In what sounded like a metaphor for his own education proposal, Gov. Ted Strickland recently told a group of Miami University students of the importance of experimentation in education:
“[Using technology in the classroom is] so needed, but change is threatening,” Strickland said. “It’s safer to conform. It’s safer to not experiment, because you might fail. And you will fail. That idea of conformity ... is deadly to education.”
Surrounded by idealist college students, Strickland was of course able to soften his tone on education reform and utilize terms like “experiment.” Curious though, how different Strickland’s tone was when addressing the Ohio General Assembly for the 2009 State of the State in which he unveiled his “top-secret” education plan. Note his emphasis on assuredness in the “best research” and how Strickland sounds as if there are no flaws in his education plan:
I’ve met with parents, educators, researchers, business and community leaders. I’ve looked at the best research available on what we should teach and how we should teach it. And in the last few months I’ve benefited from the considerable experience and wisdom of Ohio’s new Superintendent of Public Instruction Deborah Delisle.
[…]
The plan is based on a very simple premise: we should design our education system around what works. I have embraced an evidence-based education approach that harnesses research results and applies those findings to Ohio’s specific circumstances.
Could it be that Strickland’s mask briefly came off and he admitted that his education plan is nothing more than an over-priced experiment?
