Read the rest of Derrell Bradford's commentary in the Asbury Park Press.As Gov. Chris Christie and key Democratic and Republican leaders propose bold plans to reform education in New Jersey, they often are met by well-intentioned, primarily suburban, citizens who believe our public schools are outstanding. There are no such illusions in the cities.
These New Jerseyans implicitly assert that a "good" school in their town should somehow cancel out our desire to reform the system, or to transform schools that we know chronically fail our students. Their evangelizing is real, and, unfortunately, it is misguided. Hiding in plain sight is the truth: New Jersey's public schools, urban and suburban, are not as good as we think.