Go To The Head Of The Class

Via Joanne Jacobs, who picks it up from Ed Wonk, we get some good academic news for a change in this article about the dramatic turnaround at Granger Junior High School in San Diego. The key? Expecting the students to do more and expecting them to expect themselves to do more. Or as new principal Susan Mitchell puts it, ""No more pobrecitos." No more poor little things.

Gee, who'da thunk of that?

Mitchell, in the year and a half she's been there, has instituted tougher standards of accountability and performance for both students and teachers, with very encouraging results. What is perhaps sad is that this should seem so much like an exercise in starting back at Square One. But if that's what it takes, then God bless Mitchell and all those like her. (BTW, be sure to read the comment left by the Granger teacher at Ed Wonk's blog.)