While at Xerox, Mr. Kearns maintained a deep interest in the state of American schools, advocating reforms based on tenets like local control over curriculums, school choice and performance-based pay for teachers.
The law governing the activities of the U.S. Department of Education states clearly that no federal official should attempt to "exercise any direction, supervision, or control over the curriculum, program of instruction, [or] administration....of any educational institution".
Just a few years ago, the current administration funded tests for the Common Core standards, which will most assuredly exert control over the curriculum and program of instruction.
Under Tony Blair's academies programme, some 200 failing schools gained control over budgets, curriculum and working conditions.
So giving schools more control over the curriculum – inside a national framework – could be very positive.
The Chinese government retains tight control over the curriculum, which creates tricky problems for British educators.
The problem is exacerbated by the fact that Ofsted has no control over the curriculum content taught by faith schools, such as those highlighted in the Panorama programme.
In it he wrested control over the curriculum away from the local authorities, and even more from the schools and the teachers.
"Even if we won the full amount, it would only run our schools for two days, so for that we weren't going to cede control over our curriculum standards," Mr. Scott said.
