Letter to the President

Dear President Obama,

National over-emphasis on standardized test scores is devastating our local public schools and students.

Students who have trouble passing the tests are repeatedly drilled on the same subjects – math and reading.  Often low-income, minority, or students with learning disabilities, kids labeled ‘failures’ by the testing system are defeated by continuous focus on their weaknesses and the “bubble tests.”  They are hindered from developing potential strengths in other subjects. 

Students who pass the tests still see their curriculum shrink.  Science, Social Studies, Writing, and the arts have been de-emphasized so much that many students and teachers now question their importance.  Teachers are often pulled from regular classes to tutor low-performing students, leaving average and high-scoring students with substitutes and worksheets.  Middle class students in public schools are not receiving as strong an education as their parents had, and many will graduate without sufficient preparation for college or the work force.  Being able to pass three multiple-choice tests a year is not enough education; the next generation needs a balanced curriculum.

If test-score based sanctions and rewards continue to dominate our schools, our children’s generation will not have enough engineers, scientists, doctors, nurses, teachers, historians, leaders, writers, etc.  The average citizen will not know enough about government or history to make educated choices when voting.  Lacking writing skills, they will not be able to communicate effectively to improve their personal lives, their businesses or their government.

I am a former language arts teacher.  Since 2001, I have supported Guilford County schools in North Carolina as a PTA President, community activist, tutor, and testing proctor.  These positions have allowed me to observe the effects of the No Child Left Behind Act up close, and discuss testing issues with teachers and parents from many schools.   Dedicated administrators, school board members and teachers in our diverse district wrestle daily with the impossible challenges set up by the NCLBA.  I have seen teachers struggle against, and finally succumb to pressure to ‘teach to the tests’ as scores on the EOG’s have taken priority over every other criterion for evaluating teachers and schools.   Good teachers and principals have taken early retirement or found other ways out of the classroom because they cannot stand the constant testing environment.

My daughter made straight A’s and scored in the top percentile on EOG tests, but was not taught to write (essays, etc.) in middle school because writing is not tested.  Writing is a major skill like reading or arithmetic that must be developed over years, but because of NCLB it is neglected in our schools.  

Attacks on public schools, including those created by the NCLBA, are hurtful to the middle class.  The NCLBA will leave the majority of our public school students prepared for little but factory work, in a country where factory jobs are becoming less common.  I believe this could lead to major societal instability as these unskilled graduates and drop-outs look for jobs.

Please listen to public school teachers and parents, and consider the negative effects of the Bush Administration’s bipartisan “No Child Left Behind” act.  Not only has this legislation failed in its goal to bring every child to a standard reading and math level, but I believe it has lowered education standards around the country. 

Thank you for the work you are doing for our country.  I am one of millions of people who believe you are one of the greatest presidents we will ever have.  Helping our public education system change direction and recover from No Child Left Behind is very important.  A strong public education system is imperative for our democracy to remain viable.

Sincerely yours,

Sharon Shepard

Both September entries/ editorials will be attached.

Testing Editorial from News and Record, Tyler Whittenberg

An echo of my September entries, from a more recent teacher:

UNDUE PRESSURE FOR KIDS?

  Stakes high for middle school students and teachers in EOG tests

     The N.C. State Board of Education recently recommended a policy change that would make middle school End-of-Grade exams account for 25 percent of each student’s final grade in specified subjects. Currently, this policy applies only to high school students taking End-of-Course exams.     middle school after Christmas break will tell you that spring semester is for test preparation and test preparation only. Posters encouraging better test scores and banners counting down to May line every hallway. Administrators hold EOG “pep rallies” (sometimes featuring an almost religious fervor) in   which students take turns shouting about how well they’re going to do. Last year’s poor performers are separated before and after school to receive remediation — which often looks a lot more like test-prep hypnosis.   have achieved a mastery of the English language, they did master the skills needed to learn. If 25 percent of these students’ final English grade would have been dependent on their EOG score, the lesson learned would have been far less encouraging.   sense) have long understood the foolishness of just “teaching to the test.” Indeed, in many ways, North Carolina’s system of standardized testing is actually better than most states’ and has probably even played a role in the state’s recent success in the lucrative federal Race to the Top funding competition.  

   This would be an unfortunate change. As a former middle school English teacher, I can attest to the negative consequences high-stakes testing has on both younger students and teachers.

   Most middle school students, especially sixth- and seventh-graders ages 11 to 14, are simply not prepared to handle the pressure associated with grade-affecting, high-stakes exams. I have experienced children so nervous they can’t adequately “bubble” in the answers on tests because their hands are shaking; students so disheartened after receiving their first-round test scores that they begin crying and refuse further testing; and even students who fight, curse or act out for the sole purpose of not taking the EOGs.

   It is hard to blame these students. Anyone who steps foot in a

   English Language Learning and special education students — who historically have struggled with standardized tests — will also be negatively affected by this policy. Last year, most of my ELL and learning-disabled students worked diligently throughout the school year to maintain adequate grades, some finishing the year with an “A” average. Nonetheless, after the first round of EOG tests, none of these students was “language arts proficient.”

   What they did learn, however, was that hard work and perseverance pay off. While they may not

   The new policy may be a reaction to the recent trend of connecting teacher performance assessments to student test scores. Some middle school teachers may feel that if they’re going to be held accountable for a student’s performance on the EOGs, so too should the students — a logic that falsely assumes students do not try their hardest on the EOGs because their scores lack consequence. After the implementation of No Child Left Behind, however, you would think teachers would push back in the opposite direction. High-stakes testing narrows curricula. In preparation for the test, teachers avoid inquiry-based projects utilizing critical thinking and employ “skill-n-drill” techniques that prepare students only for the test.

   I still remember older teachers giving me the stern reminder, “If it’s not on the test, don’t teach it.”

   Of course, experienced education observers and officials (and most people with any common

   Unfortunately, in this case it appears that state education officials are forgetting this important lesson. And as we all know, one step too far can easily take you a few steps back, and this step is being made at the expense of disadvantaged students throughout the state.

   It’s not too late to address this mistake. Allowing middle school EOG scores to account for a single test score or reducing the percentage of the final grade to, say, 10 percent (rather than a full quarter of their grade) would likely increase students’ individual investment in the EOGs without undermining a year’s worth of effort or scaring them stupid. Let’s hope state education leaders have a change of heart.

   Tyler Whittenberg is an education policy fellow at the North Carolina Justice Center.

Peace Starts with Civil Discourse

This was published this two years ago, but apparently some folks didn't get the message!

           

            As I often preach to the captive audience in my mini-van:  No matter how rich, famous, smart or talented you are, people judge whether they like you based on your manners.  Politicians and Hollywood  constantly provide examples to illustrate my point.  Even though outrageous behavior and rudeness gain attention, I think respect creates stronger long-term relationships, and solves more problems.

            While exercising the right to free speech, many people need to think about how they use words.  Offensive comments do not contribute to productive dialogue - they create verbal walls.  If you really want me to accept your position, you must first be polite and consider my point of view.

            My daughters learned this lesson in their Montessori kindergarten.  Mrs. White introduced the “peace feather” during her unit on Native Americans.  When my child was bothered by a classmate’s behavior, she grabbed the peace feather.  While holding it, she could explain the issue and the classmate had to listen.  Then she handed the feather to the classmate, and listened to the opposing side of the story.  Calm discussion helps children hear each other and find a peaceful solution to their problems.

            Maria Montessori invented this ceremony to help her classroom of individual learners function without constant turf battles.  Young peacemakers internalize the practice of verbalizing problems and listening to both sides of issues.  Roses, candles and peace poles have substituted for the feather, but teachers avoid giving “adult attention” to the process.  Children are inspiring and proud when they work things out by themselves.

            Desperate to help her two rambunctious boys get along, my friend created a ‘peace table’ at home.  Instead of fighting (as much), her three and five year olds would grab their peace candle, take turns airing their grievances, say “sorry,” and announce, “We declay da peas!”  (We declare the peace.) The boys greatly enjoyed the ceremony, and thought of new arguments so they could make more peace treaties.  Mom’s intervention was no longer required to prevent bloodshed.

            Our children have learned that peacemaking is not a passive activity and it never ends.  Problems in our world always need attention.  People step on toes and cut in line on the playground, in the workplace, in schools, in our government, and between nations.  Adults approaching conflicts might emulate Montessori children.  Most of us could use help talking calmly about issues, listening, ‘saying sorry’ if we have hurt someone, and finding solutions together that suit everyone.  As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.”

            As a PTA leader, I try to remember peacemaking skills when supporting our schools.  It is often important to call attention to things that can be improved in schools, but because there are so many issues, we have to be considerate of the staff and elected officials with whom we are working.  Using ‘diplomatic advocacy,’ I try to initiate ‘productive, community-building dialogue,’ as recommended by News and Record columnist, David Noer. 

           The peacemaking skills learned by our children and parents can be used in many areas where we want to improve our community.  Perhaps extending a feather would even help our local and national politicians declare peace. 

No Child Gets Ahead - How No Child Left Behind Resembles Soviet Communism

            The No Child Left Behind Act has altered our Nation’s schools as Communism did the Russian economy.  Our federal government created a system where group achievement trumps personal needs.  Fear of failure has become the primary motivator for school managers and workers.  Both the names and aims of Communism and NCLB were inspirational, but their design flaws are also similar.

            Marx’s communist philosophy and NCLB both evolved to address glaring inequalities in resource distribution.  Before the NCLBA, children with disabilities, non-English speakers, and children heavily impacted by poverty and/or racism were under-served by our schools.  The difficulty and expense of educating such children overwhelmed teachers and administrators, who often gave up on them.  Like the poverty of nineteenth century Russian peasants, this entrenched disparity called for drastic change.  Our government developed the NCLBA with the good intention of narrowing the education gap between “haves” and “have-nots” in America.  I wish it was successful.

            Measuring the academic achievement gap on a national scale could be accomplished most easily through standardized testing, which became the dominant feature of the NCLBA.  As he signed the law in 2002, President Bush boasted that all American children would achieve the same standards on reading and math tests.  Like Soviet factories, schools that did not help all workers reach productivity goals would be labeled “failures,” and could be overhauled by government authorities.  Unfortunately, such penalties have forced teachers to focus almost exclusively on test score enhancement, with disastrous results for education.

            The NCLB edutopia spotlights Reading and Mathematics.  Confusing children with extensive Science, Social Studies, or Arts instruction is not encouraged, as these subjects are not tested.  Our government is leaving a generation largely ignorant about scientific data, rich lessons of history, and the arts.  Fortunately for our children, many teachers still cover untested material, but they swim upstream against a red tide of NCLB priorities.

            Each year in American testing factories, modern pupils spend many weeks preparing for the End of Grade (EOG) examinations.  Practice assessments are given under “testing conditions,” in which children as young as eight spend entire mornings quietly wiggling at their desks, ignoring repetitive instructions, and answering multiple choice questions.  Teachers and students are so exhausted by the anxiety and time involved, that little is taught during testing weeks.  EOG “pep rallies” remind one of a ‘groupthink’ scene from George Orwell’s 1984.  And once the EOG’s are over in May, many classrooms turn into movie theaters and day-care centers, as the teacher’s work is considered done for the year.  Standardized testing discourages comprehensive education. 

            Communism reordered Russia’s caste system, and NCLB has had negative consequences for high achievers in US schools.  The Soviets treated every worker alike, forcing potential doctors and engineers to break up dirt clods on communal farms.  Russia is still recovering from this waste of human potential.  Similarly, many advanced students in our public schools are not receiving an education to match their abilities.  Students who score high on standardized tests are re-drilled on the basic material, apparently aiming for perfection.  As one such student noted, “No Child Left Behind means no child gets ahead either.” 

            Increased production was demanded of Soviet factory and farm workers without higher wages.  Production decreased.  The NCLBA sets progressively higher test-score goals.  More schools “fail” each year.  Students at risk of being ‘left behind’ have received more attention since 2002, but still struggle on tests due to factors beyond teacher control.  A teacher once told me every school will eventually fail under the NCLBA, because it is impossible to equalize test scores without lowering standards completely.

            Like the Russian Revolution, the NCLBA revealed unjust inequalities, but created new problems with punitive measures.  Test-taking is not inherently rewarding.  Therefore, American uber-emphasis on test scores punishes students and teachers, dooming schools and our society to eventual failure. 

            Adult workers perform a great variety of tasks in order to thrive in this multifaceted world, supporting not only themselves but our communities.  Our young citizens need diverse learning experiences, not the narrow focus of standardized tests.  While no child should be ‘pushed behind,’ the NCLBA requires revision.  Every American student must be challenged to reach his or her individual potential and rewarded for doing so, if our public education system is to escape the fate of the Soviet Union.

To Improve Education, Bring Back the Third ‘R’

             When I was a kid, students went to school to learn the ‘three R’s – reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic.’

But now reading and math are the dominant subjects for End of Grade tests in our nation’s public schools, so the harder-to-score writing is often neglected until tenth grade.  An unintended consequence of the No Child Left Behind act may be large numbers of students entering college and the job market with weak writing abilities.

Writing is like reading and math:  these important skills must be built over years; they cannot be learned well in a semester course.  Children often scribble ‘words’ before they learn to read.  Handwriting, spelling, and basic grammar exercises prepare elementary students to write paragraphs.  In middle and high school, writing assignments facilitate adolescents’ natural progression toward logical and organized adult thinking.  American teens learn how to exercise their right to free speech using persuasive essays and business letters.  Term papers give writers in-depth, permanent understanding of reading material. Writing should be a key component of every school’s curriculum.

            Many state and national education leaders apparently agree.  In June, the NC Board of Education adopted “Common Core State Standards” which define “clear and consistent goals for learning, to prepare children for success in college and work.”  These nationally-recognized objectives, scheduled to go into effect in August, 2012, emphasize a well-rounded education.   You can explore www.corestandards.org for easy-to-understand definitions of what children should learn in every grade and subject, including writing. 

I hope the long-overdue revision of the NCLB act helps to implement these standards without the unhealthy testing obsession created by previous legislation.

A Writing Renaissance in our public schools would boost learning and help expand curriculum to meet the new standards.  Parents and administrators could focus a tad less on test scores and encourage teachers to give more writing assignments.  Schools and community groups can promote student writing by sponsoring old fashioned essay contests.  Student newspapers and literary journals are easy to publish using computers. 

It would not be difficult to revitalize the third ‘R.’  We need to make it a priority.