There really does need to be revolutionary change. Not only are our very systems outdated, (15,000 districts?!!) but our expectations and methods are mired in the 19th century. To be "educated" in the 1800s meant being able to read, do simple math, and be capable of being trained into a craft/career that you'd likely follow your entire life. The classic school house was optimised for just those things, regimented drill, memorize, and recite lessons in a structured environment produced students ready to become apprentices and factory workers. This system was revolutionary for its time and more than anything else contributed to the economic and cultural successes of the U.S. in the late 19th and most of the 20th centuries.
As the pace of innovation continued to accellerate, the needs of students changed. There are almost no career/lifetime jobs that a person can step into directly from high school. The apprenticeship system is virtually dead. It is increasingly rare for anyone to retire (gold watch or no) from the same job or job type they had as a young person.
The value of muscle, sweat, persistence, and other traditional physical hallmarks of a valued employee/productive member of society have been replaced by flexibility, teamwork, and other mental benchmarks. In many ways, no longer needing to be "as strong as a horse", or able to perform mindless tasks for hours and hours on end is a great thing for people.
Yet, we still educate students in essentially the same manner we did in the 1800s (which, really, aside from the innovation of mass-production, is the same model used since the dawn of recorded history).
There is no sane reason that teachers (or a single textbook) should be the main authority on a topic in the classroom. There really isn't a reason for so much that we value and reward in student behavior. For instance, a student that can regurgitate a large amount of memorized fact, or who excels at clearing individual academic challenges is likely to get A's, shine on standardized tests, and be heralded as an example that our schools still work.
Sadly, the very skills that are most needed/valued in the world today such as the ability to synthesize solutions, seek data as needed, and facilitate/cooperate with teams are likely to get a student detention and low grades. It is ironic and absurd that the skills that will best serve students in today's dominant work environments are actually considered "cheating" in our schools.
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