I believe, like any profession, there are gifted teachers, ineffective teachers and the great mass of teachers who fall somewhere in-between.

I believe that schools are automatically student-centered by their very nature and that having been acknowledged, we then need to concentrate on the content of the curriculum.

I believe that the school's job is to teach knowledge and not to try and take on those tasks that don't require schools and teachers, such as developing personalities and the 'whole' child. It should be considered a given that students will be treated respectfully and carefully.

I believe that the development of curriculum should be done by trained experts and provided to teachers.

I believe that the curriculum should include appropriate textbooks, workbooks, and/or other necessary tools the teacher will need.

I believe parent involvement should include a knowledge of the basic curriculum their child will be taught and an iron-clad commitment to demanding appropriate behavior from their child while at school.

I believe school is the student's job - not the parent's - and learning to be responsible is a valuable lesson.

I believe teaching is the teacher's job - not the job of more capable students.

I believe that some students need special education, need to be held back if they haven't achieved the necessary abilities to move into the next grade, and deserve qualified evaluation to ascertain why they aren't learning at class level and what are the best ways to help them.

I believe that some students will be left behind, and that covering this up with social promotions is a critical error that has been made for the last two decades.

I believe that students must be able to speak English, and if they can't, their schooling should focus on teaching them that before they are mainstreamed into the classroom.

My beliefs are stated as jump-off points for this blog discussion.
I do not require anyone to agree with me on these points, but I would expect disagreements to be well thought out and politely stated. I look forward to hearing from you.