In the Middle Ages one of the favorite methods of executions was "drawing and quartering."

This involves attaching the horse to each arm and leg, then the horses all pull in different directions until the victim is dismembered.

I am sure that all of us today would find this unacceptable even if we were in favor of Capital punishment.

I believe that school principals, certainly secondary ones, are daily facing this kind of punishment. Only there are far more than four horses pulling in far more directions.

People have often asked me why I never became a principal. I guess it was the fear of being drawn and quartered.

I can't imagine a more difficult job in education than that of a secondary principal who tries to soothe the horses in this situation.

Who these horses are, and their intentions, create one of the most significant reasons why the United States educational system lags so severely behind the rest of the developed and developing world in educational achievement.

We were recently placed between the Slovak Republic and Latvia at 24 among the nations of the Western World.

And, if the developing Asian countries were included, I would suggest that our rating would be even lower.

Some of these horses are draft horses capable of pulling extremely hard and others are only miniature ponies.

Unfortunately the miniature ponies in this country are often the draft horses, or the only horses, in those countries that are eclipsing us.

Let's start with some of the big draft horses.

Most of the publicity about secondary schools involves the successes of the schools' athletic teams.

Often principals are former coaches so they are quite sensitive to assuring the school does everything possible to be successful on the "scoreboard" even if this distracts from the "chalkboard."

Coaches

A former athletic director referred to his coaches as "35 year-old children" who are more than willing to ask for an amended schedule to accommodate the attendance and are fully prepared to take kids from academic classes for athletic purposes.

This is a very strong draft horse!

We have one school here that proudly boasts of its State Championships in "Hip Hop"! They don't seem to have much to boast about when it comes to SAT scores.

This goes unnoticed except for those who are trying to get into competitive colleges. This is another reason for a warning label on the front door of schools.

Teachers and their Union

The work rules that unions have in place tie the Principal's hands in the time they can devote to improving schools and making assignments of teachers in ways that would be more productive for more children.

Any serious attempts to reform the schools by Principals is likely to start the "grievance" process that will tie up the Principal in such a way that he would have little time for dealing with serious academic situations.

Booster Clubs

I have yet to see a Booster Club that has any specific serious concerns about the academic reputation of any secondary school in this state.

They seem to be concerned about music, art and athletics and are constantly raising funds and sponsoring distractions for the betterment of portions of the school that are not relating to success in an academic sense.

I haven't heard of any Booster Club working on making schools more academically successful.

Students

I have talked to many students who have selected a particular high school for its athletic or other non-academic programs. There are far more students selecting their enrollment by this criteria than one would hope. A recent survey of parents concerning education found that parents rated "student satisfaction" as the most important factor in their children's schools.

Could this be the reason for "Spirit Week", "Pajama Day", etc.

This is another strong horse that doesn't seem to be concerned about the academic success of schools. This is probably a "very happy horse" too.

Parents

Many parents have told me that they want their child to attend a particular school for its athletic, music, art or some other program.

When I asked them about their concerns about life after high school, they seem unconcerned. Remember that this state is dead last in college completion!

Clearly parents are a very strong horse and many seem to be working with blinders on!

I have heard more from parents about the decals on helmets than about the courses offered, or taken, by their children.

The Central Office of the School District

For many years it is possible to prevent being drawn and quartered by just satisfying the above horses.

Suddenly the State and Feds have decided that kids need to "learn," not just be "satisfied."

NCLB and the WASL have come to town. They have exposed the fact that the academic horse was only a toy pony! Now the Central Office wants "academic results"!

That is not something that was a significant factor for most schools until recently.

School Boards,

While the law states these organizations are "responsible" for the education of the district's children, school boards have shown little concern for this as the "pony" hasn't been on their back.

School boards have been content to debate ethereal concepts of academic achievement that are usually not measueable for most students. The board has tried to placate the horses at the expense of the pony.

There are some other horses such as local service clubs, Chambers of Commerce, and other governmental organizations that seem to be largely disinterested in protecting the Principal.

He needs some help if our children are to be competitive in the twenty first century. Tax payers and children beware!

Next Up? Community Organizations.

Charlie Hoff is a former member of the Board of Education for Federal Way Public Schools. His weekly column will appear in upcoming issues of the Federal Way News and online at www.federalwaynews.net.