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Ohio Public Schools have undergone significant changes since 2004 due to the Ohio High School Transformation Initiative (OHSTI). This is a plan that replaced the Ohio Schools' massive and ineffective high schools with almost 60 smaller schools. The funding for this effort came from a number of both government and private sponsors.
The Problems with Ohio Schools
Ohio Schools are not in good shape. According to information from one of the supporting partners, Knowledge Works, only 32% of graduates from the Ohio Schools are ready for college after graduation, only 70% graduate, and only 30% will receive a bachelor's degree within ten years. In addition, the racial gap is alarming. Only 12% of African-American and Hispanic students are considered college ready. This ranks Ohio Schools as the second lowest in the nation for this measurement.
But the problems within the Ohio Schools don't stop there. In the large Ohio Schools attendance was poor, high school students were not engaged in learning, and the expectations were low.
A Possible Solution for Ohio Schools
The OHSTI has been described as “one of the nation's most aggressive school improvement efforts.” It doesn't hurt that the initiative has the backing of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In fact, the initiative was largely spurred by Bill Gates' assertion that American schools are in a crisis state, and that smaller schools have more to offer. In June of 2007 the Ohio Schools received $7.4 million to strengthen the OHSTI. Here's why.
Numerous studies over the past 3 decades have found that students in smaller schools exhibit better grades, increased college enrollment, better attendance, and a better sense of belonging, safety, and security. All were missing factors for a large number of students in the larger Ohio Schools.
The smaller sized Ohio Schools are showing success with the new high school model by doing a number of things differently. Ohio Schools can now focus on individual learning styles and multiple intelligences; both pedagogical methods proven to increase student achievement. Students in small Ohio Schools also focus on a specific major, like business or languages, which makes learning more relevant. Finally, students participate in real world activities that require teamwork and higher level thinking skills, rather than the traditional “lecture and regurgitation” method.
Funding for Ohio Schools
Since 2004 the Knowledge Works Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Ford Foundation, along with the Ohio and US Departments of Education, and local organizations have funded 58 small Ohio Schools. The small schools are showing improvements. But the nation will watch Ohio Schools closely to see if funding, improvements, and government support for the program continues. Private funding for public schools has become a national trend that many think may be the solution to public school woes.
Last year, the Ohio schools signed a memorandum of understanding with the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science, Spain's sponsor for the visiting international teacher program. The ministry started the program in 1986 and has since provided 1,500 visiting teachers to the United States. This is the first year of participation for the Ohio schools.
Spanish language educators have been in short supply in the Ohio schools, yet they are in critical demand in order to prepare Ohio schools' students for their future and the new millennium. With only 200-225 foreign language teachers being graduated from the 25 or so Ohio colleges and universities, the Ohio schools see the visiting teacher program as a plus for everyone.
The visiting educators will teach their native language, culture and history to middle and high school students, while helping the school districts to expand or maintain their Spanish language programs. The teachers will, in return, gain a first-hand experience of American culture, improve their own English language proficiency, and develop new relationships that hopefully will be lasting ones.
The Ohio schools' students will benefit greatly from the program, too. The National Governor's Association already has called for state public school systems to expose their students to the global world in which they now live. The association believes that global thinking and learning is essential in the future of today's students. The Ohio schools are accepting this challenge by participating in the visiting teacher program to ensure their students learn to speak another language, as well as understand and appreciate another culture.
Whether Ohio schools' students work in the United States or abroad in the future, the exposure today will benefit them tomorrow. Of the U.S. population, 12 percent are Hispanic. Ohio's own Hispanic community has grown from approximately 140,000 in 1990 to about 217,000 in 2000. Some states, such as Florida, Texas and California, have even greater communities of Hispanic residents.
Currently, only 45 percent of students across the nation take a foreign language in high school. Ohio's Governor Taft has proposed that all Ohio schools' students be required to take at least two years of foreign language study, though it is not yet a requirement.
The six educators that will teach in the Ohio schools during the 2006-2007 school year are:
• Maria Espada Blanco from Madrid, Spain. Maria will teach in the Constellation Community Schools in Parma, Cuyahoga County;
• Raquel Alonso Cuadrado from Palencia, Spain. Raquel will teach in the Beaver Local in Columbiana County;
• Maria Isabel (Maribel) Prado Millan from Cadiz, Spain. Maribel will teach in the Madison Local School District in Lake County;
• Maria Rebeca Tejero Olivares from Gibraleon, Spain. Maria will teach in the Preparing Academic Leaders Academy in Maple Heights, Cuyahoga County;
• Pablo Hernandez Rodriguez from Salamanca, Spain. Pablo will teach in the Meigs Local Schools in Meigs County; and
• Yolanda Coleto Salas from Madrid, Spain. Yolanda will teach in Trotwood-Madison High School in Montgomery County.
The visiting teachers to the Ohio schools will receive the same salary and benefits as their American counterparts. The Ohio schools' districts will provide the funding for salaries and share with the Ohio schools the health care costs. The Spanish educators are responsible for finding housing and transportation during their stay in the United States. They have each made a one-year commitment to the Ohio schools, with the option of up to three additional years.
The Ohio schools, as well as the state's governor, are committed to exposing Ohio's students to more of the world around them. With world events being brought into every American home as they happen, our children must be aware and educated about other cultures. These same children will be making the world decisions of the future.