There is a looming fatal flaw in the Maryland State Department of Education recovery plan for public schools during the coronavirus crisis. It is the inability or unwillingness of MSDE to provide strong leadership and direction to local school districts.
A recent editorial in The Sun characterized the plan as long on broad options and short on specific guidance. At the same time, as Maryland Matters has reported, MSDE is coming under criticism for refusing to share district-by-district information on distance-learning disparities, especially the impact on poor and minority students. Advocacy groups are frustrated by MSDE’s lack of transparency throughout the planning process.
In fairness, under the best of plans, MSDE and local schools have incredibly difficult challenges. And yet, history shows us – as documented by the Kirwan Commission – that MSDE has been a major stumbling block in our state’s efforts to improve public schools. MSDE has been especially weak and ineffectual in providing strong guidance such as evidence-based best practices and models, and in holding schools accountable for using them.
