Stress not required

With all the new pressures of measuring teacher's competence it is no wonder that stress is at an all time high among teachers.  Race to the top winners have been required to partially evaluate teachers based on the test scores of their students.  This new demand can only add to the already stressful job of being in the classroom in today's atmosphere where student parents often do not support teachers.

There are things that a teacher can do to reduce the stress.  First of all manage your life and your health.  That means eating properly and at regular intervals.  Start with a healthy breakfast that is not primarily sugar and caffeine.  Donuts and coffee are one of the worst breakfast choices.  So is skipping breakfast and just having the coffee.  Breakfast may include a wake up cup of coffee but it should also include a healthy abundance of some good protein and fiber.  A decent breakfast will arm you for the day.

You can't change other people you can only change yourself.  So if a student or co-worker or supervisor is creating stress, put that person in perspective.  How much will this matter tomorrow or next week or next month.  Don't take anything too seriously.  The old saying about death and taxes is true.  My grandmother used to say "this too shall pass" and she was 100% correct.

Even No Child Left Behind will get amended and be changed.  Of course, it will leave a lot of stress in its wake but it will still be gone.  So keep that in perspective.  Another thing to realize is that since merit pay isn't coming in anytime soon, what real difference does a bad evaluation make.  The way things are now you pay is determined by how long you have been teaching not by how well you do the job whether that decision is based on test scores or your student's ability to learn.

Why are kids dropping out of school?

Two big newspaper stories were very intriguing of late.  One discussed the number of students who had been suspended and how that was keeping children from learning.  One follower of the obvious is more school of thought suggested that students who missed school were not there to learn!  Brilliant commentary.  Most of the comments were about whether or not students should be suspended at all and if they were for what offenses.  The question of zero tolerance for misbehavior was reviewed.  Some people noted that children who were frequently suspended were more likely to drop out of school.  Seems kids that are suspended a lot not only miss learning opportunities but they also lose a connection with the school.  Makes you wonder how much research that took to figure out and who paid the bill for it.

While it is interesting to speculate on whether or not suspension helps with discipline, it is a whole other issue to consider WHY kids do the behaviors that cause them to be suspended in the first place.  The vast majority of children who are suspended are also not successful in academic subjects.   Children usually being people of relatively good mental health would rather be bad than dumb.  Why?  The answer is simple kids who misbehave in school are often seen as brave by their contemporaries who would not do such things.  Kids who do poorly in academics are thought of as being dumb by their peers.  So the average kid would rather be thought of as brave and tough as opposed to being dumb.  Also when you misbehave you draw the fire away from the teacher noticing that you are not doing the academic work because she is too busy trying to reestablish the class order.

Another issue that is getting a lot of ink right now is the issue of bullying.  So far this year 25% of the kids who are bullied are kids with special needs.  They are vulnerable and make a handy target.  They often lack the skills to fight back either verbally or physically.  And many children with disabilities have characteristics that are atypical, they look different, talk different or just don't catch on to stuff.  The other surprising statistic is that 28% of the bullies are themselves disabled.  They bully the kids they perceive as being the next notch down in the pecking order.  Kids bully other kids because grown ups don't intervene strongly enough, parents don't stress character development and because the bully gets to be on a higher rung of the ladder than the person being bullied.

I suggest that the root cause of both problems is the same thing.  No Child Left Behind has left every child behind when it comes to individual programing.  In order to ensure the highest test scores possible so that your school/class is not a failing school the so called "soft" courses are being cut left and right.  Those art, phys ed, music and other so-called non-academic courses have been scrapped to make way for more instruction in reading and math.  And to make sure that kids are exposed (and believe me it is exposure and not instruction) to all the content that will be tested, school systems have instituted pacing guides so every day teachers need to be on specific pages in the curriculum guide.  Ready or not, the teacher turns the page every day.  Smart kids have to slow down and wait, slower kids have to race to try to keep up and frequently they don't.  So kids who needed that extended instruction to catch on, or perhaps an alternative method of instruction, have now turned into the dumb kids who can't keep up or can't learn the lesson.

It doesn't take very long to go from that spot to misbehaving and/or bullying.  Both behaviors serve a similar purpose for the perpetrator.  If I am bad enough people might not notice I can't do the school work.  Or if I bully someone else it makes me feel that I may not be good at school work but at least I am  "bigger" than the kid I am bullying.

We would all be a great deal better off if we just taught kids they way they learn best and not worry if the calendar says we should be on page 156 if a child is back at page 98.

Teachers Please stand for something

Well here we go again!  Now No Child Left Behind is going to be modified and amended-we think.  For years we have known the law was mightily flawed.  But we got the law because the teachers and their unions were asleep at the switch.  If the change comes to be, it will be known as ESEA as amended, so we will go back to the original Elementary and Secondary School Act.
Why is the law being amended now?  Because the 2013-14 school year is coming and that is the year all of God's children were supposed to be on grade level in reading and math.  Any person with a grain of common sense knew that wouldn't happen but it sure made for great press.  As the time approaches the various governors are realizing that they will be saddled with many failing schools that have not made adequate yearly progress.  And they will be giving their electoral rivals a great issue to run on.  So the way to fix that is to remove the requirement for adequate yearly progress (AYP).  Finally a bi-partisian issue we can all live with.  Of course this is all for politics and has nothing to do with good education.

Where are those all powerful teachers unions now that they have a chance for a second bite at the apple?  Probably out worrying about some health and welfare issue.  They, too, are not interested in quality education.

Senator Isakson, a Republican from Georgia, wants to add an amendment that would remove more students with disabilities from the assessment process.  That may turn out not to be an issue if all the states are allowed to do what they want and pick and chose as to who will be included in the assessment.  Some special education interests are upset.  They think this change could take us back to the time when students in special education were barely challenged academically because there was no expectation for academic success.  That would be terrible.  By the same token, it is equally terrible for children with limited academic abilities to be repeated failures by expecting them to achieve that which they are unable to do.  We might be able to find a middle ground if we had professional rather than political leadership on the issue.  But we do not.

I continue to dispair that of all the professional groups, mine is the only one that has chosen to be more like a blue collar union and less like a professional group.  Then we jump and shout when we are not treated as professionals.

Looks like my miracle of all children being on grade level by 2014 isn't going to happen because the requirement will be gone by then.  Yet another miracle that didn't come to pass.

Let's solve the unemployment problem

The news is telling us that unemployment is running around 9%.  Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, is also making noises about waiving the requirement that all children will be proficient in reading and math by 2014 or their schools will be labeled failing.  Of course, the notion that all students would be proficient by 2014 was complete nonsense to begin with.  Now the political reality of so many failing schools is causing governors of both parties to run for the hills.  A real non-partisian fear of failure.

Let's get real.  Whether or not students can pass all those tests has little or nothing to do with whether or not they can earn a living as adults.  Every one who has ever studied learning knows that there are multiple intelligences and that all people are good at different things.  So how does the high unemployment rate have anything to do with testing?

We think if test scores go up, more people will be able to get jobs.  Here is the hard truth.  A significant minority of those unemployed don't have the skills to earn a living in this economy.  So what are out choices.  Well a very extreme choice would be to just kill off those folks who can't make an honest living  in competitive employment.  Of course that is repugnant, but it would lower unemployment.  A second choice is to accept the existence of a lower, criminal class that will prey on those who have assets  that the criminals want.  After all, humans must eat, have shelter, buy clothes.  If they do not work for the money to buy these things than the money must be given to them or they must steal it.  That brings up the 3rd choice.  The government (read American taxpayers) will declare some people unemployable for lack of salable skills and pay them a minimum wage for just living and staying out of trouble.  Of course, that is the essence of Communism, from each according to their his/her ability to pay, to each according to his/her need.  The 3rd choice would never fly either with the majority of our population.

Then what are we to do since all of these choices seen objectionable for a variety of reasons.  How about  educating people to earn a living!  Everyone does not need to go to college.  It is not even desirable.  Let's bring back those old fashioned vocational schools and teach kids to fix things that are always breaking or to sell stuff or work in the "take care of the old folk" industry.  All of these baby boomers are going to want and need caretakers.  These are real jobs that need doing.  I heard a man complain because he had a doctorate in ancient history and couldn't get a job.  Well if he knew how to fix computer problems he would probably be working.  Let's teach kids basic job skills, please and thank you would be a great start.

I don't believe we improve education by more tests and more measuring tools that measure what does not, in the long run, count for anything.  Perhaps if our Secretary of Education knew a thing or two about learning he might know that too.

Stunning news!

A blue ribbon committee of the National Academies National Research Council undertook a decade long study.  The committee wanted to see if the test-based incentive system really improved learning.  Just shocking results!! The testing system has had little to now impact on student learning and in some cases RAN COUNTER to the intended purpose.  Anyone who has ever been in a classroom would know that tests do not measure much learning and they are not an incentive for learning.  Perhaps for some students they are an incentive for memorization but memorization has never been equal to learning.
In Baltimore recently, a new union contract tied pay to merit for teachers.  I am all for tying pay to merit rather than just living and breathing and staying another year on the job.  The problem I have with the contract is that merit is defined as test scores.
First of all test scores do not measure learning.  Now that a special committee has agreed, maybe someone will hear that.  Test scores make us feel comfortable because they give us a number and we all like numbers but they do not measure learning.
Secondly, if a teacher's salary is tied to test scores everyone will want to teach the kids who are good test takers.  This isn't necessarily even the smartest kids, just the ones who test well.  Who will be left to teach the most challenged learners, the ones who need good teaching most.
Thirdly, if salaries are going to be all about test scores, who will be left to teach the poor test takers and the kids who need to learn how to think.  Where will teachers go if they want to teach in an exciting project based manner.

The big question is, how many kids and teachers be hurt before we realize how wrong headed this approach is?

Immoral Expectations

Here we go again!  Expect more, get more.  Now we have the Common Core State Standards, that will soon be accompanied by better and tougher tests.  That will surely improved education for all kids.  Nothing could be more wrongheaded.  Ever since the publication of "Why Johnny Can't Read" back in the 50's, our country has decided that higher standards would allow all Johns and Janes to read better.
What ever happened to better teacher?  Or wonder of wonders, teaching our children the way they learn best.
Now one of our great missions is to make sure all children go to college.  Why would we do that?  Some children are not academically skilled even with the best teachers in the world.  Are they stupid?  NO, they just have different skills and those differing skills need to be nurtured and respected in the same way we nurture and respect academic skills.  People with mechanical ability may not need college to fulfill their talents.  The same may be true of children with artistic ability.
To insist that all children learn the same things and in the same way, is not just wrong headed, it is also immoral.  It disrespects the other talents and marginalizes people's other abilities.
These attitudes also send a strong message that the only skills that count are the academic ones.  When we tell people you are not good the way you are, you need to be someone else, we are losing the great opportunities to allow them to flourish as they are.  When will we ever learn!