THE WORK WE STILL NEED TO DO
Several days each week, we are in classrooms in one of our major cities—New York, Memphis, Washington D.C., San Diego, and others—providing coaching and support to teachers and principals. What we see sometimes exhilarates us and, at other times, breaks our hearts. The best classrooms are uplifting places that deliver skillful teaching and convey belief and hope to all their students about the promise of education and the capacity of each child to achieve at high levels. All our children could learn in such places, but they do not.
There are many outstanding professional teachers at work in our schools, including those serving our most economically disadvantaged children. They