Second in a series
Re “A LaRose Is a LaRose Is a LaRose in This School Garden”
[img]1551|right|Dave LaRose||no_popup[/img]They never will call Dave LaRose an emulator. He is an innovator. No garden variety superintendent, he digs up the ground and starts over – or at least his words sound as fresh as tomorrow morning’s chilled carton of milk.
As the new school term rises in the West Los Angeles sky, Supt. LaRose said yesterday:
“The message we are emphasizing is less about what is different and more about what is right.”
A throat-ful to digest for a contemporary public school educator.
The leader of the Culver City Unified School District swung into his staccato voice.
“As opposed to the traditional approach of ‘each year is the kickoff is different with what’s new, what’s different, what we’re going to change and the new reform…
“Really,” said Mr. LaRose, “our vision is more about ‘Not different, but deeper. Not change, but better.’
“That means we have been focused in our work to really being committed to a collaborative environment that is focused on the strategic, the measurable, the data-driven, the research-based practice as well as culture, values, beliefs, collaboration.
“So our work has been around developing highly collaborative teams,” Mr. LaRose said, barely pausing.
“The lingo in education is ‘professional learning communities.’ But really what is guiding our work around that is four questions.
“The first question is, What do we want to our kids to know?
“How are we working together to be explicit in identifying that which is essential, that which is absolutely, positively fundamental, almost not so much ‘what is it we want our kids to know?’ but ‘what is it they cannot afford not to know?’”
(To be continued)
