Anyone with an Ounce of Brains?

The get-tough view of school reform continues to have advocates. From Newsweek:

Stop Pandering on Education
It's time to move from identifying failing schools to identifying failing teachers. Sounds obvious, but it hasn't happened in American education.
By Jonathan Alter

Feb. 12, 2007 issue - The crazy thing about the education debate in the United States is that anyone with an ounce of brains knows what must be done. Each political party is about half right. Republicans are right about the need for strict performance standards and wrong in believing that enduring change is possible without lots more money from Washington. Democrats are right about the need to pay teachers more but wrong to kiss up to teachers unions bent on preventing accountability.

More here.