It is very good to hear that Leresa Lynch is experiencing good results for her children in our schools. But one thing I have had to learn and some teachers have pointed out to me is that often what you see in the classroom is not the curriculum, but very effective teaching by individual teachers.

For example, one teacher told me how she retained her phonics materials after whole language was introduced and continues to use phonics on her own initiative.

We all need to be thankful for those teachers who have managed to teach with less than effective curriculums as Whole Language and Everyday Math are proving to be.

The true test of any approach is the end product. After 12 years of education, where do students stand as far as ability to perform? The current track record in our nation is not good. As Amy Riley has documented, school systems which have had Everyday Math the longest have in some cases abandoned it wholesale.

Can you turn on the radio or TV without hearing an ad for a phonics reading product? Teaching kids to read outside the school system is a multi-million dollar industry. As programs like Everyday Math proliferate, expect the same for math.

I'd be willing to bet that Fayette County parents work as hard as anyone to ensure their children are educated. They work with them at home, pay for private tutoring, buy educational products like phonics programs, send them to private schools, etc. In addition, teachers go outside the curriculums, use supplemental materials to fill gaps and do the best they can. When it is all said and done and the SAT scores come back and we aren't the worst in the nation the school system declares their curriculums a roaring success.

Some of the most motivated parents I've met are those who have sent their "A" Fayette county students off to college only to find them placed in remedial classes for math and English. They are out there trying to ensure it doesn't happen to their other kids.

Involvement is the key and Mrs. Lynch is to be commended for hers. That's why it is so important that involved and concerned parents don't see each other as the enemy. We all want the best for all of our kids. An effective education system will determine the future for all of us.