What makes schools better?

The Economist recently published an article titled "How to get good grades: It is not money nor uninformed reform that makes schools better" on November 25, 2010. The article focused upon school systems which demonstrated growth in student achievement rates and identified what these systems had in common. The basis for this analysis is derived from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).

Here are the findings outlined in the article.

#1 Spending money is not the answer: This claim was supported from the graphic from the Economist magazine below.

#2 First focus upon the basics: School systems should first focus upon teaching towards basics standards.

#3 Then collect data: School systems should "pay more attention to collecting detailed data on examination results. This serves not just to make schools accountable, but helps to identify the best teaching methods." (The Economist, November 26, pg.68)

#4 Only hire highly effective teachers: Those school systems which focused upon selecting professional teachers, recruited from the best universities, were able to raise standards.

#5 Decentralization is the name of the game: The highly effective school districts that were able to achieve the above criteria then created a professional climate conducive to ongoing learning. "The authorities hand control over to teachers, most of whom are highly educated and motivated, so they can learn from each other and follow the best practices." (The Economist, November 26, pg.68)

The entire article can be found online here.