A few questions from a non-Parent.
1) I don't get the
problem with teaching
to the test, at least not in Core subjects. When I see HS kids that can't give back change at a Burger King, I suspect they
needed to be taught to the test.
While I realize kids need to be taught to think and should leave school with the ability to evaluate material themselves. They have to have basic skills to even begin that process. A kid that leaves school believing that 2+2=5 will never be able to make good decisions based on evaluating data. Because their basic data is always wrong or incomplete.
A classic example of this is reading. I love reading, but no amount of ability to think for myself will help me if I can't read past a third grade level. I'm having enough trouble getting through Gibbon with a couple of years of college reading skills.
I agree.
2) How else would you evaluate teachers? I certainly agree that the test shouldn't be the only criterion, and certainly the level of the child coming in should be considered. In other words, level of improvement is probably a better evaluator than overall level.
But how does a kid get to Eighth grade with third grade reading skills? Seriously, what criminal signed off on that kids promotion?
The parents. This is that accountability thing I was discussing earlier regarding No Child Left Behind. A parent has to sign off on retention, or summer school (to catch up on lost skills), etc. Most parents won't do it. While social promotion has been a big part of why No Child Left Behind was created, it actually perpetuated the problem and made it worse. A band-aid (at least here in California) is the CAHSEE (California High School Equivalency Exam) which is another standardized test designed to test for basic skills required to graduate high school. It's been pretty controversial because parents complained that it was biased against ELD students, blah blah blah, but personally, I think it's just a tiny baby step in the right direction. Retention is the only thing we really have left legally, and even that has proven to be virtually useless. In most cases, the students don't actually learn the material they missed, or initially failed, and in something like 70% of the cases (I don't have my research here in front of me) these students become 'at risk' and drop out before high school.
3) Where does the money go in our educational system? The only nations that spend more per child to educate are like Luxembourg and some Oil Sheikdom, and yet the rest of the world is kicking our proverbial butts in performance.
A crap TON of it goes to bs administrative bodies at the state level, put in place by the monies provided by No Child Left Behind. Very little of it trickles down to actual classroom, and even at the district level, the majority of it's distribution is determined by the percentage of students on free and reduced lunches. If you live in an area that is fairly affluent, you're going to see less than if you live in a poor area. That's not to mention that schools that are 'Needs Improvement' are required to go through certain types of 'staff development' which often entails schools spending a ton of their money on these 'consultants' that come in and basically sell the teachers repackaged methods that have been around for decades. We actually had a dude come to our school and try to train us how to use venn diagrams. That dude got 3500 bucks for that. As the computer teacher I remember being ticked off by this. That could have been at least three more computers for our school. Money, obviously, doesn't solve everything. We need a complete philosophical shift on how we teach. Some schools, like mine, are already moving towards this.
4) Are we demanding enough of our kids?. I went to a small Christian HS with resources that were comparable but at the time not exceeding the local PS. But I was shocked at how much easier the requirements were in my first couple of years of College. And I got far better grades in College. I suspect that most six graders in Asian societies would embarrass HS seniors in most American public schools.
Actually, Japan has recently noticed a HUGE deficit in the quality of students coming out of their school system because students were educated with a 'soft touch' approach like we have here, although they still come out of school much better at math, reading (in their own language), as well as able to read sheet music, and perform basic art skills. What they're lacking is a work ethic, and natural curiosity beyond the bare minimum, because they've been developed on a lot of praise and reward for very little effort, which is not how the workforce (especially in Japan works). However, Japan, (which is structured very closely to England's school system) is essentially a homogenous society, so they don't encounter a lot of the hurdles we have here in the US, where we have classrooms with students that don't speak any English, and some classrooms have such a variety of students that sometimes there are as many as 5 different primary languages spoken in the home. Additionally, in Japan, they don't have as high a divorce rate, they have a more traditional model (one where parent stays home to raise the kids - with the presence of grandparents being a big part in child raising). This is beyond typical learning disabilities, the rise of students being diagnosed with ADHD, and various degrees of autism, as well as homes that lack structure, educated parents (if there are even two in the house), and a culture that promotes learning. I'm not trying to make excuses or shed responsibilities as a teacher, I'm just trying to point out that when you compare a typical Japanese student to an American student, there's a lot more to it.
I don't have a lot of intel regarding Korea, but I do get a lot of students straight from Korea. Typically, they have a good educational foundation, and if I understand it correctly, they have a similar structure to Japan. The difference between my Korean students and students from other ethnic minorities is the emphasis the parents place on education. To a Korean parent, education is number one priority. While in a lot of my spanish speaking households, by comparison, both parents work long extended hours (if there are even two parents in the household - often there are not), they have a lot more children, and taking care of the family takes precedent over education.
One interesting group of Asian students that I've recently started working with more, are Filipino students. In many ways they kind of fall right between students from Spanish speaking minority groups (actually many speak Spanish) and other Asian students like Koreans. They are warm open people with an emphasis on family, but also possess a strong work ethic, despite a very varied level of prior education (for the students that have recently immigrated). Some lack basic reading/math skills, while some have a great foundation from their home country. Plus their moms and older sisters are smoking hot
I could digress all day on this, but my point is a direct comparison of our students to 'Asian' students is difficult to do because students that are considered 'Asian' come from many different countries with many different cultural backgrounds. But I know the stereo-type you were referring to.
I do suspect that little Johnny, Suzy, Juanita, or Tyrone is shocked when they leave school and realize their boss at the store is not worried about their self esteem and does actually grade on performance on a test called "work" every day. There are only so many jobs available at the DMV, some of them will actually have to have skills and know how to use them to make a living.
Yep. Couldn't agree with you more. I tell this to my students everyday, especially the ones that try to give me an excuse for not having their homework.
Overall, Burk, I agree with you. Just wanted to expand on a few good points your brought up.
They don't do that anymore, but still. Obviously, comps aren't the same thing as standardized tests, but I do find it interesting.
