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Dr. Herbert Fischer, San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, accepted an invitation from Inland Empire Family Magazine to be interviewed for this special issue saluting the 10 Teachers Making a Difference. His entire career as an educator, which spans more than 30 years, has been spent in San Bernardino County. Dr. Fischer began his second term as county superintendent in January 2003 and oversees the programs and operations of the County Superintendent of Schools office. With a staff of more than 1,400 employees, which includes about 300 teachers and 400 instructional aides, the office provides support to the 33 K-12 districts and more than 415,000 county students. Dr. Fischer has served on and oveseen many advisory committees and task forces locally and statewide in efforts to enhance the educational opportunities and well-being of schoolchildren. In January 1999, he and his wife Cheryl founded the Dr. Herb and Cheryl Fischer Scholarship Fund as a means of providing college-going opportunities to students in need of financial support. What do you believe that parents who entrust their children to the public school system have a right to expect from those schools? In all practical matters, they have a right to know the school is assuming the parents' role in their absence. In terms of providing a safe environment, of providing an instructional program that's appropriate for their children, in terms of supervision, of care of their physical needs, as well as their social and emotional needs, the public schools assume a great deal of responsibility in providing for the needs of their children. I am often asked, "Can you guarantee that my child will be safe?" My response is that I can guarantee that our schools are the safest place for your children to be after your home. Unfortunately, in some cases, I believe schools are safer than some communities. How well do you think San Bernardino County schools are fulfilling those obligations? We have set it as a priority. Our motto around here is "Teach Them Well, Keep Them Safe, Prepare Them for the Future." We address the issues of safety in a very proactive way, but we also know that we have the overriding responsibility to prepare these students for the 21st century and we're attempting to provide an instructional program that truly meets these students' needs. By all indications, we are making some great strides. For three of the past four years, the growth in test scores has been stronger than the state of California's on the average. We've had a 40 percent increase in college-going rate over five years, we see the dropout rates going down, but we know we have a lot of work to do. One of the real encouraging signs is the partnerships that are taking place with our schools. We have the Alliance for Education with major companies joining us. We have over 700 partners in that, and that's basically a strategy to see that students are prepared for the work place, or to go to college. Unfortunately, this region had good work, but it didn't require high skills. The new work is going to require a much higher level of training. It's our belief that we've got to meet that challenge by having our students better prepared. If, in fact, we're going to change the destiny of the Inland Empire, we've got to be part of generating a higher educated workforce. It's not the smog, and it's not crime, and it's not congestion that's held us back. It's been that we haven't had a higher educated work force. You have mentioned what you think parents have a right to expect from the schools, but what do you think the schools have a right to expect from the parents? The parents' expectations are for their students to be successful in school, and it's the expectation of the school that the parents are engaged in their child's education. That they visit the school on a regular basis, that they don't come to the school just when there's a problem, and that they find ways to support the teacher as a volunteer. At home, they develop an environment that supports homework and they ask the right questions of their child. The wrong question to ask is, "How was school today?" because I'll bet you a dollar to a doughnut that the answer is always going to be "Fine." The right question has to be specific to your knowledge of what that child's doing, such as, "How did you do with that homework that I looked over last night before you turned it in?" Or, "What kind of score did you get on the test?" The school expects there to be a communication loop between the teacher, the child and the parent, that it's a circular system and it's ongoing. When that engagement takes place, I'll guarantee that no child will be unsuccessful. I've seen it happen. I think our parents are our first teachers, and we respect that. What do you think are the qualities that make a good, successful teacher? An interest in improving the lives of children, No. 1. Second, knowledge of the subject matter that they are teaching and, third, a delivery system that encourages all children to be successful. People who don't like children should not be teachers. If individuals are uncomfortable in facing the realities of a classroom, that's not the place for them to be. The children can see and pick that up right away. So can the parents. Is there any one factor, whether political, economic or social, that you feel would make your job easier and allow teachers to better serve their students if it were improved? One thing that would change my job, and make a tremendous difference, is if there were higher expectations on the part of everyone in the educational system. Higher expectations on the part of the students, higher expectations on the part of the teachers, higher expectation on the part of the administrators and board members and, most importantly, higher expectations by the parents. We have to insist on two things. One, that all children can learn, and that's on the students and their parents. The second thing is that we can teach all children, and that's on us. When we arrive at that point, we'll see a rapid decrease in dropouts and an increase in students going to college and finishing high school. This is a system of connectedness with the family, when the child is dropped off at the school, and the work that goes on inside the school. That dispels the myth that school performance is based on zip codes, that if you happen to live in one community the schools are good, and if you live in another community they are not as good. Michael Medley is a senior writer for Inland Empire Family Magazine. |
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