Kids are back at their desks, and education is part of the conversation again.

Every year we pick up where we left off talking about what's wrong with schools and how to fix them. But too often it is a conversation about tweaking an outdated model.

I've found myself tuning out much of the noise about strained budgets, No Child Left Behind - stuff that sucks up energy and leaves people disheartened.

There are better conversations going on if we tune in to them. They take into account the latest research on how people learn and try to design schools that put the needs of students first.

Think of all those poor children parked in rows of desks for long stretches, when we know that is not how most people learn best.

Students need to be up and doing stuff, exploring, messing up, learning how to think, not just memorizing facts.
There are classrooms where great teachers are helping kids thrive, but rarely are there whole buildings where that is true.
Education by chance stinks. The system has to change.

I think that message is getting louder. There has been a storm of papers and projects in response to the 25th anniversary of a report called "Nation At Risk," from the National Commission on Excellence in Education.

That report found serious problems with what was being taught, how it was taught and who was teaching it. The commission suggested fixes. Now it has become clear that transformation is what's needed.

Thirty percent of students fail to finish high school, and too many of those who get a diploma lack the skills needed to succeed in college or get a good job.

President Obama in his education speech last week urged young people to stay in school. He told them they owe it to their country to work hard.

That same night the Gates Foundation began a new five-year initiative to cut the dropout rate.

The foundation partnered with several television networks that appeal to young people - including MTV and Comedy Central - to air programs that urge kids to stay in school and work hard. The first, the documentary "Get Schooled," aired that evening.

Those are good messages, but they'll work better when more schools give children a reason to stay.

We know children get on the path to dropping out early. They are children who don't learn to read well in elementary school, who are dealing with personal problems, who don't think school is relevant to them, or who are bored.

Much happens outside school that affects how well students learn. That's why I believe in the power of parent training and high-quality education before kindergarten.

But some schools don't let problems outside their walls stop them from connecting with students.

In June I wrote about schools in the Harlem Children's Zone, because we need to listen to stories like theirs. Those schools take in children from poor families, often with single parents. The schools are designed specifically to meet these kids' needs. Children there get excited about school and score well above the average for all New York City schools. Those accomplishments aren't miraculous, they are methodical.

We should talk about those methods and shape better schools for our children.