Comments on: Beyond math and reading tests

By: Tony G. Rocco

Tony G. Rocco — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 16:47:04 +0000

A charter school in Manhattan is conducting an experiment in which it is trying to improve the overall academic environment by paying teachers six-figure salaries. The students at this school are admitted based on a history of low academic achievement and coming from low-income backgrounds. The challenge: does luring the best and the brightest with high salaries make a difference in student achievement?

Read about it at: http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/education/2009/june/Manhattan-Charter-School-Will-Pay-Teachers-Six-Figures.html

By: Tracy W

Tracy W — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:29:39 +0000

michael mazenko – I’m skeptical about loading schools down with too many goals. The quote in question did not stop with reasoning, problem-solving and writing skills. To requote:

on how students of different backgrounds perform in a broad range of academic subjects, as well as in the arts, physical health and fitness, citizenship habits, and other necessary knowledge and skills;

This sort of shopping list makes me cynical. Arts, physical health and fitness, and other necessary knowledge and skills are very good things, but giving people numerous goals does not strike me as a good way of managing a complex system.

By: michael mazenko

michael mazenko — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 19:41:21 +0000

Absolutely – there is a real discrepancy between what we ask schools to do and what we do to test accountability.

This is precisely the point of Richard Rothstein in Grading Education. There is much we can do to expand accountability and truly evaluate whether schools are doing what we ask.

http://a-teachers-view.blogspot.com/2009/06/getting-accountability-right.html

By the way, Tracy, I don’t think this is a way to sidestep the current accountability, as it is to criticize that testing system as flawed. For example, Tony Wagner effectively discusses more valid standardized testing. Wagner offers some intriguing information on the new Collegiate Learning Assessment (CLA) which is “an open-ended, ninety-minute performance assessment in which students have to demonstrate their reasoning, problem-solving, and writing skills while attempting to solve a real-world problem.” From the description of this test and system, it seems like a great development in assessment, and its components should become more standard even in the classroom. It’s worth more discussion.

http://a-teachers-view.blogspot.com/2009/05/re-inventing-education.html

By: Tracy W

Tracy W — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:15:22 +0000

So if a school fails to teach their students how to read and do basic mathematics, they can excuse this by finding some area where their students are performing well?
And these school inspectors – what experience will they have at effective teaching so they can identify good methods?