Change? How much? To what Degree?


It is fairly obvious that the present Bush Administration’s Department of Education is locked into their process of “test and punish” with relation to No Child Left Behind. Responding to much criticism over many years, their idea of profound change of the process is to develop a pilot program in which schools can now be labeled with different levels of failure.

The announcement of this new (March, 2008) policy creating a spectrum of failure came with the following press release: “Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings today announced a new pilot program under No Child Left Behind aimed at helping states differentiate between underperforming schools in need of dramatic interventions and those that are closer to meeting the goals of No Child Left Behind. I'm announcing a new pilot that will help states improve underperforming schools. This "differentiated accountability" program will invite up to 10 states to create more nuanced ways of distinguishing between schools in need of dramatic intervention, and those that are closer to meeting goals.” http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2008/03/03182008.html

This new policy sounds as effective in dealing with the deficiencies of NCLB as rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

As you know by now, Arne Duncan has just been named the U.S. Secretary of Education in the Obama administration. Will he propose changes to Congress concerning the reauthorization of NCLB? If so, then what kinds of changes?

Some hints might come from his writings. Arne Duncan was one of the original task force members & signatories of the position paper A Broader, Bolder Approach to Education. http://www.boldapproach.org/statement.html

Some of the points made in the position paper were:
-- “The effectiveness of NCLB has also been weakened by its unintended side effects, such as a narrowing of the curriculum”
--“…the broader, bolder approach pays attention not only to basic academic skills and cognitive growth narrowly defined, but to development of the whole person…”
--“[The new approach] assigns value to the new knowledge and skills that young people need to become effective participants in a global environment…”
--“… test scores alone cannot describe a school’s contribution to the full range of student outcomes.”
--“New accountability systems should combine appropriate qualitative and quantitative methods, and they will be considerably more expensive than the flawed accountability systems currently in use by the federal and state governments.”

In a speech Nov. 17, 2008 in New York, Arne Duncan stated of Obama “He is interested in results. … Rather than debate governance models – he urges an open mind to new strategies and approaches. He will support whatever works best.” http://scholasticadministrator.typepad.com/thisweekineducation/2008/11/transition-chic.html

Obama’s campaign education platform stated: “Obama and Biden believe teachers should not be forced to spend the academic year preparing students to fill in bubbles on standardized tests. They will improve the assessments used to track student progress to measure readiness for college and the workplace and improve student learning in a timely, individualized manner. Obama and Biden will also improve NCLB's accountability system so that we are supporting schools that need improvement, rather than punishing them.”
http://change.gov/agenda/education_agenda/

The important questions are will Mr. Duncan continue the tradition of rearranging deck chairs? Or will more substantial change to NCLB occur?

What do you think?



(Titanic image courtesy of National Institute of Standards and Technology)

All Grown-ups Were Once Children

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's preface to The Little Prince declares that “All grown-ups were once children – although few of them remember it.”

Later on this delightful story affirms “Grown-ups love figures. When you tell them you have made a new friend, they never ask any questions of essential matters. They never say, 'What does his voice sound like? What game does he love best? Does he collect butterflies?' Instead, they demand: 'How old is he? How many brothers has he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make?' Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him.”

“If you were to say to the grown-ups: 'I saw a beautiful house made of rosy brick, with geraniums in the windows and doves on the roof,' they would not be able to get any idea of that house at all. You would have to say to them: 'I saw a house that cost $20,000. Then they would exclaim, 'Oh, what a pretty house that is!'”

“Just so, you might say to them: 'The proof that the little prince existed is that he was charming, that he laughed, and that he was looking for a sheep. If anybody wants a sheep, that is proof that he exists.' And what good would it do to tell that to them? They would shrug their shoulders, and treat you like a child. But if you said to them: 'The planet he came from is Asteroid B-612,' then they would be convinced, and leave you in peace from their questions.”

“They are like that. One must not hold it against them. Children should always show great forbearance toward grown-up people.”

The structure of high-stakes testing pulls educators toward a system in which content is assessed in ways from which numbers can easily be obtained. For example, a multiple choice evaluation is preferred to a portfolio. A “choose the best answer” approach is preferred over a project. Some educators rationalize such approaches by asserting that assessing in any other way would take too much time.

I propose that we focus on other things besides our grown-up desire to obtain numbers quickly. Focus learning instead on engagement, on questioning, on problem-solving. Address the ways to involve students in the entire process and spectrum of learning and not just spotlighting the content which “fill in the circle” tests tend to emphasize. The educational products we ask our children to make determine the mental processes we expect them to exercise. Having our students wade through the type of learning activities for something that can easily be reduced to a series of numbers because grown-ups demand such processes does a tremendous disservice to our children.

As of now in schools, March is the month of drill and review in preparation for THE TEST. One of my graduate students, a first year teacher, recently reflected of what happens in March. "I am quickly becoming accustomed to what exactly is deemed as "important" in the schools. I, personally, was terrified come state testing time because I was so unfamiliar with the process, emphasis, and everything else that comes along with the standardized tests. You could feel the aura in the school change. Nerves were increasing and all of the teachers were on edge."

Instead, March could be the month when our children look forward to showcasing their creations and demonstrating their learnings. Teachers could have been assessing students' progress along the way in a manner that complemented their learning. For an example of a state doing just that, read How Nebraska Leaves No Child Behind.

Saint-Exupéry exclaimed, “No grown-up will ever understand that this is a matter of so much importance!” David Thornburg asks "When did joy leave education?" I pray that we all remember the excitement, the wonder, and the joy we felt as children while learning, and that teachers again can feel while teaching.



References and Citations:

Look at what is happening in North Carolina with respect to senior projects and alternative assessments.

How Nebraska Leaves No Child Behind by Sonja Steptoe, Time Magazine online, 5/30/07

Image Copyright Daryl Cargel; used with permission

Quotes taken from The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Harcourt Inc.

A Beacon in the Darkness

In case your missed it, Ronald Wolk in Teacher Magazine reports that New Hampshire is instituting performance based / competency based assessments for their high school students. According to Wolk, this means that means that “student will have to demonstrate mastery of content – not through memorization, but through performances, portfolios, or projects that encourage them to think and solve problems…” The data from pilot schools seems very promising. This article is worth reading, if only to point out that there are other ways to teach and assess students.

Reference: The Real World, Teacher Magazine, Jan/Feb 2007 p. 54 by Ronald A. Wolk