Public Education: Marilyn Howard--October 21, 2007
I'm so pleased to be with you today and to be in Moscow which is a second home to me. Being a school administrator was a new role for me so it goes without saying that I was fearful..
I know this makes me sound like the cowardly lion in the Land of Oz, but I am sincere in saying that the loving mentorship of this education-focused community helped me find my courage.
I mention this because I believe this is a time for courage. It seems that fear always resides in the future. It is with some trepidation that we ask: "How are we to prepare our students for success in the world they will enter as adults." There are no easy answers to questions such as, "What might happen next ? How will what we do today affect tomorrow?"
There are some things we know: We want our children to be smart and to be good. Those two goals speak volumes. In a world grown more complex with decisions that offer no easy solutions, our young people need to be able to think and to reason.
And, they must be able to do so within a framework of strong moral purpose.
The documents that founded our nation have been looked to with the eyes of each new generation as it seeks to apply those principles to the emerging needs of the time.
Holding fast to that which made us strong can only be accomplished if each generation is fully grounded in the fundamental principles of democracy, understands the history of our country and recognizes the full scope of our actions at national and international levels. Our Constitution is our bedrock. "Its story is both noble and tragic, but its genius is emblazoned from the beginning": writes Forrest Church in his book The American Creed.
It is imperative that students have knowledge that is both broad and deep. Along with that knowledge must come the sense of personal responsibility that gives credence to the phrase, "We the people" that introduced the expectations for the new country.
One aspect of courage is the willingness to act in the face of the unknown. And, today, perhaps more than ever, it is difficult to anticipate the world that our students will enter.
Schools are expected to prepare students for successful entry into a world economy that is very different from the past and to deal with the realities of today's politically driven education agendas. Our schools are welcoming ever more diverse students even as expectations for public schools are increasing from all quarters.
Those of us in education look at what is currently happening and think of it as a political problem. However, behind almost every political problem is an economic problem. The quicker we recognize the economic realities in any situation, the more quickly, and more appropriately, we can react.
For this, we have to be paying attention, not just to FOX news but through every medium, and by watching, reading, listening, and reasoning.
This is not new. I'm not going to take a long time to recount educational decisions of the past but I'm going to remind us of how education has been affected by economic needs and other anxieties over the years.
About 1830 or -40 a public school system formalized what was perceived to be a disjointed and fully localized educational system. As new waves of immigrants arrived, schools provided the mixing pot where children of varying religions, cultures, and languages came together in a common system.
Along with the industrial revolution came the need to prepare students to enter the world of work and more students started to attend high schools. By the 1950s schools became the crucibles for promoting a diverse society as the civil rights movement began.
Did any of you stop a moment on October 4th to remember the stir that the launch of Sputnik caused 50 years ago? There was a massive call for math and science education.
Beginning with the release of the "Nation at Risk" report in 1983, we began looking more and more at how American students were doing in comparison to their peers in other industrialized nations.
So here we are, with a very heavy dose of federalism in the No Child Left Behind Act and an increasing focus on setting goals, measuring achievement and reporting results.
You know, for years I listened to the debate over whether public education was a local responsibility or a state responsibility. Now the argument is over, and the winner is . . . the federal government.
To an extent that I never imagined possible, what we test, and when, and who is qualified to teach, how we rate schools, how and when we report to the public - all of that is now being driven by federal law and regulation, rather than state or even local decisions.
The NCLB Act has dominated public education for the last six years. It stated goal is to make sure that every child is proficient in the basic subjects, reading, language arts, and math - by 2014.
A huge component has been mandatory testing for every child at every grade from 3rd through 8th grade and then once in high school - a sort of exit test. Idaho calls its test the ISAT or Idaho Standards Achievement Test.
The No Child Left Behind Act is now entering its destructive phase and schools that have not met all the expectations in a way consistent with the law are slated for "restructuring": a form of state takeover of the local district.
Alot has been said about the tests that are used to dictate the decisions. More discussion needs to occur. There is a principle of quantum physics that says the very act of measuring something changes the essential nature of what is being tested. We see that happening.
The tests we are giving are not constructed to make teachers better teachers. The tests are also not instructionally sensitive - they don't discriminate good teaching from rote instruction.
The latest issue of Phi Delta Kappan addresses these issues in detail. We see a warning from Robert Sternberg that massive testing "is one of the most effective if unintentional vehicles this country has created for suppressing creativity."
Finn and Ravitch, who have been critical of public education, now are worrying out loud about the effect of testing. Here are some of the problems they see:
1. The gradual death of liberal learning in higher education. The emphasis is now on career preparation and professional training.
2. A standards and accountability movement increasingly focused only on basic skills. Other areas, anything other than reading, math, and science are seen as less valuable.
3. So much focus on math and science that other subjects are squeezed out of the curriculum.
4. A widening gap between those who have-a-lot or those who have-little resulting in a widening achievement gap between those groups.
The same magazine also has a focus on international education. I think we are all paying more attention to the rest of the world these days. I know I've recently read books about Islam and Afghanistan and one that recounted the history of Burma.
We are afraid of how the world and our place in it are being affected by events of the last several years. We recognize that the isolationist attitudes of the past are not going to work in the future. The world is simply too small.
We heard about that in Thomas Friedman's book, The World is Flat, where he discusses how a computer connected world has transformed the workforce. When work is done on line it doesn't matter where the worker is located so the person willing to work longer hours, for less money and fewer benefits can have the job.
Interestingly, although we've heard for years about the wonderful systems in places in China and Japan, the reality is that in both of those nations, the trend is more toward what we have here: a system in which students are encouraged to think and to create. These traits have been seen as strengths of the American system.
As State Superintendent, my office turned attention to international issues. We formed an international studies team, made up mainly of skilled teachers who would travel to other nations, learn as much as they could and then bring that information back to Idaho to share with their students and with other teachers.
When I left office that effort transferred to the Idaho Human Rights Education Center. I continue to be involved.
This last summer two Moscow teachers, Leanne Erickson and Kris Peterson were on the Education Center's sponsored mission to Europe to study such topics as immigration, workers rights and so on from a broader perspective. On these trips we also visit schools, talk to educators and set up sister school relationships. And we learn from them ways to strengthen our system.
Here are a few:
Our students should learn another language. Along with that comes knowledge of the cultural norms: what is considered polite, what is rude, how business is done - those give a leg up in a highly competitive world.
We need to invest in school improvement efforts that raise the quality of instruction in elementary and secondary schools. We do have to get better at what we do in education.
We are getting children ready for the world of work. Certainly they need to learn the basics, but beyond that: how to read with comprehension, speak and write clearly, listen actively, resolve conflicts, work in teams, solve problems, and make reasoned decisions.
We need to practice manners. There is not much tolerance for incivility. Our work with other nations is not enhanced by our reputation of insisting on our own way. I often reference the traits described in Clifton Taulbert's book Eight Habits of the Heart to describe the common elements of civility and civic citizenship. They include dependability , responsibility and high expectations, but they also include a nurturing attitude, friendship and brotherhood. Put together with courage and hope our youngsters will be equipped with the habits and attitudes needed to build strong families and communities.
On a broader scale, it is time for our state to pursue social and economic policies that will allow children to start school more equally ready to learn. Your area legislators have been leaders in trying to get state support of early childhood education. I wish them better success in the upcoming session.
In closing, I want to say that all the debate about the quality of our schools, what we're doing, how much it's costing, whether long-term improvement or a once-a-year judgment is important, all of this debate simply reflects the public's concern about, and interest in, its public school system.
In fact, someone gave me a cartoon that cuts right to the heart of it. It shows a man down on one knee, engagement ring in hand, proposing, and he says, "Marry me, Judith, I own a home in a wonderful school district."
We want our children to be smart and to be good. We want them to have satisfying lives that realize the potential they possess. We want them to live in a peaceful world. We want our nation to thrive and to be respected for its goodness as well as its strength.
Listen to the words of Langston Hughes: "O, let America be America again--the land that never has been yet ---and yet must be."
I cannot end without thanking the teachers. The teacher truly is the key. Teaching, challenging, nurturing, encouraging, correcting, and even inspiring: what they do today lasts for a lifetime. I wish them courage.
References:
Forrest Church reference: from The American Creed: a Spiritual and Patriotic Primer, St. Martins Press, NY, copyright 2002.
"We the People" reference: Preamble to the United States Constitution
Clifton Taulbert reference: from Eight Habits of the Heart, Penguin Books, copyright 1997
Langston Hughes poem: "Let America Be America"
Thomas L.Friedman reference: The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century, Farrar, Struaus & Giroux, April 2005
References from Phi Delta Kappan magazine: October 2007 include:
Gerald Bracey, The 17th Bracey Report on the Condition of Public Education, "The First Time Everything Changed," pp 119-136 reported on the Finn and Ravitch work and quoted Robert Sternberg, p 128. W. James Popham, "Instructional Insensitivity of Tests: Accountability's Dire Drawback" pp 146-155, details the problems associated with making judgments on teaching or teacher quality based on test scores.
I know this makes me sound like the cowardly lion in the Land of Oz, but I am sincere in saying that the loving mentorship of this education-focused community helped me find my courage.
I mention this because I believe this is a time for courage. It seems that fear always resides in the future. It is with some trepidation that we ask: "How are we to prepare our students for success in the world they will enter as adults." There are no easy answers to questions such as, "What might happen next ? How will what we do today affect tomorrow?"
There are some things we know: We want our children to be smart and to be good. Those two goals speak volumes. In a world grown more complex with decisions that offer no easy solutions, our young people need to be able to think and to reason.
And, they must be able to do so within a framework of strong moral purpose.
The documents that founded our nation have been looked to with the eyes of each new generation as it seeks to apply those principles to the emerging needs of the time.
Holding fast to that which made us strong can only be accomplished if each generation is fully grounded in the fundamental principles of democracy, understands the history of our country and recognizes the full scope of our actions at national and international levels. Our Constitution is our bedrock. "Its story is both noble and tragic, but its genius is emblazoned from the beginning": writes Forrest Church in his book The American Creed.
It is imperative that students have knowledge that is both broad and deep. Along with that knowledge must come the sense of personal responsibility that gives credence to the phrase, "We the people" that introduced the expectations for the new country.
One aspect of courage is the willingness to act in the face of the unknown. And, today, perhaps more than ever, it is difficult to anticipate the world that our students will enter.
Schools are expected to prepare students for successful entry into a world economy that is very different from the past and to deal with the realities of today's politically driven education agendas. Our schools are welcoming ever more diverse students even as expectations for public schools are increasing from all quarters.
Those of us in education look at what is currently happening and think of it as a political problem. However, behind almost every political problem is an economic problem. The quicker we recognize the economic realities in any situation, the more quickly, and more appropriately, we can react.
For this, we have to be paying attention, not just to FOX news but through every medium, and by watching, reading, listening, and reasoning.
This is not new. I'm not going to take a long time to recount educational decisions of the past but I'm going to remind us of how education has been affected by economic needs and other anxieties over the years.
About 1830 or -40 a public school system formalized what was perceived to be a disjointed and fully localized educational system. As new waves of immigrants arrived, schools provided the mixing pot where children of varying religions, cultures, and languages came together in a common system.
Along with the industrial revolution came the need to prepare students to enter the world of work and more students started to attend high schools. By the 1950s schools became the crucibles for promoting a diverse society as the civil rights movement began.
Did any of you stop a moment on October 4th to remember the stir that the launch of Sputnik caused 50 years ago? There was a massive call for math and science education.
Beginning with the release of the "Nation at Risk" report in 1983, we began looking more and more at how American students were doing in comparison to their peers in other industrialized nations.
So here we are, with a very heavy dose of federalism in the No Child Left Behind Act and an increasing focus on setting goals, measuring achievement and reporting results.
You know, for years I listened to the debate over whether public education was a local responsibility or a state responsibility. Now the argument is over, and the winner is . . . the federal government.
To an extent that I never imagined possible, what we test, and when, and who is qualified to teach, how we rate schools, how and when we report to the public - all of that is now being driven by federal law and regulation, rather than state or even local decisions.
The NCLB Act has dominated public education for the last six years. It stated goal is to make sure that every child is proficient in the basic subjects, reading, language arts, and math - by 2014.
A huge component has been mandatory testing for every child at every grade from 3rd through 8th grade and then once in high school - a sort of exit test. Idaho calls its test the ISAT or Idaho Standards Achievement Test.
The No Child Left Behind Act is now entering its destructive phase and schools that have not met all the expectations in a way consistent with the law are slated for "restructuring": a form of state takeover of the local district.
Alot has been said about the tests that are used to dictate the decisions. More discussion needs to occur. There is a principle of quantum physics that says the very act of measuring something changes the essential nature of what is being tested. We see that happening.
The tests we are giving are not constructed to make teachers better teachers. The tests are also not instructionally sensitive - they don't discriminate good teaching from rote instruction.
The latest issue of Phi Delta Kappan addresses these issues in detail. We see a warning from Robert Sternberg that massive testing "is one of the most effective if unintentional vehicles this country has created for suppressing creativity."
Finn and Ravitch, who have been critical of public education, now are worrying out loud about the effect of testing. Here are some of the problems they see:
1. The gradual death of liberal learning in higher education. The emphasis is now on career preparation and professional training.
2. A standards and accountability movement increasingly focused only on basic skills. Other areas, anything other than reading, math, and science are seen as less valuable.
3. So much focus on math and science that other subjects are squeezed out of the curriculum.
4. A widening gap between those who have-a-lot or those who have-little resulting in a widening achievement gap between those groups.
The same magazine also has a focus on international education. I think we are all paying more attention to the rest of the world these days. I know I've recently read books about Islam and Afghanistan and one that recounted the history of Burma.
We are afraid of how the world and our place in it are being affected by events of the last several years. We recognize that the isolationist attitudes of the past are not going to work in the future. The world is simply too small.
We heard about that in Thomas Friedman's book, The World is Flat, where he discusses how a computer connected world has transformed the workforce. When work is done on line it doesn't matter where the worker is located so the person willing to work longer hours, for less money and fewer benefits can have the job.
Interestingly, although we've heard for years about the wonderful systems in places in China and Japan, the reality is that in both of those nations, the trend is more toward what we have here: a system in which students are encouraged to think and to create. These traits have been seen as strengths of the American system.
As State Superintendent, my office turned attention to international issues. We formed an international studies team, made up mainly of skilled teachers who would travel to other nations, learn as much as they could and then bring that information back to Idaho to share with their students and with other teachers.
When I left office that effort transferred to the Idaho Human Rights Education Center. I continue to be involved.
This last summer two Moscow teachers, Leanne Erickson and Kris Peterson were on the Education Center's sponsored mission to Europe to study such topics as immigration, workers rights and so on from a broader perspective. On these trips we also visit schools, talk to educators and set up sister school relationships. And we learn from them ways to strengthen our system.
Here are a few:
Our students should learn another language. Along with that comes knowledge of the cultural norms: what is considered polite, what is rude, how business is done - those give a leg up in a highly competitive world.
We need to invest in school improvement efforts that raise the quality of instruction in elementary and secondary schools. We do have to get better at what we do in education.
We are getting children ready for the world of work. Certainly they need to learn the basics, but beyond that: how to read with comprehension, speak and write clearly, listen actively, resolve conflicts, work in teams, solve problems, and make reasoned decisions.
We need to practice manners. There is not much tolerance for incivility. Our work with other nations is not enhanced by our reputation of insisting on our own way. I often reference the traits described in Clifton Taulbert's book Eight Habits of the Heart to describe the common elements of civility and civic citizenship. They include dependability , responsibility and high expectations, but they also include a nurturing attitude, friendship and brotherhood. Put together with courage and hope our youngsters will be equipped with the habits and attitudes needed to build strong families and communities.
On a broader scale, it is time for our state to pursue social and economic policies that will allow children to start school more equally ready to learn. Your area legislators have been leaders in trying to get state support of early childhood education. I wish them better success in the upcoming session.
In closing, I want to say that all the debate about the quality of our schools, what we're doing, how much it's costing, whether long-term improvement or a once-a-year judgment is important, all of this debate simply reflects the public's concern about, and interest in, its public school system.
In fact, someone gave me a cartoon that cuts right to the heart of it. It shows a man down on one knee, engagement ring in hand, proposing, and he says, "Marry me, Judith, I own a home in a wonderful school district."
We want our children to be smart and to be good. We want them to have satisfying lives that realize the potential they possess. We want them to live in a peaceful world. We want our nation to thrive and to be respected for its goodness as well as its strength.
Listen to the words of Langston Hughes: "O, let America be America again--the land that never has been yet ---and yet must be."
I cannot end without thanking the teachers. The teacher truly is the key. Teaching, challenging, nurturing, encouraging, correcting, and even inspiring: what they do today lasts for a lifetime. I wish them courage.
References:
Forrest Church reference: from The American Creed: a Spiritual and Patriotic Primer, St. Martins Press, NY, copyright 2002.
"We the People" reference: Preamble to the United States Constitution
Clifton Taulbert reference: from Eight Habits of the Heart, Penguin Books, copyright 1997
Langston Hughes poem: "Let America Be America"
Thomas L.Friedman reference: The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century, Farrar, Struaus & Giroux, April 2005
References from Phi Delta Kappan magazine: October 2007 include:
Gerald Bracey, The 17th Bracey Report on the Condition of Public Education, "The First Time Everything Changed," pp 119-136 reported on the Finn and Ravitch work and quoted Robert Sternberg, p 128. W. James Popham, "Instructional Insensitivity of Tests: Accountability's Dire Drawback" pp 146-155, details the problems associated with making judgments on teaching or teacher quality based on test scores.
posted by UUCP Sermons at 10:47 AM
