I very much enjoyed the last chapter of Linda Darling-Hammond's The Flat World of Education. It really brought together so much of what I am feeling in my current position. This gave me some reflection on the fact that with California State Standards and CAASPP, we are making some headway.
These changes in policy could make some real changes in education, but we have to agree on them. John Dewey's quote highlights that our democracy is so strong because All means All. They are ALL our students, and in order to have an effective educational system we need to recognize that they are all our students, regardless of background or knowledge. In light of this, there were a few poignant things that I believe will affect a change in education. 1. External Assessments (State and Federal level)--As she notes they need to used "sparingly". Once a year, like CAASPP is, and they need to be focused on capturing if students can analyze and apply the content they have learned. I believe we are moving forward with this. 2. SBA (School Based Assessments)--These need to be the assessments that capture the 21st Century Skills (the 6Cs for us in NVUSD). They need to portfolio work, oral presentations; a way for us to capture this learning at a deeper level. 3. "The Curriculum Wars-Content vs. Skill"--I loved this section where she notes that it can't just be enforced rigid pacing guides, and standards. Those are simply GUIDES, and we need to use them to apply them to our "real children" in our "real classrooms". There will be gaps students have, and we will have to back and re-teach, we need to account for that and deviate if need be. In the work I am currently doing, this quote really resonated with me "...Students need more strategically managed direct instruction and opportunities for inquiry, and that they need to master basic skills in ways that ensure they can decode and multiply as well as higher-order skills that allow them to solve complex problems and produce their own knowledge and products". THEY NEED BOTH! Ahhh, finally some recognition of that. You cannot have these beautiful inquiry based projects, without having mastered the basic skills to complete and participate in those higher order skills that live within the inquiry. 4. Revamping NCLB--"A substantial shift is needed". Darling-Hammond calls for an "intensive development effort" that utilizes federal labs, state universities. Much of this needs to focus on the skills of the practitioner, the teacher. We need expert teachers, who are skilled in how to create, and adapt curriculum for all students. We need to understand how to use the SBA and State Assessment data to inform, shift our teaching. It begins with the teacher, and it can't just be ONE and DONE, it has to be ongoing and maintained by more than just the school district. Dewey's quote is still very relevant today, I would argue even more than ever. As our recent election results reflect, we are deeply divided nation, and we need to put some of the measures in place for equity across our country. Then the states need to step in and provide the vision for our localized education. And now, let the REAL work begin.
3 Comments
Jennifer Wade
11/19/2016 12:48:18 pm
I like that you were so positive here. I think you are correct in stating that we are heading in the right direction. Perhaps I need to look at our current assessments with a less condemning eye. I understand the need, but do worry about the time that it takes away from instruction. The CAASPP it appears takes two weeks to administer. Yikes. Perhaps this would seem less painful if we were not also burdened with the incredibly lengthy CELDT. The amount of manpower and money needed to administer that required test is harmful to school sites like Shearer. When we look at inequity in our school system, and NVUSD specifically, it hardly seems fair that schools that need instructional time the most are short changed by the very thing that gives feedback about their learning.
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Kelley Miller
11/20/2016 12:59:32 pm
I see that, after reading this last chapter, you felt that CAASPP is a step in the right direction. As I was reading, I had to go back and check the copyright date on our book- I wondered if I was going to see any direct comments on our SBACs. I would love to know what Linda Darling-Hammond's take is on our new SBAC tests. They do go beyond the multiple choice answers of which she so clearly disapproves. And, they do go beyond the show-what-you-know in a two- or three- hour sitting. But, since my 8th graders can easily spend 10 hours on their combined ELA and math tests, and since they are tested twice a year every year, I wonder if the pendulum has swung too far.
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Todd Mills
11/22/2016 10:43:43 am
"Dewey's quote is still very relevant today"
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