Issue: Wednesday, July 19, 1995 - page 7

When 66 counties filed suit against the state of Kentucky and won a Supreme Court decision determining the state school system's unconstitutionality in 1989, there was nowhere to turn but reform.
   Kentucky responded with a massive transformation that began by pink-slipping every employee in the entire school system on June 30, 1991. Through the reforms instituted in the wake of these changes, Kentucky has become a leader among states in education. This was the focus of Secretary of Education, Arts and Humanities for the Commonwealth of Kentucky Sherry Jelsma's 10:45a.m. lecture for "World Competitiveness of U.S. Education and Industry," week.
   Kentucky did not try to recreate an educational system, it "never lost touch with our roots," Jelsma said. Re-establishing this connection took the form of three forces in education reform: community driven, based on a partnership and collaboration and an expectation of world class standards.
   In the 100 years before reform during which Kentucky's old "Common" school system existed (from 1891 to 1985), nepotism had been in heavy practice—a point Jelsma illustrated with a humorous but also poignant poem by Kentucky's poet laureate. The five years since reform have brought about the elimination of this practice.
   Kentucky also realized that no longer could "the boys in the back row or the vacant-eyed girl by the window" be ignored, Jelsma explained. The changes must be grounded in individuals and be geared toward reaching every student. Arts became recognized "as a way to involve the uninvolved and engage the disengaged," Jelsma said. Kentucky has used arts to change to basic curriculum and improve teaching.
   Reform peeled back the walls that had separated the school system from the community. The schools became accountable for the performance of their students.
   "No longer could the leaky roof ... be blamed upon the state department," Jelsma said. Because Kentucky's reform was driven by people, the bureaucracy had to listen.
   Kentucky responded to the grassroots cry for change by including the community in the process. The new system solicits parent involvement and community engagement. Parent and business are active partners in the decision-making of the educational system.

   Jelsma spoke of changes within the structure of the school day. She pointed out that the bell ringing every 45 minutes could not be relied upon in slicing out the portions of a balanced education. Kentucky now uses a much more flexible system in which teachers use time to their discretion. On certain days, a teacher may need two hours for a specific topic, while on other days only 30 minutes is necessary. By not metering out a school day, the power to teach now falls back into the hands of the teacher. They do not have to work against the clock.
   Eliminating the bell is part of a continuing process to fulfill the third force that Jelsma outlined, bringing education to world class standards. Jelsma outlined a world class standard as the ability to think, solve problems and work with people. To do so, students must know how to read, write, compute and make decisions. Students no longer learn a single right answer to a problem, rather they learn the process that goes into choosing the best answer out of many right ones.
   In order to ensure the world class standards, Kentucky has instituted a "high stakes assessment" of schools, not students. The assessment is performance-based but not burdened on the backs of students. The school's performance is measured year to year against an individual baseline for that school. Each year the school improves upon this performance baseline, the teachers receive awards. The high stakes enter when a school fails to exceed its baseline for two years. These schools are placed on probation for two years. If no improvement is shown, the schools are closed.
Through the reform process, she has noticed that "education and economy are kin," Jelsma said. This link has brought about a changed feeling toward the grip of heavy cash crop tobacco and coal industries on the state of affairs in Kentucky. Tobacco is a product with a limited future, according to Jelsma. For the future, Kentucky is taking strides to match the need for "human infrastructure as well as physical infrastructure," Jelsma said.
   Relying on the land, the people and a strong frontier determination, Jelsma and Kentucky are leading the way in education reform celebrating their roots, the individual and the richness of diversity.