

both in terms of its impact on the dis-

trict’s future financial condition and

its impact on the stated goals of the

district.

The board needs to know, for

example, if staff or program reduc-

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30 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

tions will be required to cover an

anticipated deficit generated from

a contract offering before the offer is

given. It is irresponsible to simply

offer a 2.5 percent raise because that

is the average salary increase in the

surrounding area.

Every school district also should

have a long-term facilities plan that

includes a list of major capital needs

and wants over the next 10 years.

Again, the district must weigh the

decision of addressing these items in

alignment with district’s stated objec-

tives. If long-term financial stabili-

ty objectives are threatened, the

district may want to postpone address-

ing items on their “wants” list until

their financial condition stabilizes.

Conversely, it may be prudent

and necessary to address items on

the “needs” list generated from over-

crowded or unsafe facilities even dur-

ing difficult economic times in order

to maintain academic and safety-ori-

ented objectives.

Align decisions with goals

Once the board is provided sol-

id data to make well-informed deci-

sions, decisions can be made in

alignment with the district’s purpose,

direction, priorities and desired out-

comes, including long-term goals.

This is critical as decisions become

more difficult, more impactful and

more emotional. Before any decision

is made at the board of education lev-

el, each board member needs to know

the answer to the following questions:

• What is our district’s vision for its

children?

• What is our district’s strategic plan?

• How does the strategic plan sup-

port our district’s vision for its

children?

• How will the success of the strate-

gic plan be measured?

Additional responsibilities

In addition to aligning major

financial decisions to a strategic plan

focused on long-term stability, boards

of education also need to refine and

expand other critical responsibilities

to best meet the great challenges fac-

ing their school districts.

School board members should

be advocates for district improve-

ment and be willing to engage peo-

ple in conversations about the

importance of quality schools with-

in their community. Times of great

challenge often create times of great

emotion. Making tough decisions in

alignment with the long-term goals

of fiscal and academic stability will

likely evoke greater public partici-

pation.

In order to navigate through these

emotional times, it is critical that the

board of education speaks with one

voice and that individual concerns

from community members be appro-

priately directed to the superinten-

dent to ensure consistency and clarity.

The Illinois Association of School

Boards (IASB) states: “The board

employs and evaluates one person

— the superintendent — and holds

that person accountable for district

performance and compliance with

written board policy.”

IASB also stresses that the board

constantly monitor progress toward

district goals and compliance with

written board policies using data as

a basis for assessment. The superin-

tendent needs to know what is expect-

ed of him/her so that the board can

effectively evaluate whether he/she

meets these expectations.

The growing needs of students,

the raised expectations on student

performance and the challenge of

meeting goals with fewer resources

has raised the stress level on many

superintendents to dangerous levels.

It is easy to be popular with staff when

the district is giving 5 percent raises

and lowering class sizes. But it can

get awfully lonely when staff is forced

to work harder for less money.

Maintaining the physical and

emotional well being of the superin-

tendent is critical to achieving all the

goals and objectives within the school

district. That’s why school boards

should (1) provide the superinten-

dent with a clear understanding of

his/her expectations; (2) give the

superintendent the time and support

to “do his/her thing”; (3) recognize

both publicly and privately the super-

intendent’s hard work and accom-

plishments; and (4) be cognizant of

the superintendent’s personal health

by making sure he/she takes time

away from the district and maintains

balance in his/her life.

Putting it all together

In order for a school district to

succeed during this time of great chal-

lenge, the district not only needs great

teachers and great administrators, it

needs great school board members.

School boards that are making crit-

ical decisions during periods of great

challenge based on emotion, self-

interest, past practice or conflict aver-

sion are putting the future of their

districts at risk.

School boards that are making

decisions using sound data in align-

ment with a well developed strategic

plan focusing on long-term stability

will serve as the district’s rudder,

allowing it to effectively navigate

through the great financial and aca-

demic challenges facing its district.

THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013 31

P R A C T I C A L P R

Imagine moving to a foreign coun-

try with your family. On the first

day of school, your child is filled with

excitement and nervous energy but

with the very first step on to cam-

pus you feel lost. All of the build-

ing signage is in a foreign language,

parents around you are conversing

in a foreign tongue and once inside

the school, you are greeted by staff

who do not speak your language.

Feeling unwelcome and uncom-

fortable, you don’t know where to

begin and think to yourself, “how

am I going to help my child succeed

when the school is not communi-

cating with me?”

Similar scenarios are played out

across the United States on a regular

basis. Today’s America is not just a

melting pot, but a stew of ever increas-

ingly complex issues that face schools,

including how to serve the needs of

a culturally and linguistically diverse

community. At Cook County School

District 130, we serve portions of the

communities of Blue Island, Alsip,

Crestwood, and Robbins in the south-

west suburbs of Chicago. With over

4,000 students attending our schools,

59.5 percent are Hispanic and for

many, the primary language spo-

ken in the home is Spanish. As a pri-

marily low-income district, we need-

ed to find a way to address the mul-

tilingual needs of our community and

effectively communicate with them

so our message isn’t lost in transla-

tion.

The following topics are a guide

that District 130 has followed and

other districts and boards should con-

sider when tailoring a communica-

tions program that reflects the needs

of their multilingual and diverse com-

munities:

Let’s talk translations

With Spanish being spoken in

many District 130 homes, it cannot

be stressed enough that proper trans-

lation is the key to reaching our audi-

ence. We need to ensure that our

translations do not look careless or

are translated incorrectly and end

up being offensive. Whether we choose

to use a staff member, consultant

or translation company, we make cer-

tain that our translations are done

properly as many languages contain

various dialects.

When hosting parent meetings

or utilizing a PowerPoint presenta-

tion, a translator should be available

and PowerPoint slides translated. Dis-

trict’s phone system should also be

set up to include an option of anoth-

er language when parents call district

office or their child’s school.

Overall, school districts can cre-

ate a welcoming environment by mak-

ing signs and other documents available

in other languages. Recruiting and

retaining a diverse, multilingual staff

will also help in creating a welcom-

ing environment for both students

and parents. That also means paying

close attention to what is being dis-

tributed and that English and trans-

lated materials get into the correct

hands. Translation should not be the

only tactic used to communicate with

diverse audiences. Differentiating

strategies and tactics is just as imper-

ative as differentiation in the class-

room.

Planning publications

While planning our district

newsletter, design was an issue

addressed the first day we met with

our printer. We chose to incorporate

English and Spanish in the same

Stephanie

Fordice is the

communications

coordinator for

Cook County

School District

130 in Blue

Island and a

member of the

Illinois chapter of

the National

School Public

Relations Associ-

ation.

At the corner of diversityand communication

by Stephanie Fordice

Columns aresubmitted bymembers of

32 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

newsletter that is mailed out to all

households on a quarterly basis.

Another option to consider: a Span-

ish insert or separate English and

Spanish newsletters. When design-

ing publications, it is important to

keep in mind that not all languages

read from left to right. As the popu-

larity of e-newsletters increases, an

issue that has come to our attention

is that many of our parents, both Eng-

lish and Spanish speaking, do not

have regular access to a computer,

nor do they have an email address.

Having a beautiful e-newsletter that

parents cannot access is not an effec-

tive way to reach the audience. That

makes it imperative to know the com-

munity before choosing which type

of newsletter best serves their needs.

Our school newsletters are also trans-

lated into Spanish to ensure impor-

tant information is reaching parents.

Other publications including

brochures, fliers, parent handbooks,

calendars, and annual reports should

also be available in other languages.

Online applications

One of the most visible commu-

nication vehicles is the district web-

site and it needs to incorporate a

translation function such as Google

Translate. At District 130, we also

post important documents in both

English and Spanish and often times

have certain headings and banners

translated while other districts may

opt to have separate sections on their

website for parents who speak a lan-

guage other than English. Another

important aspect for the website,

as well as any collateral materials, is

to ensure that photos and images

accurately reflect the diverse student

population.

At District 130, we frequently

use online surveys. Initially, we used

separate English and Spanish sur-

veys. After realizing the data would

need to be calculated by hand from

two surveys, we changed our format

to include Spanish and English in the

same survey. Some parents who do

not have Internet access are unable

to take these surveys at home. We

debated to offer print versions of the

electronic survey, but for now, our

parents are encouraged to visit school

during school hours or go to the local

library to take our surveys.

The popularity of social media

has taken off; however each district

must determine whether this is an

effective means of communication

for their constituents. A survey of

internal and external audiences can

identify the pros and cons of starting

a social media presence. Translation

will also be a factor with social media,

which means the district should inves-

tigate functions either within the

social media platforms or consider

posting in both English and anoth-

er language.

Videos are also an increasingly

popular way to communicate.

Whether it be explaining the budget

or providing an overview of the dis-

trict, videos can either be recorded

in English and a separate video in

another language or, subtitles may

be displayed at the bottom of the

screen.

Blogs are another avenue dis-

tricts chose to explore as a means of

communication. At District 130, the

superintendent’s blog, operated through

WordPress.com, is built into our web-

site and is able to be translated for

our audience.

Our parents rely on the district

mass notification system for atten-

dance, announcements and for emer-

gency notifications. We do not have

the Blackboard Connect system trans-

late for us. Instead, each time a dis-

trict or school-wide message is sent

out, it is translated and recorded in

Spanish. Additionally, parents are

asked to select whether they prefer

their messages in English or Spanish

on our registration form.

Incorporating parent liaisons

In November 2012, District 130

hired two new parent liaisons to

increase parental involvement and

School boards and administrators will encounter some backlash

from members of the community when it comes to serving a diverse

population. It is just as important for them to know that their tax

dollars are being spent wisely and how the district is serving their

students.

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 33

to create a dialogue between home,

school and the community. With one

parent liaison fluent in Spanish,

the duo is in place to identify com-

munication gaps and to listen to

the needs of parents. Several factors

are often in play as to why some par-

ents are not involved. Lack of child

care, transportation, flexibility, and

the language barrier are often pre-

venting well-intentioned parents from

participating in their child’s educa-

tion. Parent liaisons can also reach

out to diverse community leaders to

become a key ingredient in creating

successful community engagement

partnerships.

School boards and administra-

tors will encounter some backlash

from members of the community

when it comes to serving a diverse

population. At District 130, we have

had community members call, write

to the local newspaper and show up

at board meetings to protest the use

of Spanish in our district newsletter.

These individuals feel that all of our

materials should only be in Eng-

lish. We counter that complaint by

explaining that our reasons for serv-

ing all stakeholders, including those

who only speak and read in other

native languages. It is just as impor-

tant for them to know that their tax

dollars are being spent wisely and

how the district is serving their stu-

dents.

Diversity communication should

not be an afterthought when imple-

menting a communications program.

The National School Public Relations

Association has developed a diversi-

ty engagement blog to address the

needs of diverse stakeholders in school

districts and information can be found

at: www.nspraconnectingcommu-

nities.blogspot.com. With a multi-

tude of multiple languages, ethnic

and socio-economic backgrounds

stirring the melting pot of American

culture, it is critical to serve our com-

munity members and stop and ask

for directions along the road of diver-

sity communication.

ExecutiveSearchES

ILLINOIS ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL BOARDS

The Gold Standard of Executive Searches

WhyIASB?

• The only search service that is part of an IllinoisStatewide organization that is governed by locallyelected school boards.

• IASB has been the nation’s leader for more than 30years in providing information and encouraging educators seeking professional advancement. Hundreds of educators have become Illinois SchoolSuperintendents as a result.

• No search is completed until the client school board is satisfied.

• IASB continues to assist the board and new

executive after employment.

For information contact:

2921 Baker Drive One Imperial Place

Springfield, IL 62703 1 East 22nd Street, Suite 20

217/528-9688, ext. 1217 Lombard, IL 60148

630/629-3776, ext. 1217

www.iasb.com/executive

34 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

A Directory of your

IASB ServiceAssociates

IASB Service Associates are businesses whichoffer school-related products and services andwhich have earned favorable repu tations for qual-ity and integrity. Only after screening by theService Associates Executive Committee is abusiness firm invited by the IASB Board ofDirectors to become a Service Associate.

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BAYSINGER DESIGN GROUP, INC. — Architecturaldesign services. Marion - 618/998-8015

BERG ENGINEERING CONSULTANTS, LTD. —Consulting engineers. Schaumburg - 847/352-4500;website: http://www.berg-eng.com

BLDD ARCHITECTS, INC. — Architectural and engineering services for schools. Decatur - 217/429-5105; Champaign - 217/356-9606; Bloomington -309/828-5025; Chicago - 312/829-1987; website:http://www.bldd.com; e-mail: sam.johnson@bldd.com

BRADLEY & BRADLEY — Architects, engineers andasbestos consultants. Rockford - 815/968-9631; web-site: http://www.bradleyandbradley.net/

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CM ENGINEERING, INC. — Specializing in ultra effi-cient geo-exchange HVAC engineering solutions forschools, universities and commercial facilities.Columbia, MO - 573/874-9455; website: www.cmeng.com

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JH2B ARCHITECTS — Architects. Kankakee - 815/933-5529

KENYON & ASSOCIATES ARCHITECTS —Complete architectural services for education. Peoria- 309/674-7121

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LEGAT ARCHITECTS, INC. — Architects. Chicago -312/258-1555; Oak Brook - 630/990-3535; Wauke -gan - 847/263-3535; Crystal Lake - 815/477-4545

LZT ASSOCIATES, INC./LARSON & DARBY GROUP— Architecture, planning, engineering. Peoria -309/673-3100; Rockford - 815/484/0739; St. Charles,MO - 630/444-2112; website: www.larsondarby.com;e-mail: dhenebry@larsondarby.com

MECHANICAL SERVICES ASSOCIATES CORP. -HVAC, plumbing and electrical design. Crystal Lake -815/788-8901

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PCM+D — Provide a full range of architectural ser-vices including facility and feasibility studies, architec-tural design construction, consulting and related ser-vices. East Peoria - 309/694-5012

PERKINS+WILL — Architects; Chicago - 312/755-0770; website: www.perkinswill.com; e-mail: mark.jolicoeur@perkinswill.com

RICHARD L. JOHNSON ASSOCIATES, INC. —Architecture, educational planning. Rockford -815/398-1231

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SARTI ARCHITECTURAL GROUP, INC. —Architecture, engineering, life safety consulting, inte-rior design and asbestos consultants. Springfield -217/585-9111; e-mail: sartiarch@sartiarch.com

WIGHT & COMPANY — An integrated services firmwith solutions for the built environment. Darien -630/696-7000; website: http://www.wightco.com; e-mail: bpaulsen@wightco.com

WM. B. ITTNER, INC. — Full service architectural firmserving the educational community since 1899.Fairview Heights - 618/624-2080

WRIGHT & ASSOCIATES, INC. — Architecture andconstruction management. Metamora - 309/367-2924

Building ConstructionBOVIS LEND LEASE — Construction Man -

agement/Program Management. Contact JohnDoherty. Chicago - 312/245-1393; website: www.bovislendlease.com; e-mail: john.doherty@bovislendlease.com

CORE CONSTRUCTION — Professional constructionmanagement, design-build and general contractingservices. Morton - 309/266-9768; website: www.COREconstruct.com

FREDERICK QUINN CORPORATION — Constructionmanagement and general contracting. Addison -630/628-8500; webite: www.fquinncorp.com

HOLLAND CONSTRUCTION SERVICES, INC. — Fullservice Construction Management and GeneralContracting firm specializing in education facilities.Swansea - 618/277-8870

MANGIERI COMPANIES, INC. — Construction man-agement and general contractor capabilities. Peoria -309/688-6845

POETTKER CONSTRUCTION — Construction man-agement, design/build and general contracting ser-vices. Hillsboro - 217/532-2507

S.M. WILSON & CO. — Provides construction man-agement and general construction services to educa-tion, healthcare, commercial, retail and industrialclients. St. Louis, MO - 314/645-9595

THE GEORGE SOLLITT CONSTRUCTION COMPANY — Full-service construction manage-ment general contractor with a primary focus on edu-cational facilities. Wood Dale - 630/860-7333; web-site: www.sollitt.com; e-mail: info@sollitt.com

TRANE — HVAC company specializing in design,build, and retrofit. Willowbrook - 630-734-6033

TURNER CONSTRUCTION COMPANY —Referendum assistance, conceptual and masterplanning, budget assistance or verification, partici-pant in panels, construction management and con-sulting. Chicago - 312/327-2860; Web Site: www.turn-erconstruction.com; Email: ghill@tcco.com

Computer SoftwareSOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY, INC. — Administrative

Software. Tremont - 888/776-3897; website: http://www.sti-k12.com; e-mail: sales@sti-k12.com

Environmental ServicesALPHA CONTROLS & SERVICES, LLC — Facility

Management Systems, Automatic TemperatureControls, Access Control Systems, Energy SavingSolutions; Sales, Engineering, Installation,Commissioning and Service. Rockford, Springfield,Champaign: toll-free 866-ALPHA-01 (866-252-4201);website: www.alphaACS.com; e-mail: info@alphaacs.com

CTS-CONTROL TECHNOLOGY & SOLUTIONS —Performance contracting, facility improvements and energy conservation projects. St. Louis, MO -636/230-0843; Chicago - 773/633-0691; website:www.thectsgroup.com; e-mail: rbennett@thectsgroup.com

MAY-JUNE 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 35

ENERGY SYSTEMS GROUP — A comprehensiveenergy services and performance contracting com-pany providing energy, facility and financial solutions.Itasca - 630/773-7203

GRP MECHANICAL CO. INC. — Performance con-tracting, basic and comprehensive building renova-tions with a focus on energy and mechanical mainte-nance services. Bethalto - 618/779-0050

HONEYWELL, INC. — Controls, maintenance, energymanagement, performance contracting and security.St. Louis, Mo - 314-548-4136; Arlington Heights -847/391-3133; e-mail: janet.rivera@honeywell.com

IDEAL ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING, INC. —Asbestos and environmental services. Bloomington -309/828-4259

OCCUPATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTHSOLUTIONS, INC. (OEHS) — Industrial hygiene,microbiological evaluations and ergonomics.Chatham - 217/483-9296

RADON DETECTION SPECIALISTS — Commercialradon surveys. Burr Ridge - 800/244-4242; website:www.radondetection.net; e-mail: kirstenschmidt@radonresults.com

SECURITY ALARM SYSTEMS — Burglar and firealarms, video camera systems, door access systems,door locking systems, and alarm monitoring. Salem -618/548-5768

Financial ServicesAMERICAN FIDELITY EDUCATIONAL SERVICES —

Educational services specializing in Section 125compliance, 403 annuity administration, flexiblespending accounts, health savings accounts andhealth care reform education. Fairview Heights -314/504-1525

BERNARDI SECURITIES, INC. — Public finance con-sulting, bond issue services and referendum support.Fairview Heights - 618/206-4180; Chicago - 800/367-8757

BMO CAPITAL MARKETS/GKST, Inc. — Full servicebroker/dealer specializing in debt securities, includingmunicipal bonds, U.S. Treasury debt, agencies, andmortgage-backed securities. Chicago - 312/441-2601; website: www.bmo.com/industry/uspublicfi-nance/default.aspx; e-mail: jamie.rachlin@bmo.com

EHLERS & ASSOCIATES — School bond issues; ref-erendum help; financial and enrollment studies. Lisle- 630/271-3330; website: http://www.ehlers-inc.com;e-mail: slarson@ehlers-inc.com

FIRST MIDSTATE, INC. — Bond issue consultants.Bloomington - 309/829-3311; e-mail: paul@firstmidstate.com

GORENZ AND ASSOCIATES, LTD. — Auditing andfinancial consulting. Peoria - 309/685-7621; website:http://www.gorenzcpa.com; e-mail: tcustis@gorenzcpa.com

HUTCHINSON, SHOCKEY, ERLEY & COMPANY —Debt issuance, referendum planning, financial assis-tance. Chicago - 312/443-1566; website: www.hse-muni.com; e-mail: rbergland@hsemuni.com; rcoyne@hsemuni.com

SPEER FINANCIAL, INC. — Financial planning andbond issue services. Chicago - 312/346-3700; website: http://www.speerfinancial.com; e-mail:dphillips@speerfinancial.com

STIFEL, NICOLAUS & COMPANY, INC. — Full ser-vice securities firm providing investment banking andadvisory services including strategic financial plan-ning; bond underwriting; and referendum and legisla-tive assistance - Edwardsville - 800/230-5151; e-mail:noblea@stifel.com

WILLIAM BLAIR & COMPANY — Bond issuance,financial advisory services. Chicago - 312/364-8955; e-mail: ehennessy@williamblair.com

WINTRUST FINANCIAL — Financial services hold-ing company engaging in community banking,wealth management, commercial insurance premi-um financing, and mortgage origination. Willow -brook - 630/560-2120

Human Resource ConsultingBUSHUE HUMAN RESOURCES, INC. — Human

resource, safety and risk management, insurance consulting. Effingham - 217/342-3042; website: http://www.bushuehr.com; e-mail: steve@bushuehr.com

InsuranceTHE SANDNER GROUP CLAIMS MANAGEMENT,

INC. — Third party administrator for worker's compand insurance claims. Chicago - 800/654-9504

Office EquipmentINTERIORS FOR BUSINESS, INC. — Classroom fur-

niture and classroom technology services, classroomtechnology assessment, space planning, CEU’s, andties to the USGBC (U.S. Green Building Council) foradditional environmental assessments. Batavia -630/761-1070

Superintendent SearchesHAZARD, YOUNG, ATTEA & ASSOCIATES, LTD —

Superintendent searches, board and superintendentworkshops. Glenview - 847/724-8465

The superintendent or another

administrator sends a letter or note

to these individuals, explaining the

program and then calling each one

to organize small-group meetings of

seven or eight people each.

At each meeting, the enlisted

communicators need to be assured

they are not being asked to do any-

thing—at least nothing new. The only

goal is to make sure that those iden-

tified know some things. Future meet-

ings will not be necessary, either,

because the KCs will be kept informed

by telephone or email.

After this informal network is set

up, it can be used as needed. Best

practice suggests that they usually

are contacted in the following

situations:

• to counteract rumors during a cri-

sis with facts

• to take a quick, informal survey on

issues or questions of importance

• to spread a favorable “good word”

about school or district

achievements

• to bring information back to the

district, especially when they hear

significant rumors, rumblings or

ideas about the schools

Maintenance of this word-of-

mouth network only requires a review

of the list on occasion to make sure

every segment of the community is

being reached and heard.

Thus Key Communicators can

provide fast help for school leaders,

particularly during a crisis. The main

idea is simply to maintain a com-

munications network that can respond

quickly when required, turning “heard

it through the grapevine” to the school

systems’ advantage.

Ask the staff continued from inside back cover

Karen M.

Roloff, a North-

brook/Glenview

School District 30

Board member

since 1989, was

honored by the

Northbrook Civic Founda tion, receiv-

ing a special volunteer award for mak-

ing a significant contribution to

the welfare of the Northbrook com-

munity. Award recipients were rec-

ognized in a ceremony at the village

hall. Roloff’s career as an educator

has spanned nearly 45 years. She

has been a college professor of com-

munication at numerous schools,

most recently at DePaul University.

She currently teaches at Elmhurst

College. Serving as an elected board

member of District 30 for over 23

years, she served 12 years as District

30’s board president; and she is the

only founding Trustee still serving

on District 30’s Education Founda-

tion.

36 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MAY-JUNE 2013

Milestones

M I L E S T O N E S

Achievements

In memoriamMary Olive Appuhn, 91. Died Feb-

ruary 13, 2013. She served on the

Du Quoin CUSD 300 Board of Edu-

cation.

Barbara A. Bartolomucci, 74. Died

February 4, 2013. She served as

president and a member of the

Arbor Park SD 145 board of edu-

cation, Oak Forest.

Lyle V. Chambers, 94. Died January

18, 2013. He was a past member

of the Lostant CUSD 425 Board of

Education.

William V. Collins, 82. Died March

8, 2013. He served on the Flana-

gan school board for many years.

Carl Cotner, 77. Died January 29,

2013. He was a member of the Hey-

worth CUSD 4 school board for

eight years and had served as pres-

ident.

Ralph Dantino, 56. Died February 18,

2013. He served on the Geneva

CUSD 304 school board from 1996

to 2001.

Beverly Dean, 73. Died February 2,

2013. She served on the DePue

USD 103 Board of Education from

1976 to 1992.

Donald R. DeTaeye, 81. Died March

8, 2013. He served on the Moline

USD 40 Board of Education and

had worked for the Rock Island

School District as a high school

teacher.

Orville Joseph “Joe” Hewkin III, 65.

Died March 9, 2013. He served on

the Urbana SD 116 Board of Edu-

cation in the 1980s.

M. Stanley Hughey, 95. Died Febru-

ary 23, 2013. He served as a mem-

ber and board president of the

Wilmette SD 39 Board of Educa-

tion, and the New Trier THSD 203

Board of Education.

Joan Milam Kelley, 82. Died January

31, 2013. Kelley was deeply devot-

ed to community service. She was

the first African American mem-

ber of the Galesburg District 205

Board of Education, where she

served from 1968 to 1977.

Jane Weis, 92. Died February 19,

2013. A former math and science

teacher at Waukegan Township

High School, Weis later served two

terms on the school board of

Waukegan CUSD 60.

The Illinois School Board Journal

welcomes news about or from Illinois

school leaders. News may include but

need not be limited to accomplishments,

changes in position or duties, retirement,

death and other milestones related to

board/district duties. For more infor-

mation about submitting news items,

phone the Communications Department

at 217/528-9688, ext. 1138, or e-mail gad-

kins@iasb. com.

Question: How can schools com-

bat the grapevine of negative

chatter and gossip from undermin-

ing important school district mes-

sages?

Answer: School leaders can make

that same “grapevine” mode of com-

munication – a word-of-mouth set of

contacts – work for the district by

harnessing its unmatched power while

turning it into a two-way communi-

cations tool.

The Key Communicators (KC)

approach, which many in schools

first discovered three decades ago

through the National School Public

Relations Association, involves sim-

ple networking. It was developed

by the late school public relations

pioneer Donald Bagin, then a pro-

fessor at Glassboro State College, New

Jersey.

Technology may have changed

how people communicate, but the

concept essentially works the same

today as it did 30 years ago.

It simply consists of developing

a list of individuals who like to talk

and who are already key, trusted

sources of school information for lots

of people.

The cost to implement the plan

is absurdly low, and it takes only a

small amount of staff time. But once

established, the network requires lit-

tle maintenance.

It is launched, Bagin suggested,

by asking for help from a few peo-

ple who know and can identify the

key communicators in the school dis-

trict. These chosen people serve as

KC “identifiers.” They should include,

as far as possible, a cross-section of

the community’s formal and infor-

mal social groupings: civic groups,

clubs, churches, bowling or softball

leagues, etc.

In meeting with these KC iden-

tifiers, someone from the school sys-

tem simply explains that the goal is

to communicate for the district via

a word-of-mouth network, and then

asks how the community can best be

reached. KC identifiers can also be

asked to help in identifying all com-

munity segments.

The identifiers are asked to con-

duct informal surveys over several

weeks time among the people they

come in contact with, posing ques-

tions like this: “We are doing a casu-

al survey about how well our schools

are getting the word out about the

good work they are doing. Can you

name a few of the people you have

recently communicated with about

school teachers or taxes?”

The written lists of names gath-

ered by identifiers can then be tab-

ulated, and names that keep appearing

over and over are the school district’s

key communicators. The names should

be scrutinized to classify each per-

son in relation to the segment or seg-

ments of the community to which

they communicate. If any segment

is missing, the next task is to fill in

the gaps so that the whole commu-

nity is represented.

The same process can be used

to create key communicators from

within each school building. Students

and teachers are vital sources of school

information for the community, but

so are the bus drivers and cafeteria

workers and janitors. Many people

trust these individuals as their pri-

mary source of news on schools.

Gary Adkins,

IASB director,

editorial services,

answers the

question for this

issue.

Key Communicators canhelp get out the good word

by Gary Adkins

A S K T H E S T A F F

continued on page 35

Technology may

have changed how

people communicate,

but the concept

essentially works the

same today as it did

30 years ago.

2921 Baker DriveSpringfield, Illinois 62703-5929

Address Service Requested

NON-PROFITPRST STANDARD

US POSTAGE PAIDILLINOIS

ASSOCIATION OFSCHOOL BOARDS

www.iasb.com

“We say we want to get all stu-

dents to the same high standards, but

our words amount to little more than

a slogan. If we really wanted to follow

through on this, then we would put

more money behind the hardest-to-

educate children … .”Mark Tucker, president, National Center on Education and the Economy,“Benchmarking the World’s Best,” School Administrator, September 2012

“It is indeed ironic that we spend

our school days yearning to graduate

and our remaining days waxing nos-

talgic about our school days.”Isabel Waxman, account executive, Fresh Group, United Kingdom

“We have lots of studies about

what’s wrong with our education sys-

tem. We need to accept responsibil-

ity, be bold, find solutions and move

forward to make education a center-

piece of our economic development.”Christine Gregoire, former governor of Washington (2004-12), 1947-

“Our task is to provide an edu-

cation for the kind of kids we have …

not the kind of kids we used to have

… or want to have … or the kids that

exist in our dreams.”Mary Kay Utecht, owner, Essential Solutions computer software

“Most of the things worth doing

in the world had been declared impos-

sible before they were done.”Louis D. Brandeis, U.S. associate SupremeCourt justice (1916-39), 1856-1941

“Vocational education programs

have made a real difference in the

lives of countless young people nation-

wide; they build self-confidence and

leadership skills by allowing students

to utilize their unique gifts and tal-

ents.”Conrad R. Burns, former U.S. Senator from Montana (R), 1935-

“Without education you will

experience the door-to-door sales-

man’s plight: many doors will be shut

in your face.”Scott Gilliam, director of training at D.A.R.E America, from “The WholeChild Blog,” January 10, 2013

“There are no littleevents in life, those we

think of no consequencemay be full of fate, andit is at our own risk if

we neglect the acquain-tances and opportuni-

ties that seem to becasually offered, and of

small importance.”

Amelia E. Barr, British

novelist, All the Days

of My Life, 1831-1919

IASB Centennial

FROM 1913●

●

●

●

“And so, my research report concludes that the fall of the

Roman Empire was due to the lack of TECH SUPPORT.