At the intersection of Teacher Blvd. and Curriculum Way

This is another, "Everything you need to know about education can be learned from a musician" post.

Because I'm a curriculum junkie, I hang around (virtually) with a lot of homeschoolers.  They (and Robert Pondiscio) seem to the be only ones willing to talk openly about curriculum.  A lot of homeschoolers are public-school refugees, and so conversations comparing the two are frequent.

While reading, it hit me.  Curriculum is just like a musical instrument, and teachers are just like musicians.  Let me explain.  A great curriculum is like a Stradivarius, anyone who can play just a little can pick it up and sound fantastic.  A mediocre or bad teacher who is given a great curriculum and sticks with it, will do well.  Her students will have the opportunity to learn the subject.  (That's all teaching does, it gives students the opportunity to learn, what they chose to do with that opportunity is a another post.)  It won't be inspiring or life-changing, but it will get done.  If you hand that Stradivarius to Itzhak Perlman, his playing will transport you to places you've only dreamed of.  Same goes with curriculum, a great teacher with a great curriculum has the potential to change the lives of her students forever.  (And end up the subject of a Hollywood movie.)

Now for the other side of the coin.  If you hand Mr. Perlman my violin, which is a $40 no-label garage sale special, you will still hear some good music.  Mr. Perlman's expertise and artistry can make any instrument exceed its abilities.  If you give a great teacher a lousy curriculum, the teacher will overcome it, just like Mr. Perlman would.  She will supplement and reorganize like the dickens; giving her students the opportunity to learn.  It won't be as good, a lot of her time and energy will be put into the curriculum rather than the teaching, but she still does her job adequately.  However, when I play my $40 violin, I don't sound all that great.  Nobody wants to hear me play, because it sounds dreadful.  That's what happens when a bad/mediocre teacher is paired with a bad curriculum.  Any opportunity for learning is lost before the class even sits down at their desks.  A bad/mediocre teacher does not have skill or knowledge or artistry to overcome a flawed curriculum.  In fact, she may not have the ability to recognize the problem.  And just like my dreadful violin playing, the end result is dreadful teaching.

Guess which of the four options is most favored by American schools?