Chi, also a sheep rancher, runs an elementary school 45 miles northeast of Flagstaff, Arizona. Many children travel more than two hours each way from their homes when booking. They are immediately thrust into a “no excuses” culture, as part of the first Native American school to become a member of a nationwide college readiness program. He expects each of his students to plan for a college education.
When Che first started teaching at the school, he would ask fourth-graders what college they were going to. “They had no idea,” he said. “I would say what career you want to do, and they would say, ‘What are you talking about?’”
Chi, who has also greatly improved literacy rates, takes his students to visit the campus while they are still in elementary school. They have lunch in the cafeteria at Arizona State University, where Che is earning his doctorate, and learn about the different programs and classes they might take. They are “learning the logistics of applying to college,” Chi said.
The conference gave me an opportunity to see how UNESCO spends years collecting data and searching for common themes. I spoke with Manos Antoninis, who runs the Global Education Monitoring Report, which analyzes data that policymakers around the world use to strengthen their education systems. Because the conference was held before the elections, we did not think about what would become of UNESCO’s relationship with US President-elect Donald Trump, who cut ties with the group during his first term. The relationship was re-established under President Joe Biden. Trump has said little about it since.
Antoninis said he hopes the report will lead to new ways to develop, recruit and support school leaders, many of whom came to Brazil to share success stories and learn from the inclusion of profiles and comparisons from more than 200 countries. Antoninis stressed the importance of reaching the poorest and richest countries to collect data.
“The American reader should read the monitoring reports to open his eyes to diversity in equality,” he told me. “You see it in your country, but not in the way people live elsewhere, or in the low quality of learning. Some are falling far behind.”
It’s not always easy to read lengthy reports and hear about the bad news and anxiety that often accompany the latest alarming educational reports. And I’m counting on my colleague, Proof Points columnist Jill Barshai, to help interpret the latest NAEP and PISA results by explaining trends and pointing out problems that appear to have worsened since the global pandemic. This is one of the reasons why I look forward to moderating a discussion on resilience and flexibility among education leaders around the world in Hong Kong next month.
I hope to have the opportunity to meet more leaders like Chi, to go beyond numbers and see how a school leader can change people’s lives. Chi told me that many of his students have graduated from college in recent years. He cherishes the moments.
“Some of my former students are now teachers, and they come to the classroom and visit us,” Qi said. “Or a family might come in and say, ‘Hey, my son is graduating from college; “My daughter graduated, and it all started here.”
This story is about him School leadership Written by Liz Wellen and produced by Hechinger Reportan independent, nonprofit news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education. Sign up for Hechinger Newsletter.