Tan has made his career in education

Michael Tan aspired to be an architect in his homeland, Malaysia, when the opportunity to become an educator came knocking. With his father out of work and Tan the oldest child, he felt he had to do what he could to help his family.

At the time, Tan could get paid by the government to train to be a teacher and receive a small stipend of money for personal use. He said it was the best deal at the time.

Years later, Tan, who is running for one of two seats on the Columbia School Board in the April 4 election, is still involved with education as an associate professor of education at William Woods University in Fulton.

“I enjoyed working with the kids,” Tan said. “Just to see them finally getting what I am telling them, when you see those light bulbs going off, that really is the satisfaction of teaching.”

After working for seven years in Malaysian public elementary schools, Tan did a yearlong program to receive a library science diploma. That led to a position as a lecturer at a teacher training college in Malaysia. Working with two such groups has broadened his view on problem-solving for students.

“Different age groups have their own issues and problems,” Tan said. The characteristics and needs of students must be gauged in order to find the programs and resources to help them, he said.

Tan — who has a bachelor’s degree, two master’s degrees and a doctoral degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, in various aspects of education — continues to take note of issues affecting the entire field.

“He has spent his entire professional career in education,” said Betsy Tutt, chair of the education division at William Woods University.

Tutt said Tan’s knowledge of education and law, based on a course he has taught for the past nine years on the legal issues that specifically affect public education, would be an advantage for any school board. His “collaborative” personality would also be an asset, she said.

“He really understands the whole teaching and learning process,” Tutt said.

Tutt said Tan’s work and study of integrated curriculum give him another insight into one of the newer aspects of education. The human mind is not compartmentalized, Tutt said, and integrated curriculum works to teach the four main subjects of social studies, science, math and language arts simultaneously so that the lessons support each other.

All three of Tan’s children have gone to school in Columbia, which Tan said has helped him to gain two perspectives of the district: as a father and as a professor of education. Based on both of these perspectives, Tan wants parental involvement to continue to improve.

“I know, generally, parental involvement is very good,” Tan said. “But for certain groups, we have to come up with better ways of getting them involved in the school system.”

Closing the achievement gap among groups of students begins with more parental involvement, he said.

Tan also said that he thinks it is crucial to “attract, retain and advocate for high-quality teachers.”

“I think the board is taking the right step in increasing the base salary for beginning teachers,” he said, referring to a move currently before the board.

He said the board has possibly overlooked the importance of making veteran teachers feel appreciated. “In order to retain the current teachers, you need to do something about their pay, too,” Tan said.

Tan’s wife, Rachel, sees her husband’s long experience with teachers and students as a definite asset to the board. “He can relate to teachers well, being an educator himself, and he knows what students want in a good education system,” she said.

When asked what sets him apart from his four rivals — incumbent Elton Fay, Michelle Gadbois, Steve Calloway and Arch Brooks — Tan cited his history in education.

“I guess my strength lies in my extensive experience in education itself, having been a parent and a teacher and now a teacher of teachers,” Tan said. “I have knowledge about curriculum and a research-based aspect of what would work in the schools.”

Answers to three questions

Q: District records show there is a significant achievement gap between white and black students. What would you do to fix this?

A: The implementation of family-school partnerships and mentoring programs (West Boulevard model) to reduce the achievement gap is a good measure. In addition, we need to educate parents about the importance and value of education and to have high expectations; have parents commit to and be involved in their children’s education at all levels. Teachers need to have high expectations for all students as well. Early-intervention and support programs such as tutoring, summer school, etc. should be made available.

Q: What would you do to address the district’s dropout rate, which is above the state average?

A: In addressing the district’s dropout rate, I would begin by surveying and talking to students who are potential dropouts, finding out the reasons contributing to students wanting to drop out, working with parents of those students, teachers, guidance counselors and community leaders in coming up with a variety of ways and measures to educate and keep students in school, including the use of incentives and rewards. The entire community should be involved in addressing this issue.

Q: How do you plan to ensure quality education in the face of declining state funding and declining district reserves?

A: In the face of declining state funding and district reserves, quality education can still be provided to our students by reallocating priorities and maximizing resources, reducing expenditures and maintaining high quality programs and essential services. Additionally, this also means hiring and retaining high quality teachers with competitive salaries and benefits. Ineffective programs and personnel may have to be cut, and budget expenses in certain areas reduced. Additional resources from taxpayers should be sought only when the need becomes necessary. The entire process and plan would require the input of all stakeholders involved, i.e. students, teachers, administrators, parents and community leaders.