The Mythical Silver Bullet

We all may be guilty of succumbing to the belief that there is a silver bullet in education.  That there is one thing that will truly change the trajectory for our students.  I know I have been guilty of this thinking in the past, and can still slip into this thinking today.

I thought of the state of Tennessee as soon as I read the first paragraph of the Rivet Education article:  A Timely Reminder:  There are no Silver Bullets, Even with Professional Learning.  Tennessee is making headlines for the measurable growth they are showing in student reading scores.  They are getting it right:  they are pairing professional learning with effective curricula.

So often, school districts focus on one without the other.  I often lament doing the very same thing with our adoption of the EL Education curriculum.  Rather than advocating for a deep dive into the Science of Reading before ever looking at curricular materials, I argued (as our district literacy coach) that we had to respond to the sense of urgency around our reading scores.  We needed to get a high-quality curriculum in our teachers’ hands ASAP.  EL Education curriculum is a high-quality curriculum, and curriculum absolutely matters, but oh, how wrong I was for “jumping the gun” on adoption.  Our kids and teachers continue to struggle because of it.

We have the WHAT, but only pockets of our staff have the WHY.  If I could turn back time, we would have dedicated a year of professional learning to understanding the Science of Reading, part of which would include mandatory, during-the-work-day LETRS training.  We would have reviewed multiple curriculums that align with the Science of Reading (truly align, not just as a marketing campaign with an “SOR aligned” sticker on the front).  After selection of the curriculum (and I firmly believe we would still have chosen EL Education), we would continue our professional development around implementation and its connection to the Science of Reading.  “Professional learning gives teachers the why, but curriculum gives them the what and the how. It provides a tangible model of what good looks like, with the tools to shift instruction.”

I wrote about this very topic without calling it “the mythical silver bullet,” in August of 2021.  At that time, there were a group of teachers in our district that had received Orton Gillingham training through IMSE.  It’s an excellent program, and like all others, it has received praise while being questioned for it’s effectiveness.  Some teachers who received the training held the belief (my perception) that it would do a better job of teaching foundational skills than EL Education.  My take on it?  Either would get the foundational skills instruction job done… if we do the very thing that Rivet Education is proposing:  pair high-quality professional development with high-quality curriculum.  “When districts and states pair high-quality curriculum with high-quality professional learning, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, and schools are equipped to raise student outcomes – in reading and other subject areas.”

The silver bullet in education does not exist in one entity.  Rather, the silver bullet lies in a formula that combines high-quality professional learning with high-quality curriculum, AND collective efficacy, growth mindsets, content knowledge, knowledge of pedagogy, trauma-informed care, knowledge of effect-sizes, sustained effort, focus on mission… which is all to say that the business of education is hard work.  Thank goodness so many of us are committed to sustaining the work.