Accelerated Schools build an expanded role for all groups to participate in and take responsibility for the educational process and educational results. Such an approach requires a shift to a school-based decision approach with heavy involvement of teachers and parents and new roles for administrative leadership. Among the areas that are most central for site-based participation in decisions are the choice of curriculum, instructional strategies, instructional materials, personnel, and the ability to allocate resources. It is important that a major share of decision responsibilities be placed at the school site. Parents can be powerful allies in the educational process because they love their children and deeply want them to succeed.
Teachers bring the gifts of insight, intuition, and teaching and organizational intelligence.
These abilities are largely ignored and wasted in schools that exclude teachers from the decisions they ultimately must implement. The strengths of at risk students are often overlooked because these students are perceived as lacking the learning behaviors associated with middle-class students rather than seen as having unique and different assets which can be used to accelerate their learning. Schools overlook the strengths of these students in a variety of ways, Teachers often find themselves unprepared to understand the culture and values of poor, minority, immigrant, and non-English speaking students. Educators must work to understand cultural differences and build upon them as strengths. In addition to rich cultural diversity, another untapped resource in our schools is the multitude of styles of learning all children bring with them to school.