Letter to the Editor - Wisconsin State Journal
It was refreshing to learn that Madison’s new Superintendent
Jennifer Cheatham has an entry plan that includes citizen input on how Madison
can best improve its low graduation performance. I would like to ask the
Superintendent to consider that Madison adopt a district-wide community ethic of
“all for one and one for all.” This would involve an explicit shared intention between
both the teaching staff and the student body that teaching and learning is a
joint enterprise.
Together the faculty and the student council might adopt a
goal of increasing their class’ promotion and graduation rates. Joint meetings
could be held between faculty and students to brainstorm how best to help all
students succeed. Meritorious academic student achievement would require that students
help their fellow students.
Students could pair up and sign learning pacts with one
another. Students could volunteer as tutors for various subjects. Others could
prepare and deliver homework and pre-exam reviews. Fundamentally the purpose would
be to more intentionally empower all the students to share their knowledge and
passion for learning with their peers. Once established such a school culture
will benefit all students both academically and socially.
William R. Benedict
Madison
Crossing the rubicon
