Ten of the best school-reform ideas from readers

7. Raise the bar on teacher (and administrator) certification.

Higher standards for becoming a teacher or school administrator was an idea favored by Atila Mantels, an editor and public relations chair for Kiwanis Club of Pulaski Heights in Little Rock, Ark.

“Do not issue a teaching certificate to anyone who cannot score at least 19 on all four sections (English, math, reading, science) of the ACT—this score is slightly below the ‘grade-level’ score for high school seniors,” Mantel wrote. “Ideally, the same requirement would apply to anyone serving as an administrator within the educational system. Though my suggestion for educational reform comes at least two decades too late for implementation, it still targets the essential problem of an entrenched educational bureaucracy staffed by undereducated educators.”

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eSchool News Staff

eSchool Media staff cover education technology in all its aspects–from legislation and litigation, to best practices, to lessons learned and new products. First published in March of 1998 as a monthly print and digital newspaper, eSchool Media provides the news and information necessary to help K-20 decision-makers successfully use technology and innovation to transform schools and colleges and achieve their educational goals.

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