Is School Too Easy

            Does your child think school is too easy?  According to a recent report, “Do Schools Challenge Our Students,“ a large number of students think school is too easy.  According to the report:

1.      More than one-third high school seniors reported they hardly ever write about what they read in class

2.      Three out of four (72%) eight grade science students reported they aren’t being taught engineering and technology

3.      Almost a third of eighth grade students reported reading fewer than five pages a day either in school or for homework[i]

Although the report’s findings are not new, their recommendations to “ratchet” up standards by endorsing the federal government’s Common Core program, is a rehashing of the failed standards movement of the late 1980s and early 1990s.  The recommendations also continue the flawed ideology that the fault lies with the students and not with our approach to teaching and learning.

            Teaching and learning is the foundation of education.  The approach to teaching and learning is based on an industrial era model of the late 1800s to mid-1920s.  The approach was designed to train students to become cogs in the various levels of industry (upper management, mid manager, shop worker, etc).  Teachers were trained to follow a prescribed curriculum in a sequence that provides fragmented information that is loosely connected (or not connected) to the next prescribed sequenced course.  Instruction came from textbooks which focused on information that was necessary to the preparation of the industrial society; learning came from rote memorization which hindered natural learning and curiosity.

Over the years there have been minor adjustments, but the ideological approach remains the same.  The refusal to acknowledge our approach to teaching and learning is antiquated and out of touch with the needs of the global economy, has created a continuous loop of failure, which churns out unprepared graduates and places our country farther behind countries that understand teaching and learning is a state of constant flux. 

            The data obtained from students clearly demonstrates the problem exists in our educational ideology.  The student does not control the curriculum, does not control pedagogy and instruction, and does how much homework he/she receives.  However, there is no mention in the data about teacher effectiveness, lack of administrative accountability, or the failure of districts to monitor their schools.  It is easy to blame the victims/students for the failures of the adults.  What is needed is an overhaul of our approach to teaching and learning.

            If students are saying that school is too easy, the fault is not the students, it is the failure of uninformed educational leaders who continue to trust in an antiquated approach that teaching and learning that is fixed.  This ideological insanity does not fit the needs of a global economy.  School is too easy should be our new moniker for educational reform.

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[i] www.usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/10/12666787-report-students-say-school-is...

Students with Disabilities & Charter Schools

            The Charter School Movement is celebrating 20 years of service to children and families.  As an alternative to public schools, charter schools are independent entities that receive public funds, without many of the state and federal regulations as a public school district.  Charter schools are also not involved with unions, which give them autonomy over the hiring, firing, salary, and work day of staff[i]. 

            As charter schools aim to become a permanent fixture of the educational landscape, they will continue to come under scrutiny by their critics, and praised by their advocates.  One primary area of contention is student enrollment.  Critics argue that charter schools exclude certain students, whereas public schools are mandated to serve every child.  Charter school advocates argue, that as an independent entity, they are allowed to set the enrollment criteria for students interested in attending their school.  For a while these arguments gained very little traction or serious consideration from the federal government.  It wasn’t until a report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), about the lack of enrollment of students with disabilities in charter schools captured the attention of federal and state officials.

            The GAO Report, commissioned by Representative, George Miller from California found that charter schools don’t enroll students with disabilities at the same rate as traditional public schools, despite federal laws that require all publically funded schools to serve students with disabilities[ii].  The findings of GAO report have ignited a response from the US Education Department and the Office of Civil Rights. 

            According to the report, the US Education Department has developed new procedures to help charter schools meet federal standards for enrolling students with disabilities and the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) conducted compliance reviews of charter schools who under serve students with disabilities.  With 23 percent of charter schools nationally serving students with disabilities, the compliance review concluded that some charter schools may be discouraging students with disabilities from enrolling[iii].

            The findings of the GAO report and the OCR compliance review support claims made by critics of the charter school movement.  At the same time, the report does acknowledge charter schools need more guidance on how to meet federal standards for enrolling students with disabilities.  This acknowledgement provides charter school advocates with a small victory.  The acknowledgement also places charter schools on notice that the federal government is monitoring the enrollment of students with disabilities. 

            The involvement of the federal government is a win for students with disabilities because it provides them choice and access to schools which pride themselves on instruction by non-traditional designs.  It is too bad the federal government had to get involved in the first place.

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[i] www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/19/charter-schools-disabilities-_n_1610744

[ii] ibid

[iii] ibid

Troops to Teachers

                Eighteen years ago, the federal government established the Troops to Teachers program.  The purpose of the program was to help military veterans become teachers[i].  Understanding that teachers are crucial to the success of future generations and the nation, the creation of Troops to Teachers fulfilled two needs.

                The first need was to aid the transition of military veterans to civilian life.  Providing recently discharged veteran support as they transition into civilian life has been a difficult task for the military.  While the federal government provides discharged veterans with opportunities to further their education, unemployment and underemployment remain high.  By providing discharged veterans with the resources to obtain their teaching credentials, veterans are able to work at a job with good benefits with an above average salary.

                The second need was to aid school districts with teacher shortage in critical needs areas.  Districts across the country are struggling to hire teachers with credentials in math and science.  Troops to Teachers helped to partially fill the need as approximately 18% of veterans in the program obtained certification in math and science[ii].  Districts were also struggling to retain younger teachers who left due to disillusionment with teaching while older teachers left for retirement.  Troops to Teachers provided districts with teachers who are experienced in motivation, setting expectations, and providing the environment for individuals to meet or exceed the expectations. 

Although Troops to Teachers is fulfilling a need for both the military and school districts, more investment and marketing is needed to help increase the number of veterans’ transition to teachers.  At a time when teachers have come under fire for the poor performance of students and scrutinized by the public for the refusal of their union to offer concessions of the collective bargaining, veterans are sorely needed to change the negative climate. 

Increasing Troops to Teachers numbers could reverse the negative perception of teachers and renew public confidence in teachers.  Veterans’ could model leadership skills for students to emulate, they can instill a sense of discipline and purpose which many feel is lacking among today’s students.  Having served in the defense of our country, who better than a Troop to Teacher to help students utilize their talents and understand their importance to the future prosperity of the country. 

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[i] www.philly.com/philly/insights/in)education/20120326_Program_recruits_troops_as_teachers

[ii] ibid

A Program to Involve Fathers

            In the US approximately 40 percent of children are born to unmarried parents.  Many of these children come from younger, economically distressed parents where they mostly likely will be raised with an inconsistent or absent father.  There have been many attempts to address the lack of consistency of fathers in the live of their children, unfortunately there are very few that have been successful, until now.

            In Minnesota, Hennepin County Family Court Judge, Bruce Peterson created Co-Parent Court.  Co-Parent Court is modeled after the drug courts, which offer alternatives to incarceration.  The premise behind Co-Parent Court was that kids will do better with two involved parents.  Co-Parent Court sought to maintain and strengthen the relationship between the unwed mother and father.  Participants are required to attend four weekly co-parenting classes and complete a parenting plan that covers holiday schedules to communicating with each other.  Completion of the program allows the parents to receive support from community agencies with finding work, housing, addiction, domestic violence, and mental health problems[i]. 

            Getting unwed mothers and fathers involved in maintaining a positive relationship for the benefit of their child should provide the psychological and economic stability needed to focus their efforts on school.  Additionally, the support parents receive from community agencies should remove or greatly diminish barriers that would usually create a division between mother and father. 

The removal or diminishment of barriers should lead to greater stability of the relationship between mother and father.  The stability of the relationship directly affects the child’s overall environment and well-being.  If a child lives in a stable home, feels safe and doesn’t have to worry or feel frustrated about being placed in a “tug of war” by the parents, the child should be able to thrive in a learning environment that is supplements by the parents.

            The Co-Parent Court program in Minnesota is currently serving a small number of parents.  However, it’s a program that Family Courts across the country should duplicate.  The potential impact this program could have on the achievement gap is exciting.  By providing supports to maintain a positive relationship between the unwed mother and father could increase academic achievement, reduce truancy, suspensions, and decrease delinquency.  Another benefit could be an increase in active parent involvement in school.  A final benefit is children learning how to have a positive relationship with women.

            By trying to get more fathers involved in the lives of their children, Co-Parent Court may be the program that breaks the cycle of negative consequences for a child who is raised with an absent of inconsistent father. 

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[i] www.npr.org/2012/05/07/152157287/never-married-parents-get-help-from-special-court

Summer of Unrest for Public Education

                This summer will be an important summer for public education.  Public school districts across the country will try to prevent their worst case scenario plans from coming to fruition.  As districts struggle with less money to serve students next school year, difficult decisions will be made that will affect instruction, school climate, and student activities. 

School leaders will have to make tough decisions on instruction that will affect several key areas.  The first is class size.  As districts close buildings and cuts school staff, many districts have sought relief from the state for class size regulations.  The increase in class size could greatly impact instruction and hamper a teachers’ ability to provide quality and differentiated instruction all students need.  Second, school leaders will have to decide on if there should be a change to the school week?  To manage costs, there are a number of medium and small districts that have shortened the school week from 5 days to 4 days.  While shortening the school week has produced mixed results, there is very little longitudinal data to determine if a shortened school week will be a viable cost saving solution to budgetary concerns.  A final instruction concern is whether to keep certain academic interventions that provide supplemental aid to students who are struggling with the core curriculum content and standardized assessments.  To increase scores on standardized tests and improve overall knowledge of the core content, districts spend a lot of money on costly academic interventions that are beginning to show improvement.  The decision to keep costly interventions may lead the termination of other things that might be considered equally important. 

                School climate is another area school leaders will have to address this summer.  Decisions on how to support students when there are cuts to counselors, support staff and cuts to city social services will impact how a school responds to students with behavioral challenges, students who are homeless and students who are truant.  Supporting these students along with the rest of the student body is a complex process.  With less support and security staff, these decisions will become more problematic because school climate directly impacts instruction.  Being sensitive to the challenges that students in crisis face while ensuring the rest of the student body are safe and engaged in learning is a difficult balance achieve and maintain with a full complement of support and safety staff. Combine this with a potential increase in class size and there is a potential for schools to have major climate problems.

                The final area to be considered this summer is cuts to student activities.  School leaders will consider if cutting programs such as art, music, and some varsity and junior varsity sports will produce the financial windfall needed to reduce the deficit.  School leaders will also have to consider if cutting these programs is worth the parental and student backlash that will occur as a result of cutting these programs.

This summer, school leaders are going to make some tough decisions that will impact the educational landscape for their districts.  Decisions about class size, school climate and student activities will greatly impact instruction and student engagement.  Unfortunately, many of these decisions will not be based on what is in the best interest of the students, but in the interest of fiscal necessity.  At a time where our public education system needs to become more competitive on a global level, the summer of unrest may keep our system stagnate or make us further behind our global competition.

Taking Back Graduation

                  Graduation season has come upon us again.  The annual rite of passage will introduce the adult world to a new group of graduates ranging from pre-school to high school.  Graduation is a celebration of the perseverance of a child or young adult in their journey to acquire knowledge and skills.  Graduation also confirms to the adult world that the child or young adult is ready to move to the next grade, ready to transition into higher education, or take their place in the adult workforce.

                  There are some who believe the journey ends with the culmination of twelve years of acquiring knowledge and skills.  For some, graduation will be the pinnacle of their formal education experience.  While a majority of high school graduates in the US do not enroll in a post-secondary education program, graduation becomes a source of family pride and accomplishment.  For some families, being able to see their child overcome the pitfalls and stressors of high school and young adult life and walk across the stage to receive their diploma is one of the proudest moments for parents, friends and relatives.  However, graduating with a diploma should not be considered the end to knowledge and skill acquisition.

                  There is a false belief that the acquisition of knowledge and skills ends at graduation.  While compulsory education may end at graduation, graduation should begin the stage of life long learning. Human beings are not designed to become stagnant, they are designed for perpetual growth.  The desire to acquire knowledge and skills should never end.

                  There is also a false belief that graduation is the end.  Graduation is actually a restart of the compulsory education cycle.  When an adult starts a family and their child becomes of age for compulsory education, the cycle restarts and the journey to the acquisition of knowledge and skills begins with the new generation. 

                  As we celebrate the graduation of our young adults who will transition into adulthood.  Let them know what this day really means.  Let them know this rite of passage is not an end, but an induction to life long learning.

Undoing the Damage of Zero Tolerance

            Student discipline is a complex and controversial topic that places public education in a precarious position.  As an institution of learning, the mission of public education is to provide youth with the knowledge and skills for their future adult lives.  Student discipline had always played a minor part of the instruction process.  However, schools have been spending more time on discipline than instruction. 

            The increase in discipline is due in part to the “Zero Tolerance” policy school districts across the country adopted several years ago.  Zero Tolerance was supposed to reverse the trend of weapons, drugs, and serious assaults by students that were occurring in schools.  Instead, the eagerness of administrators who took a literal interpretation of zero tolerance, found themselves expelling students who the policy was not intended for.  Students with no previous history of suspensions or behavioral problems were finding themselves going through the expulsion process for being caught with scissors in their backpacks for school projects, toy guns for show and tell, and over the counter (and some prescription) medication. 

Since zero tolerance policies do not distinguish intent (accident versus intent to harm), or the type of offense (major versus minor), students were being expelled and a large number became part of the juvenile justice system.  As a result of zero tolerance policies more that seventy percent of student arrest were placed in the custody of law enforcement were African-American and Hispanic[i].  It was statistics like these that led one Juvenile Court judge to create a program that is changing the way expulsions are handled.

St. Louis Juvenile Court judge Jimmie Edwards established the Jimmie Edwards Innovative Concept Academy.  The purpose of the Academy is to provide education and socialization skills to students in the juvenile justice system[ii].  The idea is to prevent youth in the juvenile justice system from dropping out, re-offending, and eventually becoming the next generation of criminals.  The education Judge Edwards Academy provides is both academic and personal improvement.  According to Judge Edwards:

                        making sure students are educated and not incarcerated

                        is about ending a cycle of poverty.  They’ve been so

                        negatively socialized from grandma to mom…They

                        don’t have the ability to teach them to dream.  My

                        children have only had nightmares-nightmares

                        because the only thing they’ve learned has been

                        negative[iii].”

Judge Edwards is one of a number of juvenile judges across the country who recognize a disturbing trend: the school-to-prison pipeline.  To reverse this trend, judges are working with child advocate groups and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund to develop a legal strategy to challenge zero tolerance polices that criminalize youth and to help school districts understand their civil rights obligations.

By working with informed juvenile justice judges on student discipline, zero tolerance, and the school-to-prison pipeline, school districts can rethink student discipline and develop alternatives to expulsions, student arrest, and how to prevent students from becoming the next generation of criminals.

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[i] www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/12/schoo-to-prision-pipeline_n_1340380

[ii] ibid

[iii] ibid