If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
In a recent speech to the American Educational Research Association, Secretary Arne Duncan asked the assembled researchers to think about developing valid assessments of children's non-cognitive skills.
Obedience to the law is not enough. Americans demand legal and ethical behavior from themselves and their fellow citizens.
It's easy to criticize tests but they represent this country's commitment to improving education for all students -- particularly the least well served. The Common Core is a big step forward and so are the tests that come with it.
As a teacher who is an innovative and outspoken advocate for education and educators, and who takes his profession very seriously, I have only one thing to say to Jeff Bliss and his now historic rant: Bravo, Jeff.
Our students are intelligent and partake in the democratic process that this country was founded on. So if our students feel forced to have a protest to make their voices heard, join them. They are teaching all of us what Democracy looks like, sounds like, and feels like.
Arne Duncan demonstrates a breathtaking lack of awareness about the effects of Race to the Top (RTTT). Far from being chastened by what is going on in schools around the country, the Secretary is doubling down on his test-driven offensive. A look at some of the things he said is eye opening.
When kids first learn to cross the street, we tell them to stop, look both ways and assess the traffic before they proceed. Similarly, when it comes to decisions affecting the education of millions of our nation's public school students, we should exercise the same common sense.
Beliefs that are debatable or even patently false may be repeated so often that at some point they come to be accepted as fact. We seem to have crossed that threshold with the claim that U.S. schools are significantly worse than those in most other countries.
Whether you're cramming for one of the spring exams or looking ahead to the next set of exams in the fall, here are some tips to help you build your confidence and raise your score.
The Washington Post contrasts reinforcement used at some Washington, D.C. schools in order to motivate students when taking standardized tests, with the negative reinforcement used at another, Wilson Elementary.
Rather than waste all this time and money on testing, an alternative is to just throw out the standardized tests and assign students to classes, schools, and colleges, based on their parents' income tax forms. While this may not be fair to students from poorer families, tax revenues would probably rise.
The relationship between New York City, New York State, and Pearson Education must end. Other states and municipalities should reconsider their relationship with Pearson as well. This company and its testing regime have not earned the right to work in American schools.
In schools, as at Enron, the way we select and assess top leaders and accord them recognition needs examination as well. When leaders' desire for celebrity trumps the importance of character, look for trouble.
Standardized testing should not have the overwhelming influence on education that it does. A good teacher knows when her/his students are doing well. Good teachers can create a curriculum and assessments that meet the needs of their students.
I told my daughter that from the first moment I began teaching, I knew that the tests were unjust and I despised them. My disgust with them has only grown with each passing year.
New York State Education Commissioner John King is already warning that student test scores will likely drop this year. The tests themselves are highly suspect but state education departments are not blaming them and the private for-profit companies that develop them.
