Education reform is the term for a variety of efforts to improve learning outcomes in schools. These efforts can be as broad as ensuring students are taught to read and write, or as narrow as focusing on academic rigor or the implementation of educational standards. They can be as centralized as national curricula or teacher training systems, or as decentralized as school and classroom autonomy. In all cases, education reform aims to provide a better, more equitable learning environment for all children.
The history of education reform begins with Plato’s Republic, with Platonic democratic principles serving as the basis for the idea that all citizens should have access to high-quality schooling. The civil rights movement of the mid-20th century played a pivotal role in expanding this idea, culminating in Brown v. Board of Education ending segregation and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 promoting equal access to quality public education.
One of the most critical pillars of modern education reform is the development and implementation of educational standards and curricula that help bridge gaps between varying schools and districts. These efforts also serve to level the playing field for students from different socioeconomic backgrounds and promote social mobility.
The implementation of education policy remains a complex issue. In many higher-performing countries, consistent performance is achieved by using centralized curriculum or syllabus-based instructional and examination systems to ensure that schools in urban and rural areas are teaching the same things to their students. However, these systems have their own challenges and rely on strong school leadership to create the conditions for consistent achievement.