When it comes to making exaggerated claims for what they've accomplished, educators are real pros. In most fields, people making a notable discovery are careful not to claim too much for it. Medical researchers who discover a new drug or procedure are scrupulous about specifying the percentage of people likely to find it effective, and even a success rate of 10 or 15 percent is considered an achievement. Educating kids is more difficult than keeping them healthy, so it would be reasonable to expect success rates for new education programs or techniques to be more modest. Educators, however, seem to think that, unless they claim a 100 percent success rate, their discovery will not be taken seriously.
Educators speak in terms of panaceas , magic bullets and miracles .
Seymour Fliegel, who worked for a number of years in East Harlem, New York City's District 4, is a good example of this tendency to overclaim. Fliegel was appointed by Anthony Alvarado, the district superintendent who actually originated the alternative schools program in District 4. Fliegel is especially fond of talking about Benjamin Franklin High School, which he says was the worst in the city. The school board shut it down in 1982, and it was reopened as the Manhattan Center for Science and Math, a public school of choice. According to Fliegel, a miracle happened.