The reality is that the problem schools will continue to be problem schools. Schools fed with families that don't care about education will continue to fail no matter how many staff changes are made. The problem identified here is that when school district priorities are to "pass the test" then smart kids suffer. Smart kids don't need tests that they could already pass, they need curricula that challenges them and lets them meet their potential.
Test results are needed to show schools what they need to work on, not be the sole input driving the curricula. My personal soapbox on this issue is that the people writing elementary curricula have spent way too much time trying to make it fun and not enough time teaching the basics. Once that opportunity to learn the basics is lost you end up with students in high school that understand the subjects being taught, but lack the basic skills to solve the problem, or communicate the answer. Timed mathematics tests, flash cards, etc. may seem tedious but it worked for me.
My personal soapbox on this issue is that the people writing elementary curricula have spent way too much time trying to make it fun and not enough time teaching the basics.
is indisputable, IMO.
We homeschool. And we try to make it as fun as possible. But I think there's truth to what you say. Some things only get learned by repetitive drilling. And repetitive drilling just isn't fun.