Yesterday, President Obama said that there should be a new way to measure school effectiveness for student achievement. He would do away with standardized testing and make use of other means such as high school graduation, attendance rate and college preparedness as a means to measure school effectiveness.
Having just finished CSAP (Colorado standard tests) before spring break, I would have to agree with our president on finding alternative methods for assessing students and the effectiveness of teachers and school. For instance, I have one student who spent the last 8 weeks between Christmas and the tests just doing chapter summary pages at the end of the math textbook. This coupled with summary lessons from her teacher over the material encompasses the information she was expected to know for her grade level on the CSAP test. If this isn't a classic example of teaching to the tests, I don't know what is. Did my student retain the information? Usually not which is why I had to go in and reteach the information to her in order for her to complete her homework.
However, as we already discussed in former posts (see Bruce Randolph School and Higher Graduation Rates = More Remediation?!?!?, the types of accountability being suggested are not necessarily effective ways to measure school success either. Competition seems to be the only thing that works in business to keep people on their toes and effective, so why aren't we applying that to schools? Unfortunately, charter schools are judged before they have a chance to be effective (see NYC Experiment - Part 2) or the results are marginalized rather than emphasis on specific positive impact.
Showing posts with label achievement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label achievement. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Sunday, March 13, 2011
NYC School Experiment - Part 2
First off, I do have to say how disappointed I was that this was only 13 or so minutes out of the whole episode. Also, I found that Katie's ignorance on why a school after only its first year (and probably the testing was done in March of their first year) didn't have better test results. Sorry, can't fix a kid who can't read in 5th grade overnight. Just doesn't work that way. Not to mention that they said 2/3 of the kids that came there were reading below grade level when they first arrived.
There were some things that I really did like about the model for the school such as no asst. principal or other duplicate staff members that take up much of the expense of running a school. The principal said that he looks for 3 things in a good teacher, all things I can also agree with are important; Classroom Management, Student Engagement, and Evidence that shows student achievement. Although, I think we all expect that from the typical public school, don't we? Plus the teachers don't have a contract. They are like any other business employee, an at will employee which means they can be fired any time.
However, I am concerned that their employees said they were putting in 80 to 90 hours a week! When do you have time to sleep? I also felt badly for the one teacher who said she put her family on the back burner for this job. Was it really worth $125K? They are often video taped for training and review purposes which occur after school hours. Since they don't have as many staff, it seemed like they never had a break to plan for their classes. Another thing that puzzled me is the ratio of 16.5 students per teacher and yet many of the class sizes were 30 kids.
Honestly, I love what I do and sometimes work 12-16 hour days myself. But as much as I love kids, I don't think I could work in this environment even for $125K. It was interesting because Katie asked the one of the two teachers that was fired after the first year how she felt about it and she said that she was actually relieved. I think I would be too.
I am still not sure that the TEP School is the answer to our education woes. I think you could pay a little less, hire a few more staff members and possibly get the same if not better results because your teachers aren't working 80 hours of work each week. Yes, high salaries will attract good teachers, but I think it would attract any teacher. Like the good principal said, "There are great teachers in almost every public school in the city." Yet, I can guarantee they aren't there because of the money.
Here is the video in case you missed it.
There were some things that I really did like about the model for the school such as no asst. principal or other duplicate staff members that take up much of the expense of running a school. The principal said that he looks for 3 things in a good teacher, all things I can also agree with are important; Classroom Management, Student Engagement, and Evidence that shows student achievement. Although, I think we all expect that from the typical public school, don't we? Plus the teachers don't have a contract. They are like any other business employee, an at will employee which means they can be fired any time.
However, I am concerned that their employees said they were putting in 80 to 90 hours a week! When do you have time to sleep? I also felt badly for the one teacher who said she put her family on the back burner for this job. Was it really worth $125K? They are often video taped for training and review purposes which occur after school hours. Since they don't have as many staff, it seemed like they never had a break to plan for their classes. Another thing that puzzled me is the ratio of 16.5 students per teacher and yet many of the class sizes were 30 kids.
Honestly, I love what I do and sometimes work 12-16 hour days myself. But as much as I love kids, I don't think I could work in this environment even for $125K. It was interesting because Katie asked the one of the two teachers that was fired after the first year how she felt about it and she said that she was actually relieved. I think I would be too.
I am still not sure that the TEP School is the answer to our education woes. I think you could pay a little less, hire a few more staff members and possibly get the same if not better results because your teachers aren't working 80 hours of work each week. Yes, high salaries will attract good teachers, but I think it would attract any teacher. Like the good principal said, "There are great teachers in almost every public school in the city." Yet, I can guarantee they aren't there because of the money.
Here is the video in case you missed it.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Higher Graduation = More Remediation?!?!?
I am not sure how they can explain this one away! The Denver Post reported last week that while High School dropout rates have dropped and more students are graduating, colleges are reporting that they are now having to provide more remedial classes.
This doesn't make much sense to me. But then again neither does the teacher changing a grade because the administration put pressure on them for failing too many kids or because the parent called to ask what all those extra special education classes are for if the child isn't succeeding in the classroom. Instead, it seems that the schools are lowering their standards rather than figuring out how to teach these children. However, I am not sure that is the only thing going on here. In our label happy, over medicated, and over stimulated society, I think we have hyped up disability as an excuse.
Yes, I did say that. I work with children and adults who have disabilities on a daily basis. It is very real and for some it impedes their ability to live independently. Yet, I see some families and therefore their kids using that excuse as an explanation for their failure. They become apathetic and no longer want to take personal responsibility for their own actions. It is something that has become more and more prevalent in our society and it makes me sad.
In my generation, Special Education was just beginning its movement. It was about bringing those kids and adults, who were hidden in the shadows, out to shine in the spotlight! Yet children who didn't fit in the mainstream had to find their own way. Hundreds of children went undiagnosed with Aspergers, AD/HD, sensory, or processing disorders. They had to forge ahead like those before them. Many of those people went on to be our best scientists and out of the box thinkers.
So how do we change the mindset? How do we get kids back on their feet, confident in themselves and their own abilities? I know that I don't have all the answers, but I am sure going to try everything I can to make every child and adult I work with see the value of wanting to learn, setting goals, and reaching for the stars! For my students, there is no excuse for not trying their hardest and working towards their goals.
Oh, and one more thing, it is ok fantastic to be different! That is what makes you special and uniquely who you are.
This doesn't make much sense to me. But then again neither does the teacher changing a grade because the administration put pressure on them for failing too many kids or because the parent called to ask what all those extra special education classes are for if the child isn't succeeding in the classroom. Instead, it seems that the schools are lowering their standards rather than figuring out how to teach these children. However, I am not sure that is the only thing going on here. In our label happy, over medicated, and over stimulated society, I think we have hyped up disability as an excuse.
Yes, I did say that. I work with children and adults who have disabilities on a daily basis. It is very real and for some it impedes their ability to live independently. Yet, I see some families and therefore their kids using that excuse as an explanation for their failure. They become apathetic and no longer want to take personal responsibility for their own actions. It is something that has become more and more prevalent in our society and it makes me sad.
In my generation, Special Education was just beginning its movement. It was about bringing those kids and adults, who were hidden in the shadows, out to shine in the spotlight! Yet children who didn't fit in the mainstream had to find their own way. Hundreds of children went undiagnosed with Aspergers, AD/HD, sensory, or processing disorders. They had to forge ahead like those before them. Many of those people went on to be our best scientists and out of the box thinkers.
So how do we change the mindset? How do we get kids back on their feet, confident in themselves and their own abilities? I know that I don't have all the answers, but I am sure going to try everything I can to make every child and adult I work with see the value of wanting to learn, setting goals, and reaching for the stars! For my students, there is no excuse for not trying their hardest and working towards their goals.
Oh, and one more thing, it is
Saturday, August 21, 2010
The Summer Controversy
Summer is over here. The kids went back to school earlier this week. Everyone is excited to meet new teachers and friends and get going with a fresh start to a new year. But yet, already I see some of the disappointment in some of my students, after only 2 or 3 days back. The reality of school work sets in and their self-esteem is already suffering.
For instance, a student who worked hard with me all summer to complete her summer homework on time is not praised for doing so, but rather told that the work will be collected next week because too many other students hadn't completed theirs yet. Another student who is excited to do geometry loses his excitement when he finds out that they will be reviewing algebra for the first two weeks, a class in which he battled with for most of last school year, unsuccessfully. Not all the stories are bad, but enough to frustrate me when I hear, yet again, the push for longer school days or school years.
I am sure some of you will be surprised to hear that I am a proponent of year round school, if it is done effectively with breaks between units or quarters that would still entail the same number of days off the students currently receive. I think it would be beneficial to not have such a large number of consecutive weeks off for students. There is regression for down instructional time and I can't ignore that. Your brain needs to be used continually and when you take time away from practicing something like multiplication or writing, it becomes a bit rusty and difficult to get moving again.
However, I also know that summer is a time for a student to recharge, especially those with learning disabilities that struggle in the classroom. It is a time for them to do things in which they excel like summer camps for their interests, watching neighbor dogs, baby sitting, or even just exploring the neighborhood pond looking for bugs and frogs. All of these are learning experiences of their own and I believe of great value to our kids who spend 6-7 hours a day sitting in a classroom without much real world interaction. (I seem to remember taking many more field trips as a child than the students of today are afforded.)
So, when Time Magazine prints a cover article such as "The Case Against Summer Vacation" I shudder. Especially when the print version of the article includes graphs that don't necessary support their case. In fact, it showed that the number of hours our students spend in school was very high when compared to other countries in the world with higher achievement rates. So what does that tell us? According to this research brief put out by ASCD (formerly the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development), "Changes in instructional time do not generally increase or decrease student achievement, unless such changes go beyond unusually low, or high, amounts of time. Curriculum and instructional quality appear to have a much greater effect on achievement than do total hours of instructional time." (ASCD, 2005).
Wow, from 2005? So this research has been around for 5 years and we are still talking about increasing instructional time? Yes, and I would again suggest that it has more to do with money for the teachers, administrators, and the unions than it has to do with educating students effectively. But it seems that no one is listening, so the controversy will continue on and those who want longer school days/years seem to have the loudest voices and the highest positions to affect change, even if it isn't in the best interest of our children.
For instance, a student who worked hard with me all summer to complete her summer homework on time is not praised for doing so, but rather told that the work will be collected next week because too many other students hadn't completed theirs yet. Another student who is excited to do geometry loses his excitement when he finds out that they will be reviewing algebra for the first two weeks, a class in which he battled with for most of last school year, unsuccessfully. Not all the stories are bad, but enough to frustrate me when I hear, yet again, the push for longer school days or school years.
I am sure some of you will be surprised to hear that I am a proponent of year round school, if it is done effectively with breaks between units or quarters that would still entail the same number of days off the students currently receive. I think it would be beneficial to not have such a large number of consecutive weeks off for students. There is regression for down instructional time and I can't ignore that. Your brain needs to be used continually and when you take time away from practicing something like multiplication or writing, it becomes a bit rusty and difficult to get moving again.
However, I also know that summer is a time for a student to recharge, especially those with learning disabilities that struggle in the classroom. It is a time for them to do things in which they excel like summer camps for their interests, watching neighbor dogs, baby sitting, or even just exploring the neighborhood pond looking for bugs and frogs. All of these are learning experiences of their own and I believe of great value to our kids who spend 6-7 hours a day sitting in a classroom without much real world interaction. (I seem to remember taking many more field trips as a child than the students of today are afforded.)
So, when Time Magazine prints a cover article such as "The Case Against Summer Vacation" I shudder. Especially when the print version of the article includes graphs that don't necessary support their case. In fact, it showed that the number of hours our students spend in school was very high when compared to other countries in the world with higher achievement rates. So what does that tell us? According to this research brief put out by ASCD (formerly the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development), "Changes in instructional time do not generally increase or decrease student achievement, unless such changes go beyond unusually low, or high, amounts of time. Curriculum and instructional quality appear to have a much greater effect on achievement than do total hours of instructional time." (ASCD, 2005).
Wow, from 2005? So this research has been around for 5 years and we are still talking about increasing instructional time? Yes, and I would again suggest that it has more to do with money for the teachers, administrators, and the unions than it has to do with educating students effectively. But it seems that no one is listening, so the controversy will continue on and those who want longer school days/years seem to have the loudest voices and the highest positions to affect change, even if it isn't in the best interest of our children.
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