If you went to bed at a reasonable hour, you might have missed a highlight of the last board meeting: the presentation by the primary and secondary coordinators of the district's Social Studies program.
At both levels, a deliberate effort has been made to incorporate the development of “21st century” skills into the curriculum – with a particular emphasis on globalization. This approach is consistent with that of nations who have successfully improved their educational systems (as I mentioned on December 17th.) The combination of “inquiry-based learning” with a variety of authentic assessment tools is an important part of their strategy.
There is also recognition that technology can be an important tool for developing these skills. The opportunity to do this has been greatly enhanced by Pennsylvania’s “Classrooms for the Future” grant.
One objective of the Social Studies program is that our students should become “discerning consumers of information.” As “old-timers” may recall, at one time research consisted of “looking it up in the encyclopedia”. Now our students need to make sense of a nearly infinite amount of readily available material.
One challenge facing the program, particularly at the high school, concerns the lack of appropriately-sized spaces. Hopefully, this will be addressed when the high school facilities are upgraded.
Another challenge is the need for opportunities for greater faculty collaboration.
Since collaboration is one of the 21st century skills we want our students to acquire, it is essential that our students see it modeled throughout the school community. So the extent to which our social studies department is doing that - both within, and with other departments, particularly English - is encouraging. But everyone needs to work together (collaborate?) to find ways to make this happen more consistently.
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Tuesday, December 23, 2008
A better way to Achieve
More potentially good news on the policy front…
Governor Rendell's misguided proposal for Graduate Competency Assessments began several years ago with his attendance at an educational conference hosted by Achieve, Inc. It was at this conference that Rendell committed the Commonwealth - without consultation with other educational policy leaders, or the state legislature - to requiring ten subject area exit exams as a condition for a high school diploma.
In the interim, Achieve has thought about this issue a little more deeply. The result is a recently published policy agenda, entitled “Measures that Matter”, which I will summarize here.
In my opinion, Achieve has some good things to say around “aligning high school standards with the demands of college and career”; recommending that colleges and employers be more specific about what students need to know in order to be successful. But I will focus on what the report says about assessments.
For example, the report says that there are “too many tests in high school” that are often disconnected to one another, and seldom of any help to teachers who might want to use them to evaluate student progress or make mid-course corrections. Instead, “tests should be a tool for instructional improvement.”
The report also recognizes that “some essential skills … are difficult to measure via pencil-and-paper tests”. “States should supplement standard tests” with performance assessments for such things as “engaging in teamwork” or performing tasks that involve “extended analysis, research and communication.”
As a result, Achieve now recommends the “adoption of high school assessment systems that rely on a combination of state-wide and local measures” and “do not require students to pass a high-stakes test or tests in order to graduate.”
And finally: “states need a broader vision of accountability, one that empowers educators as much as it holds them accountable. Too often, accountability has been thought of as punitive … instead of a way to target assistance to schools in need, use data more effectively, and reward progress.”
Details on the report can be found at: www.achieve.org/MeasuresthatMatter
It’s exciting to think that we might all begin to push in the same direction.
Governor Rendell's misguided proposal for Graduate Competency Assessments began several years ago with his attendance at an educational conference hosted by Achieve, Inc. It was at this conference that Rendell committed the Commonwealth - without consultation with other educational policy leaders, or the state legislature - to requiring ten subject area exit exams as a condition for a high school diploma.
In the interim, Achieve has thought about this issue a little more deeply. The result is a recently published policy agenda, entitled “Measures that Matter”, which I will summarize here.
In my opinion, Achieve has some good things to say around “aligning high school standards with the demands of college and career”; recommending that colleges and employers be more specific about what students need to know in order to be successful. But I will focus on what the report says about assessments.
For example, the report says that there are “too many tests in high school” that are often disconnected to one another, and seldom of any help to teachers who might want to use them to evaluate student progress or make mid-course corrections. Instead, “tests should be a tool for instructional improvement.”
The report also recognizes that “some essential skills … are difficult to measure via pencil-and-paper tests”. “States should supplement standard tests” with performance assessments for such things as “engaging in teamwork” or performing tasks that involve “extended analysis, research and communication.”
As a result, Achieve now recommends the “adoption of high school assessment systems that rely on a combination of state-wide and local measures” and “do not require students to pass a high-stakes test or tests in order to graduate.”
And finally: “states need a broader vision of accountability, one that empowers educators as much as it holds them accountable. Too often, accountability has been thought of as punitive … instead of a way to target assistance to schools in need, use data more effectively, and reward progress.”
Details on the report can be found at: www.achieve.org/MeasuresthatMatter
It’s exciting to think that we might all begin to push in the same direction.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
In the right direction
Not many education policy details came out over the course of the recent election campaign, but I am encouraged by President-elect Obama's obvious commitment to early childhood education, and especially, by the quality of the people who will be advising him. One well-respected education reformer is Linda Darling-Hammond, who chaired the committee that eventually resulted in the selection of Arne Duncan to be the new Secretary of Education.
As it happens, at Monday's board meeting we received copies of an article from the December Phi Delta Kappan, authored by the same Darling-Hammond. It addressed the fact that while the quality of public education in this country has been largely stagnant for the last generation, many other countries have significantly improved. Her article talked about what these countries are doing differently.
An important difference lies is the nature of student assessment: “whereas U. S. tests rely primarily on multiple-choice items that evaluate recall and recognition of discrete facts, most high-achieving countries rely largely on open-ended items that require students to analyze, apply knowledge and write extensively.”
Furthermore: "nations that have steeply improved student learning have focused explicitly on creating curriculum and assessments that focus on the so-called 21st century skills: the abilities to find and organize information to solve problems, frame and conduct investigations, analyze and synthesize data, apply learning to new situations, self-monitor and improve one's own learning and performance, communicate well in multiple forms, work in teams, and learn independently."
I couldn't have said it better myself.
Finally, "these countries do not use their examinations to rank or punish schools" (a primary fault of NCLB) or "deny diplomas to students" (a key aspect of Governor Rendell's GCA proposal). Instead, they use these exams to improve their curriculum.
Clearly, there’s a long way to go, but it’s hard not to be at least a little enthusiastic about the direction we appear to be heading.
As it happens, at Monday's board meeting we received copies of an article from the December Phi Delta Kappan, authored by the same Darling-Hammond. It addressed the fact that while the quality of public education in this country has been largely stagnant for the last generation, many other countries have significantly improved. Her article talked about what these countries are doing differently.
An important difference lies is the nature of student assessment: “whereas U. S. tests rely primarily on multiple-choice items that evaluate recall and recognition of discrete facts, most high-achieving countries rely largely on open-ended items that require students to analyze, apply knowledge and write extensively.”
Furthermore: "nations that have steeply improved student learning have focused explicitly on creating curriculum and assessments that focus on the so-called 21st century skills: the abilities to find and organize information to solve problems, frame and conduct investigations, analyze and synthesize data, apply learning to new situations, self-monitor and improve one's own learning and performance, communicate well in multiple forms, work in teams, and learn independently."
I couldn't have said it better myself.
Finally, "these countries do not use their examinations to rank or punish schools" (a primary fault of NCLB) or "deny diplomas to students" (a key aspect of Governor Rendell's GCA proposal). Instead, they use these exams to improve their curriculum.
Clearly, there’s a long way to go, but it’s hard not to be at least a little enthusiastic about the direction we appear to be heading.
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