AS PUPILS file into their classroom at KippRenaissance, a high school in a battered corner of north-east New Orleans, each one stops toshake the hand of a history teacher. “Changes”, a rap song by Tupac about the struggles ofbeing poor and black in America, plays quietly in the background. Within a minute or two, thedozen teenagers—all black—are busily filling in test papers. Soon afterwards, Mr Kullman, theteacher, begins rapping himself—hopping around the room demanding quick-fire answers toquestions about the civil war. Pupils shout back answers in chorus.
知力復興(Kipp Renaissance)高中座落在新奧爾良東北角的一個破舊的角落里，那兒小學生們排隊進入他們的教室，每個人還要停下來和歷史老師握手。“改變”，是一首來自Tupac的饒舌歌曲，悄然地播放在校園中，講述關于在美國窮困的黑人如何生存。幾分鐘內，那群黑人青少年就忙于填寫測試答卷。很快，考爾曼老師開始開始唱起Rap，在教室里小幅跳動著，要求學生快速回答關于內戰(zhàn)的問題。學生們則不整齊地回答出來。
Kipp Renaissance is one of New Orleans's newer high schools. Since Hurricane Katrina hit in2005, only six traditional public schools, directly run by the city, remain. Instead 94% of pupilsnow attend charter schools, which are publicly funded but run by independent non-profitorganisations such as Kipp (in full, the “Knowledge is Power Programme”).
知力復興高中是新奧爾良市一所歷史較短的高中。自從2005年卡特里娜颶風襲擊后，直屬市轄的高中僅剩下六所傳統(tǒng)的公立學校。取而代之的是94%的小學生現(xiàn)在都報名特許學校，這些學校是由公眾資助，但由獨立非盈利性組織例如知力經(jīng)營(全稱是，“知識就是力量項目”)。
Change began in 2003, when Louisiana created a Recovery School District (RSD) to take overand turn around failing schools across the state. Katrina dramatically accelerated the process:the RSD now controls most schools in New Orleans. Since 2008 alone, it has closed about 50and presided over the opening of an equal number of charters. The district organisesadmissions and expulsions, and helps allocate school buildings. But staffing, teacher training,transport, catering and much else are left in the hands of schools and the charter chainswhich run them.
改變從2003年開始了，那時路易斯安那州創(chuàng)辦了一個叫復原學校街區(qū)(RSD)組織，目的是取代并扭轉整個州立失敗的教育�？ㄌ乩锬蕊Z風戲劇性地加速了這一進程：RSD現(xiàn)在經(jīng)營新奧爾良市大部分學校。從2008年一年來說，它關閉了將近50所學校并主持開班了同樣數(shù)量的特許學校。街區(qū)制定了準入令和驅逐令，幫助分配學校建筑。但是員工雇傭，教師培訓，交通，飲食提供和很多其他的事情都被下放到學校掌管，連鎖的特許學校經(jīng)營它們。
A decade ago, teachers in New Orleans were demoralised. The city's school district had eightdifferent superintendents in the decade to 2005, none of whom managed to curb corruptionor control waste. Affluent whites had fled the system: before Katrina New Orleans was roughly67% black and 28% white, yet only 6% of public-school pupils were not black.
十年前，新奧爾良市的老師士氣低沉。市里學校街區(qū)竟在2005年之前十年有八個主管，沒有人遏制腐敗或是控制浪費。富裕的白人則逃離這一系統(tǒng)：在卡特里娜颶風來臨之前新奧爾良市有大概67%的黑人和28%的白人，然而只有6%的公公學校的學生不是黑人。
Under the new regime, schools have sharply improved. In 2004 just 16.5% of pupils in NewOrleans's schools beat Louisiana's state performance score; by the end of the most recentschool year, 31.1% did, according to the Cowen Institute at Tulane University. High-schoolgraduation rates have risen from 55% before Katrina to 73% now; drop-out rates have fallenby half.
在新策略下，學校則大幅改觀。2004年，新奧爾良市只有16.5%的小學生達到了路易斯安那州成績考核;在最新的學年里，根據(jù)杜蘭大學科文中心數(shù)據(jù)，31.1%的學生做到了。高中畢業(yè)生比例從卡特里娜前的55%增至現(xiàn)在73%;輟學人數(shù)則下降了一半。
After Katrina, most of New Orleans's 7,500 unionised teachers were, in effect, fired. Charterschools have hired some back—but they have also hired plenty of new, young ambitiousteachers, often straight out of college, who work the long days and extra hours withoutcomplaint.
在卡特里娜之后，新奧爾良市7,500名教師中大部分實際上被解雇。特許學校返聘了一部分回來——但他們也雇傭了很多新的、年輕有志的老師們，通常是剛從大學畢業(yè)，可以工作很久、加班沒有怨言。
The ability to choose a school matters less than you might expect. Autonomy and centralscrutiny matter more. New Orleans's charter schools are probably more closely watched thanpublic schools ever were, and those that fail to meet targets do not get their charters renewed.With academic targets set centrally, schools tend to agree on what works best.
擇校能力僅僅和你可能預想中的部分相關。自治權和中央審核關聯(lián)更大。新奧爾良市的特許學校可能會比以前的公公學校受更緊的監(jiān)察，那些無法達標的學校無法更新特許證件。將完成學術目標設立為中心，學校傾向于許可工作最好的部分。
The challenge now is whether improvement can be sustained. On national tests, Louisianastill comes last or nearly last on a range of measures. What the state deems “mastery” of asubject barely passes for acceptable in other states: by the standards of Massachusetts orMaine, schools in New Orleans remain terrible. Middle-class whites still mostly send their childrento private schools.
現(xiàn)在面臨的困難是進步能否被保持住。在國家性考試中，路易斯安那州仍然墊底或是在一定范圍檢測里將近墊底。這個州里被認為是高級學科的課程在其他州僅僅被認為是可以接受的課程：通過對比馬薩諸塞州和緬因州，新奧爾良的學校仍然很渣。中產(chǎn)階級白人們仍然可能將他們的孩子送往私立學校。
One worry is money. Before Katrina, spending per pupil in New Orleans was 7,900 per year,about the same as in Louisiana at large. Last year the figure was 12,797—much more than thestate average. Federal money, doled out to help rebuild after the hurricane, now pays forrepairing almost all the city's school buildings. But it will not last for ever.
另一擔心則是錢的問題�？ㄌ乩锬戎�，每個小學生身上每年花銷7,900刀，路易斯安那州每個小學生基本相同。去年這個數(shù)字是12,797刀—遠遠超出其他州平均水準。用于救助災后重建的聯(lián)邦撥款現(xiàn)在正應付著修建城里的學校建筑。但是這不會持續(xù)到永遠。
At some point, the city's overworked teachers may begin to struggle. Some critics say reformhas been imposed paternalistically by white reformers on black communities, and so has onlylimited support. Yet in a vote on December 6th a new tax for school maintenance was easilyapproved by the city's voters. They, and their children, seem to like what they are getting.
某些觀點上，城里過度勞累的老師們可能開始抗議。一些批評家認為改革是白人改革者家長式作風，強加于黑人社區(qū)，而且支持效果有限。然而在11月6日的城市投票中，針對學校維修的新稅法投票中被輕易審核批準。他們以及他們的子女看來是喜歡正享受的東西。