The article on the visit and report on Lewiston High School by the “Great Maine Schools Project” was frustrating. Schools of Maine are caught in crosscurrents of well-intentioned, but counter-productive “reform” movements. Students and teachers are trapped in the middle.

The visiting team liked that LHS has ninth- and 10th-grade teams, but they didn’t like the tracking made more rigid by having ninth- and 10th-grade teams.

The team liked that the school moved away from its department structure, but it didn’t like the resulting difficulty in maintaining consistency and rigor.

The visitors reportedly liked the “innovative math program” even though it has been largely abandoned and discredited for its inadequate preparation of our students.

Finally, the team complained that faculty were unenthusiastic about reform efforts. Sadly, “reform” suggests things are improving, and the team’s observations suggest LHS is experiencing mixed changes. Years of being driven from one effort to another with little effective input have demoralized some of the staff.

The track record of “Great Maine Schools” itself has not provided much hope.

The we’ll-tell-you-what-to-do approach to reform by the state and federal government has done a great disservice, and the shoot-from-the-hip advice from the foundation simply muddies the waters. Schools all over Maine have struggled to keep pace with foolish demands that distract from the fine tuning we all need.

In the process, the education of the students has suffered.

Jim Perkins, Wayne