GOVERNOR PATRICK has appointed a who's who of practitioners and advocates to two task forces that will advise him on major education legislation he plans to file in May. The preponderance of insiders will be an asset if their proposals are sound, and if they are invested in helping the legislation succeed. It will be a liability if the groups embrace little variation from the status quo.

One promising sign is that Patrick mentioned classroom strategies first; bureaucratic structure second. The governor has said he wants to link the various levels of education more smoothly. This is a worthwhile goal, and Patrick has already given Dana Mohler-Faria, his education adviser and the president of Bridgewater State College, a mandate to consider pre-kindergarten through college. Creating a cabinet-level position with that wide perspective might make sense. But any talk of an education czar -- with broad powers over the budget, personnel, and other matters -- is premature at best and possibly a waste of political capital with little benefit.

The need is for a clear-eyed focus on the major problems that still exist in the state's public education system, most of which are well known. Too many youngsters arrive at kindergarten not ready to learn. The achievement gap for minority and poor students persists, and often widens in higher grades. Many urban schools fail to deliver quality education. Dropouts are still a major problem. Weak math and science achievement means good jobs in the state's high-tech economy go begging. More value needs to be put on high attainment, not just on passing the MCAS tests. There is too little coordination between high schools and college. All levels of public higher education include far too many weak elements, and student fees are unconscionably high. Persons eager for adult education should not be told to wait. All levels should know that their competitors are not just in North Carolina, but also in Singapore.

The task forces should encourage a variety of responses, such as those from a national panel that recently advocated a shift toward state rather than local control of K-12 schools, merit ratings for teachers combined with greatly increased pay, social services for disadvantaged students, and the admission of qualified students to college at age 16. All three Massachusetts members of that panel are on Patrick's pre-K-12 task force. In picking Paul Reville, the director of the Rennie Center on Education Policy and Research, to head that group, and Bob Antonucci, president of Fitchburg State College, to chair the higher-education task force, Patrick has tapped respected educators.

Once their groups have looked searchingly at problems and responses, it will be time to consider how changes in the governance structure might advance the best strategies.

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