LETTERS.

Principal for a Year

I was very impressed and surprised at Kathryn Whitaker's guest column ("Going Back to School as Principal," September 1999). More college and university instructors need to experience what she did in working as a building principal for a year.

It is a farce that a large portion of those instructors who are to be authorities in the field and train the future teachers and leaders of education have absolutely no clue what it is like because they have either not done it in years or have never done it at all (to any meaningful degree).

Whitaker deserves a big pat on the back. I'll bet her year in school has influenced how she teaches those budding educators at the university.

DANIEL C. POLK

Principal,

Clarkson Public School,

Clarkson, Neb.

Kathryn Whitaker's observations concerning the complexity and multifaceted nature of the elementary school principal's job are accurate. She will no doubt be a more effective university professor as a result of her exchange.

What she didn't say, however, has me curious. How did the exchange work for the other participant-the elementary principal who spent a year teaching at the university? Did he or she do well in that environment? Does research have a new meaning for that person? And what learnings will be translated into more effective leadership at the school level?

GERALD D. HILL

Superintendent,

Community Consolidated School District 146,

Tinley Park, Ill.

Two Views on Charter Labels

I had to write to compliment Joe Schneider on the piece he wrote in the August issue ("Five Prevailing Charter Types").

Given my experience here in Weymouth, I thought his characterization of what motivates people to start a charter was very accurate. He writes with clarity and always in the interest of us in the superintendency.

ROBERT D. WEST

Superintendent,

Weymouth Public Schools,

Weymouth, Mass.

AASA's deputy executive director, Joe Schneider, in his essay on categorizing charter schools supplied what I would characterize as a new set of labels for the educator's bigot box, basing on inaccurate or faulty information.

His portrayal of for-profit charter managers as not able to live up to their contracts demeans the growing number of private tutoring services that guarantee results or no fee is charged to the customer.

The best label was reserved for the two Los Angeles school principals who were star public school reformers prior to operating a conversion charter. He argues that administrators can reform their schools if they hire top-notch trouble shooters and give them a license to overhaul a school. But he fails to make any direct link between the successful charter school's practices and the role of the public school administrator. Schneider believes these charter schools were started as an experiment in regulation-free, publicly subsidized schooling

Why not devote the next issue to examining the success of the for-profits. The Edison Project is up to 35 schools the last time I looked, and Eduventures, a conference for those in the private-sector school industry, had nearly 1,000 attendees last summer. Why not let the two Los Angeles administrators speak for themselves? The creators of these experiments in alternative education need to be heard.

FRANK HELLER

Coordinator,

Maine School Choice Coalition,

Brunswick, Maine

Hoyle's Bullseye 

For a person who is not in the trenches on a daily basis, I've always felt that John Hoyle has a keen insight into the realities of school administration.

In his June article ("The Triumphant Superintendent"), he hits the nail on the head again and continues to provide inspiration for me.

CHRIS KATTNER

Assistant Superintendent,

Conroe Independent School District,

Conroe, Texas 

Jane Healy's Rationale

I think that Jane Healy articulated a well-informed and rational perspective on current problems in technology instruction ("The Mad Dash to Compute," April 1999).

I was thrilled especially to read her comments on class size. Smaller classes are more effective, a fact that schools continue to deny in light of financial constraints. As a director of technology who is a library media specialist and a former high school English teacher, I cringe when teaching technology in an economics class of 29 students.

Our school district is fortunate, though. Our average class size is 23. In the library media center, most of my work is individualized or in small groups, which is very helpful.

SUSAN GUINEY

Director of Technology

Hastings-on-Hudson Union Free Schools

Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y.

I have often felt like a computer curmudgeon for asking many of the same questions Jane Healy poses in her article regarding the acquisition and use of computers.

Like her, I have seen "computer recess," "hard disk envy" and the "but it's not like what we have at home" syndromes among students, colleagues and parents.

On the other hand, I really believe that, in the hands of a good teacher, technology can enhance the learning experience.

Reconciling these feelings has become easier over the years. I regularly cite many of the bottom-line, common sense points of view any educator should have about any given teaching strategy. The tradeoffs of using technology are unreasonable in many (if not most) cases. Developmental issues are often completely ignored.

As Healy correctly states, the winners will be "those who have learned to learn."

KENNETH R. SMITH

Technology Coordinator

Worcester County Public Schools

Newark, Md.