Hi. Good to be back on Eduwonk, performing a 4-day set. Try the Mojitos, perfect for a Friday morning in July.
Bloggy Moore’s law: Eduwonk peeps double every 6 months. So Andy suggested a re-intro. I’m the founder of a small charter high school in Boston, called MATCH. Also, last Saturday I won first place in a charity scrabble tournament. In fact, the #2 player in North America, and several in the top #100, competed.
Of course, that was the “1st division.” I was in 8th division. Out of 8. There were a bunch of 11-year-olds competing. They were in 7th division.
Our 7-letter word today: Leaders.
Guess what? We’re not the only K-12 system worried about supply.
The problem with Thai society is that there is no lack of good people coming up with ideas on what to do for the good of the country, but when it comes to implementation of good policies, the dearth of quality leaders becomes clear.
Perhaps this has something to do with Thailand’s very own Buddhist concept of leadership.
Or K-12’s very own Buddhist concept of leadership….
Related Tobacco Road problem here.
-Guestblogger Mike Goldstein
P.S. Ed Fuller, from U of TX, writes: I wonder why anyone would want to become a school leader given the high time commitment, extreme pressure to produce greater test scores, and
relatively low wages. The rewards are not commensurate. In Texas, the 3-year principal turnover rate for high schools with more than 75% minority students is 67%.