Sacramento Bee

What can be in education

By Richard C. Seder, Sacramento
November 19, 2007

Columnist Dan Walters could not be more right that we've "flit from nostrum to panacea" in education reform ("Big talk, few fixes for schools," Nov. 14). Piecemeal approaches can only result in piecemeal results, or worse, political stalemates that leave us all yearning for more.

However, we fundamentally disagree with Walters on the proliferation of words. Words articulate insights, sharing those insights with others creates new ideas, and we absolutely believe that ideas can change the world.

Getting jaded by the idea that nothing can be done next year because of the budget or by old political positions is to perpetuate the ineffective policy agenda-setting that got us to where we are today.
We believe the "year of education" provides policymakers an incredible opportunity to move away from our flitting ways and can, instead, be a launch point toward developing a long-term plan of comprehensive change that systematically improves the conditions of teaching and learning, a deliberate plan especially valuable when money becomes available.

Let's hope more conferences, hearings and research happen to spur creative ideas of what can be in education, ideas that will change the world.

Richard C. Seder, Sacramento
Project Consultant,
California Student Success Project