I recently had the opportunity to attend and present at U.S. National Conference on Education hosted by the American School Superintendent’s Association (AASA). The presentation I shared was similar to the presentations given in BC: Social Media – How District Leaders Can Build Community. My focus here was on how important it is for leaders to not just talk about digital learning, but to model it in their own work and learning.
If the conference’s Twitter feed was any indication, I get the sense there are far fewer US school and district leaders engaged on the social media front than we are seeing in BC and across Canada. While Canadians probably made up less than five per cent in attendance, you wouldn’t have thought that from who was engaging digitally.
Of course, there is far more to connect about than social media. I was interested to connect with my American superintendent colleagues and compare the work we do north and south of the border. I found we have a lot in common in sharing the important role of working with elected Boards, a focus on 21st century learning, and we are always searching for the balance in our work and personal lives. What made the event most interesting was to realize where our jobs, and how our conversations differed:
Football
Okay, not just football, but school sports in general. For many, this is very connected to the identity of the school district, something we don’t see with the same passion in Canada. I spoke with several superintendents who described several situations—including pressure from their Boards—to have high achieving sports teams and who should make the team and play in the games. Some situations from the playing field regularly came forward to the superintendent level for comment. While attending a session on legal issues affecting school districts, there was an interesting discussion on whether school sports were a right or a privilege. It was a very different opinion than the Canadian one where sports are seen largely as extracurricular and coaches are volunteers.
High Test Results
In BC and Canada more generally, we are spending less and less time focussing (or obsessing) on test scores. I often say we are moving to a post-standardized world. We have no high stakes tests and, while we use data, it is often teacher-generated data. In contrast, it was interesting to learn that superintendents use test results around teacher evaluations and test results also drive some funding allotments.
Safety
Yes, we talk safety, but not with the same intensity as it is currently being discussed in the United States. For example, many superintendents acknowledge the importance of school security guards. It is something not really discussed in British Columbia. At a district board meeting this past month I reconfirmed (under advice from local police) our practice will be to continue to keep all school exterior doors unlocked. Many of my American colleagues were making different decisions.
Turnover
We have some turnover in superintendents in Canada, but job terminations are very rare. In contrast, there was a much greater sense from my US colleagues that being a superintendent was much like being a professional sports coach—often on two- or three-year contracts and ready to be free agents if “things just didn’t work out.” It does make me wonder how one can move an agenda forward with such regular turnover. It did seem some districts really valued stability over change, but that did not seem to be the norm, particularly in larger urban centres.
Money
Yes, we all talk money, but funding is provincial not local; a formula in BC is used to fund all 60 districts. In speaking with many of my colleagues, there can be wide gaps in funding in neighbouring committees, a particular challenge BC does not have to deal with. And, despite my best efforts to fully understand the US school funding model, I actually still don’t. There is also federal money that flows through to districts (again something we don’t have in Canada); there is also local monies based on taxation, and often a lot of grant monies (something far less common in Canada). Of course, the larger topic of adequate and stable funding is universal, and the conversations around inadequate funding and its effect on public education are the same conversations we are having in British Columbia.
However, one concern is common across both the Canadian and US perspective — great value on a strong and vibrant public education system. It was interesting to see below the headlines where our stories matched and where they differed. My thanks to all those who welcomed me and made me feel so connected.
cultureofyes.ca 
I enjoyed the contrast you offered between education in Canada and United States, Chris.
Learning-social media such as blogging and Twitter are less-commonly used in the United States, particularly at the most senior levels of administration. Principals, teacher leaders, and teachers are rapidly picking up the slack, however.
Even though I live in the United States I cannot explain nor justify how we fund public education. Communities with the most challenged students and families and the highest rates of property typically receive less funding than more affluent districts. Federal and state governments, along with foundations, try to compensate for this inequity with a patchwork of programs, but with limited success.
Many policymakers in this country believe that the debilitating effects of poverty, including poor medical care, can be overcome by good schools and that a primary means for creating those schools is competition among public schools and with the private sector.
Schools in United States are rapidly moving toward a three-tiered system: (1) elite public schools in wealthy communities that closely resemble private schools, (2) corporate charter and online schools that siphon off the most engaged students/parents from high-poverty districts and with them their public funding, and (3) high-poverty districts that as a result of #2 have even fewer resources to educate and support the students and families who are left behind.
Thanks for the funding lesson Dennis. I know some in Canada worry that the multi-tiered model of schooling may be our future as well. I don’t think we are headed down that path – our funding formula which does ensure equity betweens communities and our social framework – the same conditions that give us our health care system – is just very different than what you describe.
I am always impressed by the quality of educators in meet in the US but feel they are fighting such a tough fight with the system in which they work.
Thanks again for your feedback and for your ongoing contributions as part of my network.
Chris, thanks for sharing your perspectives on a number of key educational issues that affect both Canada and the US. It is interesting to see how we are the “Same but Different”.
Gordon Powell
Teacher-Librarian
Thanks Gordon – it is always so interesting to see people doing similar jobs to us in seemingly similar circumstances, but doing the job so differently – not necessarily better or worse, but different – built on the expectations of a given community.
There’s another major difference missing here that I didn’t know of until recently. We have a LOT more autonomy over curriculum in Canada than the average US teacher. As I understand it, curriculum in most states is decided at the state level right down to which textbooks to buy.
I might be a bit off, but this came up in the context of things like use of Khan Academy. Here in BC we are free to use Khan whenever we want and toss it out the window when we want, for the most part. In the US, if a school is adopting Khan Academy, you have no choice, you teach using Khan Academy. (I am sure there are exceptions, eg. private schools and charter whatever-thoseare, etc, but the point is they’re the exception and not the norm as it is here.)
Hi Josh – yes, that is an excellent addition to the conversation, and something that was noticeable. There were so many people looking for a “program” for different grades and different courses – a sort of prescription for learning. I do think it fluctuates widely between districts and states, but I would agree with you – in general there is a greater appreciation for the professionalism of the profession from my observations.
There were a number of speakers that noted how the system needed to change – as one said, “We can’t fire our way to Finland.”
Thanks for adding to the conversation.