Food for Thought

I recently finished a book, Catching Up or Leading the Way, American Education in the Age of Globalization.
As I was reading the book I tried to highlight certain parts that "spoke" to me. Here are a couple of sentences taken from Chapter 2 (From Missle Gap to the Learning Gap).

The warning that American education is broken is not new. Neither are the proposed fixes. A look at history helps us understand how American education has become increasingly authoritarian and how the public and even educators surrendered their rights to governments to decide what counts as good education.


Taken from Chapter 3 (Why America Hasn't Lost Yet).

Thus we face a choice of what we want; a diversity of talents, of individuals who are passionate, curious, self-confident, and risk taking; or a nation of excellent test takers, outstanding performers on math and reading tests.

Interesting points of view... Thoughts???

Blogs for Teachers

Teachers: Here are some interesting blogs for you to look through. I took the time to look through a few of them; as always, some are more helpful than others.

100 Blogs every New Teacher should read: http://www.onlineschools.org/2009/10/20/100-blogs-every-new-teacher-should-read/

What do you think Seniors???

No More Pencils, No More Books: Eliminating Senior Year

from Change.org's Education Blog by Jessica Shiller

via "DABA" via Scott

Want to get rid of senior year? If you ask most 12th graders, the answer would be a resounding, "Yes!" Why not? Senior year, especially that last half where most seniors are cruising to graduation, does not seem like an especially engaging time. When we grownups think of senior year, we might remember partying and hanging out with friends, not hitting the books. Why should seniors get to do that on the state's dime?

That's exactly what Utah state senator Chris Buttars has argued. Recently he introduced a bill to eliminate the 12th grade in all public high schools, which would save $60 million dollars, in an attempt to make a dent in the state $700 million dollar shortfall.

The idea has been controversial, to say the very least (just google 12th grade cut Utah to see the comments on the blogosphere). But other states are considering a similar option, in which students would graduate by exam after 10th grade so that they can enter community college. This one has not been billed as a money saver, but an idea that would reduce the number of remedial courses that students would need to take in college, since passing the exam would indicate a level of proficiency needed for college courses.

Big changes in the school system are often proposed during times of economic crisis, but eliminating whole grades from school? Seems like the students that would benefit most from having public school for longer would get left out in the cold. Graduating in 11th grade and having to look for a job in a dismal market is not much of an option. Going to community college or a vocational program could offer more, but with graduation rates pretty low, around 25% -- to the point that the Gates Foundation is getting involved to help community colleges do better by their students -- this also doesn't seem like a suitable substitute for a full high school education.

Students who don't do well early in high school might be left with dead-end options. At least if those students have a couple more years, they can try and improve their grades for college, but under these grade elimination plans, there is no room for that. Young people will be sorted into vocational and college-bound tracks at age 15. No more messing around kids: decisions about your futures will be made very early on in life. So much for the late bloomer.

Photo credit: Loren Javier

Heartland AEA 1:1 Resources

from The Changing Face of Education in Iowa by Evan Abbey

via "DABA" via Scott

I am at the Heartland area superintendents' monthly meeting this morning, where there will be a large focus on 1:1 schools and the process involved. Van Meter's superintendent John Carver and high school principal Deron Durflinger will be presenting about their district's initiative, and later Jeff Dicks, superintendent from Newell-Fonda, will be discussing some of the growing pains involved with a district going 1:1.

For those in the Heartland area, or in Iowa for that matter, here is a quick look at the best resources we offer for schools looking to go 1:1.

• 1to1schools.org is a blog coordinated by Scott McLeod, director of Iowa State's CASTLE institute
• CASTLE is partnering with the AEAs to put a wiki of information on the 1:1 process
• On that wiki, there is a listing of other 1:1 schools in Iowa with contact information
• Also on that wiki is some information about the upcoming spring conference for Iowa 1:1 schools
• The Digital Curriculum (pdf) is a framework for how to teach with ubiquitous access
• From our professional library, Pamela Livingston's 1-to-1 Learning: Laptop Programs that Work (2nd edition) is a must read, detailing not only the necessary steps for schools, but also highlighting some of the pioneers in 1:1 use.
• SAI is in its second year of offering leadership training in transitioning schools to the 21st century. Heartland also offers leadership training in the form of an online course/community on how to lead schools in a 21st century tech-infused school.
  

Those interested in knowing more about 1:1 implementation, access and integration are encouraged to visit with either me or one of Heartland's educational technology consultants, Denise Krefting, Toy Waterman, Steve Linduska, or Wade Andersen.

NCLB Overhaul to Abandon Bush's "Utopian Goal"

via "DABA" via Scott

Since its inception eight years ago, the Bush-era No Child Left Behind Act has been both panned and praised by educators and policy reformers. Love it or leave it, the Obama administration says NCLB is here to stay. But a major overhaul is in the works that will vastly change the way that NCLB will measure school and student success and distribute resources in the future.

Yesterday, the government revealed the outline of its proposed changes to NCLB, alongside the announcement of its $3.8 trillion budget for the 2011 fiscal year. The most notable change? The new plan would abandon the deadline for every American child to achieve academic proficiency by 2014, which Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has called a “utopian goal.”

Instead, the overhaul would institute a new measure of success: whether students graduating from high school are “college- and career-ready.” This sounds a whole lot better than setting an arbitrary deadline for mass student “proficiency,” but it still seems awfully vague. Just what does it mean to be career ready? And does that align with standards for college readiness, or do the two represent different sets of expectations? For now, the definition of what it means to be college- and career-ready is up in the air, and with it the basis for the success of the nation's entire education system.

Bush’s NCLB was remarkably good at labeling schools and teachers as failing, but a lot less effective when it came to fixing the problems. The new changes to NCLB aim to tweak how school success is measured and provide more allowances for school progress versus straight-up performance. Likewise, it will modify the system by which federal funding is apportioned to encourage competition, much in the way that Race to the Top, the federal grant program, has states competing for $4 billion in stimulus money.

The standards and accountability drive of the past eight years has identified countless problems in our education system, and created a few of its own. Will Obama’s reforms start providing solutions? It will take time (and passage through Congress) to find out.

Some schools rethink bans on cell phones

Is this the wave of the future, or are schools just giving up? Very interesting article to read and discuss. I sure have my opinions...

Some schools rethink bans on cell phones
msnbc.com
More than 100 students were suspended last month at Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven, Conn. They weren't bullies. ...