Scapegoating unions for systemic problems?

Many believe that problems relating to the school system and especially the quality of teachers are squarely on the backs of the unions.  After all, unions protect bad teachers don't they? In a recent "letter to the editor" of Education Week, Richard Berman stated "America's national teachers unions - the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers - are notorious for protecting underwhelming teachers through generous tenure policies and last-in first-out firing procedures"  (Education Week, April 27 2016)

Although this may be the artificial consensus of many, it is essential that we take a deeper look at the process.  Having been a teacher and a school administrator, I have seen both sides of the issue.  My first thoughts are that if Principals would do there homework, they would be better able to hold teachers accountable.  The unions job, first and foremost is to assure an even playing field as well as insist on due process.

Of course scapegoating Principals would be another artificial quick fix.  Principals rarely have time to properly assess teachers not to mention provide needed support.  And without those two ingredients, neither the even playing field nor due process could be done effectively. By eliminating tenure, we simply eliminate due process.  And by eliminating last-in first-out simply allows a sneaky way to fire without due process.

But the question still remains, how do we provide teacher support as well as a thorough assessment to assure parents that their children are receiving the best education possible?  After retirement I served as a mentor and assessor for first year teachers.  I found my colleagues were of the highest integrity. Passionate about supporting quality teaching and just as passionate about keeping ineffective teachers out of schools.

The big difference between what we did and what Principals do now, is that we had the time to do an accurate assessment as well as provide a strong support system.  And when it came to due process, all of our ducks were in a row.  And that's what unions want, fairness.

<www.wholechildreform.com>

Do we ask the right questions about school quality?

Several questions are often asked when determining the success of a school.

One of the questions that is asked is how many students graduated on time.  “On time” is the issue that forces most kids out of school.  And if the fundamental purpose of education is to assure students are prepared for the future, whether they do it on time, a month later or two months earlier should be irrelevant.

Consider this:  A student fails second grade.  Since that student’s chances of graduating on time are diminished, should he/she go home and forget third grade and beyond?  Of course that doesn’t happen but it does happen in ninth grade on a regular basis.  That is the number one reason for drop outs.

Also consider the reality that kids don’t get their teeth at the same time, they don’t start talking at the same time, they don’t start walking at the same time, they don’t recognize colors at the same time, but when they get into first grade they must be at the same time, at the same place in the text book, learning the same way, scoring the same on an artificial test and on and on.

2.     The second question often asked is "How many are proficient?"  Again proficient is based on everyone learning at the same rate.  If you are “proficient” 3 months later it doesn’t count as being proficient.

Everything has a deadline.  What if standards were guidelines for success rather than deadlines for failure.  What if we realized kids learn in different ways and at different rates?  And what if kids demonstrated learning for their assessment.  Rather than stating the scientific method, they demonstrated it through a science project for their assessment.

What is a good school and what is a bad school?  Under the current system, no one knows.  And a test score says nothing!

www.wholechildreform.com

Seven questions to ask about Common Core

Seven questions to ask about Common Core

OK, so now it it seven questions :-)

Given that is not the nature of human beings to be at the same place at the same time academically and the range goes from sever cognitively disabled to highly academically skilled, are standards guidelines for success or deadlines for failure?  Are students punished for being at a different place or is failure a positive learning experience?

Given Dr. Howard Gardner’s proven Theory of Multiple Intelligences, does Common Core allow for each child to follow their pathway to successful achievement of proficiency?

Given Dr. Gardner’s theory, how does Common Core allow students to demonstrate learning in the way they do it best?

Given that kids’ ability to adapt to a setting varies as do kids’ attention span and other characteristics, how does Common Core allow for an assessment setting conducive for each child?

Given that assessment is only as good as the information gathered and its application to the education of the child, how does Common Core allow for immediate feedback to teachers?

Given that our culture is widely diverse, how do we assure standards are authentic to grade levels?

Given that standards must be guidelines for success, how do we show student progress throughout the year?

Let me be clear.  I support accountability and the effort to assure all children succeed.
To accomplish this Common Core must be changed forward.

Please respond if you have more questions relating to students.

www.wholechildreform.com

The Stupidity of School Competition and the Games They Play

Competition in education is probably the dumbest thing one can imagine.  How can that be said when competition makes businesses stronger and better and the wivets they make must out do the other companies in order to sell more and make the company thrive?  

The key words here are several:  First is “to make the company thrive”.  Does the “company” now become the greatest issue and the wivets, meaning the students become a lesser issue?  The biggest issue in business is to make a profit selling the product.  This means the cost of manufacturing the product must be less than the selling price.  In other words, the cheaper the cost, the better even if it means cutting corners.   And if a few of their products end up killing people, they can afford that.  It is cheaper to cut corners.  We see that in the auto industry on a regular basis.  Guess what?  We can’t recall kids.  Those who drafted the No Child Left Behind legislation obviously didn’t understand the “No Child” part because they left many behind.

The second on my most stupid list is the insane thought that competition makes for better students.  The real question becomes whose kids do you want to see fail?  Because if the “other” kids fail, then my kids are the best and we win the competition.  And to ensure that happens, we will covet our ideas so we can win.  If we come up with a great idea that works for kids, we will keep it to ourselves so that only our kids get smart.  Yes folks! That is what competition does.

But wait a minute.  What if we don’t have better ideas?  We still have to win, how can we do it?  How can we make our school look better?

Let the games begin.  We are well familiar with the scandals in recent years, erasing scores to make them better, but few realize the most effective of the games that are played by administrators.  As an administrator I have seen these games in the past and they have been played for years,undetected.
 

        The lottery:  This seems innocent enough but the problem is that those kids with readily available support systems apply leaving others behind.  And there is no telling what happens behind closed doors with the winners and losers.

2       Special needs kids:  Those who give excuses for not servicing the kids who need us the most are most likely to do the same for any kids who don’t fit there mold.  The goal is to cleanse the environment and get the highest scoring kids, while excluding the lowest scoring.

 

3      The artificial test:  Of course the best way to make your kids look best is to become good at teaching to the test.  This is improved through more sitting time to memorize what is needed.  What is not said is when you focus on that, you take kids away from the kind of hands on learning that is valuable when they enter the community.  Leaving school with artificial knowledge leaves kids unprepared for the world.  This is done to give the privileged a leg up as they have more resources to provide real education. But their test scores are good! And the pipeline to prison continues.

4       Raising the bar: This is a well-known trick.  Although many think it will make all kids smarter, what it really does is take those who are reaching for the bottom rung of the ladder and pushes them off, face first into the mud.  “Hey teacher, I think I will make it this time”.  Sorry kid we just raised the bar”.

5      Suspension:  Low scoring kids are suspended or given a time out on the day before the test so those scores don’t show up.  That’s easy to do with the anxiety that is caused by the test.

6       Push out:  The late Steve Orel from the World of Opportunity School termed the phrase “push out” for students excluded from school.  And there are many excuses to push kids out but where do they go?  They go to traditional public schools allowing the schools of privilege to point their fingers and say what bad schools the traditional schools are.  Remember, with competition, the goal is to make other kids look stupid to let your kids look good.

          Money:  And of course, money gets taken away from the schools that take the kids who need us the most.

8       Poverty isn’t destiny:  This is my favorite.  Actually to some extent they are right.  Those kids in poverty that have a strong support system might actually do well.  It’s the effects of poverty that are of concern.  Most kids in poverty have childhood stress and other issues that, under the current 18^th century system of education is destiny.  Here is how it is played.  The school leaders say “we have all poverty kids and they all graduated and went to college.”  However they don’t say which poverty kids they have.  Are they those who have the strong support systems or the ones who are struggling?  They depend on the rest of the world adhering to the racist belief that all poor black children are the same, blossom at the same time and are struggling and the school miraculously steps in and saves them while they skim the most successful off the top.  I might add that another Favorite of mine is “my kids come from single parent families and they all graduated”, thus insulting some great single parents out there who work their butts off to take care of their kids, and there are many.

9      And they all graduated:  One of my middle school kids went to high school where she dropped out after three years.  I went to graduation and low and behold she walks across the stage.  Get the drift?

     And the games go on!      

     In a recent interview on CNN the interviewer asked why the charter schools and the traditional public schools don’t get together.  That’s simple, they are competitors. Can you imagine what collaboration would do?  And for solutions?  Sorry guys, you'll have to read my book.       

https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781475817713

www.wholechildreform.com

Education assessment must begin now in Flint Michigan

The crises in Flint Michigan, has endangered many of their residence.  Of significant importance is the potential for damage to the children.  Of course we do not know how many children have been damaged nor do we know the extent of the damage.  However, we cannot afford to wait to provide needed services supported by educational assessment to all children. 

The type of assessment needed is a wide range multi-disciplinary assessment beginning with a small one on one test or tests that cover a wide range of cognitive skills.  Of significant importance is that this information is immediately available to the classroom teacher. It is extremely importance that the tests are small and they are given one on one to assure the most accurate results and that these are pre and post-tests to monitor progress.

This information to the teacher will allow that teacher to understand where to begin the process of education, a jumping off point.  From there ongoing classroom assessments would be available to assure progress is being made.  These assessments include anecdotal notes, portfolio assessments, demonstration of learning, self-assessments as well as progress on achieving learning goals.

Assessments are not only for academics.  We must also look for developmental milestones as well as adaptive behavior, especially in children 0-5 years old. Information provided by the parent, those in the community as well as classrooms are all significant.  No additional tests in the classroom are necessary and should be avoided in lieu of first class, hands on achievement.  This will allow parents of children in Flint Michigan to have the comfort of knowing exactly where their children stand.

Along with this ongoing assessment, services must be provided where needed.  These services must be immediate to reduce the effects of the poison their children have been drinking.  Remember, there is the possibility that some or all of the children might not be affected.  However, it is essential that we not wait until it is too late to tackle the situation.  We must assure the safety and education of every child.

For those determined to have educational, social or emotional needs, there must be immediate action.  And that action must be based solely on the needs of the children.  To label kids as special education or any other obsolete label would take the focus off specific needs putting them in a broad category that would be devastating to parents and children alike.  Again, this doesn’t mean we don’t focus on the needs of each child.  It just means we throw out harmful labels.  Although funding is often connected to labels, under these conditions funding should be connected to the needs that are determined.  Of course this should apply to all kids but for now we focus on those in Flint Michigan.

The result of the assessments and classroom progress must be monitored through a document I call the MAP, My Action Plan.  This MAP will drive every child on their pathway to success while assuring that all receive the services they need.

Again at this time we do not know the effect of the poison on the children.  But we do know there could be a massive affect.  The time for action is now! As I grew up in Michigan and graduated from Eastern Michigan University, this strike at my heart.

For more information go to www.wholechildreform.com and click on my blog.

prayer in school

A case for separation of church and state

Clearly one of the most misunderstood issues is that of the separation of church and state.  We know it is inherent in the constitution, but how it is implemented creates much division that wouldn’t be there if we only understood not only how it protects citizens from those who want to impose their religion on them, but for religion who has concerns about state control.

As a retired teacher, principal and one who has taught education law at the university level, I find this issue quite interesting.  The State may not promote nor hinder religion nor may religion intermingle with the State.  What does that mean?

To go back in history, the first Supreme Court case regarding religion in the public schools was the Gideon Bible case.  The Gideon’s wanted to pass out Bibles in school to those whose parents approved.  The courts said, of course, that it was a violation of separation of church and state.  And the State may not promote the Gideon’s over others.  But who sided for the case and who was against it.  For it, of course, were the Gideon’s.  However, fighting it tooth and nail were the Baptist, the Catholics, the Methodists and many more who didn’t want the Gideon Bible in the public school.

The courts basically said that no religion would be allowed to intermingle in public schools, an arm of the state.  Think for a minute about what would happen if this wasn’t the case.  Which religion would be allowed into public schools?  That decision would be, of course, made by the administration of public school, an arm of the state.  So now we have the state controlling which religion will be allowed in and under what terms.  Do we really want that?  

And what would they do to get their religion into the public schools?  Religion, mingling with the state, was one cause of the problems in Ireland.  The Catholics and Protestants were at war for 500 years over that and other issues.  ISIS is at war over that issue, as is the Taliban and the Nazi’s during the holocaust and we would also eventually be at war over that issue, Christians vs Christians.

But how is religion protected?  Take the case of Kim Davis in Kentucky.  I agree that she, as an individual, has the right to stand by her religious convictions.  However, the State does not.  In her case she not only said that she would not grant same sex marriage, but she would not allow it in her office.  That is where she broke the law.  If only she would have passed it on to another, the problem would have been solved.  

And if she disagreed with the State, she had the opportunity not to work for them.

But some say beware, soon they will make churches perform same sex marriages.  Not a possibility.  Why, because of separation of church and state.  The state has no right to tell churches whom to marry or whom not to marry.  So that will never happen.  The same goes for paying taxes.  Churches do not pay taxes under the protection of the concept of separation of church and state. Do we really want to change that?

And my favorite issue is prayer in public school.  Of course children can pray in public schools.  I did it all the time especially before a big test.  But the state may not control it.  If you want to pray, you must pray in a way that does not impose your religion on the school / State.  Simply, as Jesus says, pray in the closet. 

So if you want to stand by your religious convictions, avoid doing as ISIS does, as the Taliban does as the Nazi’s did or the Christians in Ireland did to force their religion on others.  Do so in the closet when it conflicts with laws that protect your religion.

Teach Strong, a positive approach to support educators or the same ole same ole

Yesterday a new initiative was put forward to attempt to bring together many different factions with opposing views about education. It is clear that the civil rights groups want accountability to assure that all children receive a quality education. It is also clear that many educators and parents also want the same thing.  The difference is in the approach that each takes to achieve that end. Of course the solution is to bring those and a wide variety of other groups together to see if it is possible for collaboration to succeed.  

I am not interested in guilt by association, I have friends on many sides of the issue.  Where my interest lies is in the issues.  How can we take a diverse group and clear our heads, stop the finger pointing long enough to focus on the agenda of children.  Many on both sides say that this is an impossible task.  And they may be right.  What's going on at the classroom level is not just unethical, but it is immoral.  But to blame teachers, or principals or the parents or the kids or even the broad umbrella of poverty doesn't solve anything.  We must find solutions.  Let's look at the goals: 

1. Identify and recruit more diverse teacher candidates with great potential to succeed, with a deliberate emphasis on diversifying the teacher workforce.

It is clear that there needs to be strong diversity of teachers in order to serve all students in a fair and equitable manner.  This is not to say only black or Latino teachers can teach black or Latino kids.  It means that role models are available to all kids on a regular basis allowing them to identify as well as support a quality education for all.  

My experience in a neighborhood school I designed and was put in an all black neighborhood had me receiving permission to have 70% black teachers.  Although there were not enough black teachers to allow this percentage throughout the Milwaukee Public School system, it allowed me to see the value of a diversified staff.  And I believe it was a great asset.  Why shouldn't there be a proper proportion in every school?

2. Reimagine teacher preparation to make it more rooted in classroom practice and a professional knowledge base, with universal high standards for all candidates.

Teacher preparation must be made real.  Currently there is a disconnect between universities and the classroom.  And this is not always a problem with the universities.  When I saw student teachers enter some of the schools I was in, I saw them change dramatically away from what they were taught to an outmoded way of teaching in the way schools are spozed to be.  The knowledge base must include the fundamental ability to teach the whole child, including teaching students who learn in different ways and at different rates.  A special emphasis must be put on the ability to use differentiated instruction in the classroom, using the community as the classroom to make learning real, empowering kids to be leaders, and supporting critical thinking.

As for high standards for teacher candidates?  It depends on what the high standards are.  If they include the previous suggestions, of course.  If it means teachers scoring well on a standardized test or teaching to the test?  NEVER!

3. Raise the bar for licensure so it is a meaningful measure of readiness to teach.

My response is the same for this as the previous issue. 

4. Increase compensation in order to attract and reward teachers as professionals.

This goes without saying.  The teaching profession is approximately 84% female and average salaries are on the$50,000 range.  Engineers are about 85% male with the same education and their salaries are about $20,000 higher.  You want quality teachers, give them an incentive and treat them like the professionals they are.

5. Provide support for new teachers through induction or residency programs. 

This is also absolutely essential.  I have been a mentor for first year teachers and the conversations we had were phenomenal.  They need all the support they can get to be successful with a successful transition from university to the classroom.  But this support must not be traditional teach to the test.  This must be support for innovation, finding the way kids learn best, at their best rate. 

6. Ensure tenure is a meaningful signal of professional accomplishment.

Tenure, of course must be meaningful.  As it stands now, it does not assure teachers that they cannot be fired for misconduct or any other violation of rules or laws.  That is a myth.  When teachers are not fired for gross misconduct it is usually because of weak administrators who don't have the courage or energy to follow due process.  But putting a high level on tenure, if it is reasonable and not based on teacher or student testing would be valuable only if that teacher received proper support in the process.  And that support could easily come from quality retired teachers.  In fact all teacher assessments could be by retired teachers.  I did that and my colleagues had no patience for poor teaching but understood the profession without the agendas that go along with administrative assessments.  And they are cheaper.    

7. Provide significantly more time, tools, and support for teachers to succeed, including through planning, collaboration, and development.

Planning time is essential for innovation.  When you have a wide range of student skills within the classroom, they all must be approached at their level, taking them from where they are.  This requires a great deal of planning and cannot be achieved by following a script.  every child is unique from the most severe cognitive disabled across the spectrum to the gifted, test takers.  That is a wide range of diverse skills.  Planning for each individual is essential as every child is different.  Many will be similar, but all are different.

That also requires a reasonable class size.  Taking 40 kids in a class with one teacher when every child is different is not only unethical, it is immoral.

8. Design professional learning to better address student and teacher needs, and to foster feedback and improvement.

Feedback throughout the years of teaching is valuable for growth.  Most high quality educators appreciate feedback on a regular basis.  In order to give proper feedback it must include the mentor or assessor to spend significant time with the teacher in the classroom.  Administrators simply don't have the time.  And to hire more administrators at an extremely high cost in unnecessary.  Again the retired teachers would do a great job and have more time to spend in the classroom, uninterrupted.  University personnel would also be valuable in this effort.

9. Create career pathways that give teachers opportunities to lead and grow professionally.

This is an area that can be explored.  Input from current teachers would be valuable in this effort.

Allow me to add one more.  As I support the Sanders Collins amendment included in the Every Child Achieves Act, I will add that 

10. we must provide a viable alternative to the current testing fiasco.  Whole child assessment, being the only real way of determining the skills of students, must be the primary means of determining student success.  As assessment drives the curriculum, then that curriculum would be whole child, showing what kids can do, not just how they can answer a question. And recognizing that it's not how kids come into the school, it's the gains they make while the are there that is important.

Included is a child's individual learning plan as all kids have different hopes and dreams 

Without systemic change, none of this will work, and the finger pointing will begin again.

Well, that's my take and my hope for the teach strong movement.  Of course this could all fall apart but this is an opportunity for the kind of change that is needed in education.  In order for this to happen there must be the kind of change that not only supports the skills and abilities of teachers but assures parents that their children will receive the highest quality education taking them on their pathway to success.

Do I support Teach Strong now?  Yes.  Because we must have the conversation.  Pointing fingers and shouting is no longer acceptable for professionals.

The conversation begins:  Cynthia on twitter wants teacher autonomy in the classroom. She adds "knowledge of the kids she teaches drives what she teaches".
I believe local assessment will allow that as well as IEP for all  Empower teachers to teach

Will I support Teach Strong six months from now?  I don't know.  If it falls along the wayside of political agendas, I will be the one screaming and yelling.  Until then it would be advantageous for all professional educators to get behind the effort, for now. 

YOUR THOUGHTS!