A week from now I'll be exhausted and headed home after a couple of long days at the Denver Convention Center and the NCTM Regional Conference. I've been planning my schedule and this is what I have so far:
Thursday, October 7:
9:30 - 10:30 "Learn <-> Reflect Kickoff: Geometry Must Change! Enough Trivia!" with Johnny W. Lott (Past President, NCTM; University of Mississippi) OR "A Learning Trajectory for Fractions with Low-Achieving Students" with Maria Ables (Freudenthal Institute)
I have class Thursday morning so I'll probably miss both of these. The content of Lott's presentation sounds good and pretty much everything from the Freudenthal Institute is good.
11:00 - 12:00 "Research-Based Practices that Increase Student Achievement -- and Practical Suggestions for Implementing Them In Your Classroom" with Diane Briars (President, National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics)
12:30 - 1:30 "Beyond Common Core Standards: Deep Curriculum Needed to Link Instruction, Assessment, and Professional Development" with Lorrie Shepard (University of Colorado at Boulder) OR "From Informal to Formal with a Click: Using Technology to Facilitate Progressive Formalization in Algebra" with Fred Peck and Jenn Moeller (Boulder Valley School District)
I had class with Fred and Jenn last summer and would love to see their presentation, but I really want to see Dr. Shepard's take on the Common Core Standards and the curriculum we need to support it. In either case, I might have trouble getting to Denver in time.
2:00 - 3:00 "Students' Geometric Reasoning: Research, Assessment, Teaching, and Intervention" with Michael Battista (Ohio State University)
5:00 - 6:30 "Why Videogames Are the Perfect Medium to Learn School Mathematics" with Keith Devlin (Stanford University)
Friday, October 8:
8:00-9:00 "Engaging Middle School Students in Proving" with Eric Knuth (University of Wisconsin -- Madison) OR "Online Professional Development Collaborative for Grades 6-12 Mathematics Teachers" with Robert Mayes (University of Wyoming) OR "Interactive, Visual Tools to Support the Learning of Algebra" with Henk van der Kooj (Freudenthal Institute)
I've seen probably seen the visual tools Henk van der Kooj will show at previous Freudenthal events, but if you haven't seen them you should check them out.
9:30-10:30 "NCTM and Implementation of the Common Core State Standards" with David Masunaga (Board of Directors, NCTM) and Michael Shaughnessy (President, NCTM)
11:00 - 12:00 "Students Reasoning and Sense Making on Some Favorite Geometry Problems" with Michael Shaughnessy (President, NCTM)
12:30 - 2:00 "Accessible Assessment: Selecting and Designing Tasks That Show What Students Know" with David C. Webb (University of Colorado at Boulder)
I've taken a class on assessment with Dr. Webb, so I may look for something else I haven't seen.
2:00 - 3:00 "Classroom Conversations: The Heart of Teaching" with Gail Burrill (Past President, NCTM; Michigan State University)
I still have some gaps to fill. I'll spend some time in the exhibitor hall, confirming my (somewhat baseless) distaste of most for-profit publishers and seeking out friendly faces. Hope to see you there!
Review: Race to Nowhere
Tonight I had the pleasure of viewing a screening of the documentary Race to Nowhere at the Shepherd Valley Waldorf School. With other education films such as Waiting for Superman and The Lottery, Nowhere provides a very different, yet very important perspective on American education. Check out the trailer:
People need to see this movie -- especially people who see Waiting for Superman. (Are you hearing me, Oprah?) Where Superman wants you to point fingers at a school, a teacher, or a union, Nowhere doesn't try to assign blame. Nowhere wants you to understand our educational culture and our roles in it, and use that understanding to change the way we as a society view school. Instead of over-scheduling, over-working, and over-stressing our students, Nowhere advocates for children, letting kids be kids and fostering their creativity and happiness to make them (or let them be) accomplished learners. Nowhere paints a powerful picture of accountability-based, high-stakes reform, and we begin to see how easily we fall into the traps of our system even while we understand its failings. Where Superman demands anger as the impetus for social change, Nowhere is a plea for compassion. Anger generally trumps compassion when it comes to getting people's attention, so I have doubts that Nowhere will be getting the attention it deserves alongside Superman. But we don't always make our best decisions when we're angry.
I'll admit it: for most of my life I scoffed at the idea that student self-esteem was a prerequisite for student achievement. I always thought it should be the other way around. After a year or so of grad school, with sufficient guidance and time for reflection and self-enlightenment, I now realize that my opinions were far too grounded in my own experience as a relatively stress-free, high-achieving student. This movie isn't about the warm and fuzzy student self-esteem I may have discredited in the past; the students in this movie are being harmed both psychologically and physically in ways that are hard to watch, and students who don't want that stress are giving up altogether. Nowhere seeks a balance, a reciprocity between student welfare and achievement that we must desire as an educational outcome. High standardized test scores always look good, but not if they come with higher incidents of student sickness, headaches, sleepless nights, caffiene and stimulant abuse, eating disorders, and suicides. (The film contains a heartbreaking story of a 13-year-old girl who killed herself, essentially, because a bad test in 8th grade algebra was going to prevent her from getting straight As.) The most powerful voices in Nowhere are the students. They are bright, well-spoken, driven students who want to do well as much or more than any parent, teacher, administrator, or policymaker wants for them. They are the stars of this movie and they deserve not only our attention, but our action. Where should you start? Go see the movie and watch for the answers to that question at the end of the film.
People need to see this movie -- especially people who see Waiting for Superman. (Are you hearing me, Oprah?) Where Superman wants you to point fingers at a school, a teacher, or a union, Nowhere doesn't try to assign blame. Nowhere wants you to understand our educational culture and our roles in it, and use that understanding to change the way we as a society view school. Instead of over-scheduling, over-working, and over-stressing our students, Nowhere advocates for children, letting kids be kids and fostering their creativity and happiness to make them (or let them be) accomplished learners. Nowhere paints a powerful picture of accountability-based, high-stakes reform, and we begin to see how easily we fall into the traps of our system even while we understand its failings. Where Superman demands anger as the impetus for social change, Nowhere is a plea for compassion. Anger generally trumps compassion when it comes to getting people's attention, so I have doubts that Nowhere will be getting the attention it deserves alongside Superman. But we don't always make our best decisions when we're angry.
I'll admit it: for most of my life I scoffed at the idea that student self-esteem was a prerequisite for student achievement. I always thought it should be the other way around. After a year or so of grad school, with sufficient guidance and time for reflection and self-enlightenment, I now realize that my opinions were far too grounded in my own experience as a relatively stress-free, high-achieving student. This movie isn't about the warm and fuzzy student self-esteem I may have discredited in the past; the students in this movie are being harmed both psychologically and physically in ways that are hard to watch, and students who don't want that stress are giving up altogether. Nowhere seeks a balance, a reciprocity between student welfare and achievement that we must desire as an educational outcome. High standardized test scores always look good, but not if they come with higher incidents of student sickness, headaches, sleepless nights, caffiene and stimulant abuse, eating disorders, and suicides. (The film contains a heartbreaking story of a 13-year-old girl who killed herself, essentially, because a bad test in 8th grade algebra was going to prevent her from getting straight As.) The most powerful voices in Nowhere are the students. They are bright, well-spoken, driven students who want to do well as much or more than any parent, teacher, administrator, or policymaker wants for them. They are the stars of this movie and they deserve not only our attention, but our action. Where should you start? Go see the movie and watch for the answers to that question at the end of the film.
Tenure and Union Contracts Are Two Separate Issues
One of many teachers to speak during NBC's "Teacher Town Hall" on Sunday was this young woman, featured again on Monday's NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams:
While I don't know all the details of her particular situation or what it's like at her school, her first words concern me: "I think we don't understand tenure." She then goes on with a passionate speech about how the union contract at her school interferes with her ability to deliver the kind of education she'd like to see her students get. I'm worried that she's failed to distinguish between union contracts and tenure, and it's clear from our current national discourse that she isn't the only one.
Union contracts, sometimes called professional agreements or master agreements, define fundamental working conditions between the school board (or administration) and the teachers, including contract hours, sick days, early retirement, grievance procedures, and many other practical, often common-sense things that are found in many employer-employee relationships. These are generally negotiated at a district level and quality varies. And, as with anything territorial, these negotiations can become very politicized and what started as common sense gets twisted into spiteful actions and reactions. If this teacher works in a district that prevents her from volunteering her non-contract time to help kids who want to be helped, then there is something wrong with both her district's union contract and how it's enforced. She has every right to be upset.
Tenure is something quite different. Tenure is usually defined by state lawmakers, and to avoid the "job for life" misconception many states don't actually use the word "tenure." Colorado, for example, uses "non-probationary teacher." After teaching successfully for several years (usually 3), as shown by regular and multiple administrative evaluations, a teacher earns due process rights. While I am not a lawyer, my understanding of due process is this: a teacher with "tenure," when faced with dismissal from his/her job, has the right to be heard in front of a neutral judge. Unfortunately, given the high stakes of such decisions (for both sides) and the inefficiencies of the legal system, such proceedings are contentious, taxing, and expensive. Tenure protections were designed to protect teachers from the whims of political pressures, not poor performance. But in today's heated climate, however, poor teacher performance couldn't be much more political. Few would disagree that reforms are needed, but the rights of due process are not easily negotiated or redefined.
In some ways I'm happy that this teacher doesn't think she needs tenure. Maybe we finally live in a world where parents and administrators are more supportive when their teachers try innovative teaching practices. Maybe teachers are free to assign grades to students without outside influence. Maybe communities are more tolerant of teachers who affiliate with a religion, political party, or sexual orientation that differs from their own. Maybe teachers, such as the one in the video, can now be outspoken without risking their jobs. But let's get serious -- this is not the world in which we live and the teacher in the video, whether she thinks she needs them or not, is a noble professional who deserves some protection against these kinds of pressures. I want her to be able to argue for what's best for her students and not fear for her career because her sentiments might be unpopular, whether it's with her administration or union officials. Again, this is not about her performance. The protection from pressures I've described above should and can be dealt with separately from concerns of poor performance.
I admire the spirit of the young woman in the video and hope she sees the differences between her union contract and tenure. I also hope she is admired for speaking out and is received in her school with understanding and respect. I also hope she and others learn to calm the discourse, understand the critical distinctions in these important issues, and work to do not only what's best for children, but what's right for their teachers as well. Reforms done "with" are destined to be more successful than reforms done "to," and that kind of cooperation is going to take a refined level of debate.
While I don't know all the details of her particular situation or what it's like at her school, her first words concern me: "I think we don't understand tenure." She then goes on with a passionate speech about how the union contract at her school interferes with her ability to deliver the kind of education she'd like to see her students get. I'm worried that she's failed to distinguish between union contracts and tenure, and it's clear from our current national discourse that she isn't the only one.
Union contracts, sometimes called professional agreements or master agreements, define fundamental working conditions between the school board (or administration) and the teachers, including contract hours, sick days, early retirement, grievance procedures, and many other practical, often common-sense things that are found in many employer-employee relationships. These are generally negotiated at a district level and quality varies. And, as with anything territorial, these negotiations can become very politicized and what started as common sense gets twisted into spiteful actions and reactions. If this teacher works in a district that prevents her from volunteering her non-contract time to help kids who want to be helped, then there is something wrong with both her district's union contract and how it's enforced. She has every right to be upset.
Tenure is something quite different. Tenure is usually defined by state lawmakers, and to avoid the "job for life" misconception many states don't actually use the word "tenure." Colorado, for example, uses "non-probationary teacher." After teaching successfully for several years (usually 3), as shown by regular and multiple administrative evaluations, a teacher earns due process rights. While I am not a lawyer, my understanding of due process is this: a teacher with "tenure," when faced with dismissal from his/her job, has the right to be heard in front of a neutral judge. Unfortunately, given the high stakes of such decisions (for both sides) and the inefficiencies of the legal system, such proceedings are contentious, taxing, and expensive. Tenure protections were designed to protect teachers from the whims of political pressures, not poor performance. But in today's heated climate, however, poor teacher performance couldn't be much more political. Few would disagree that reforms are needed, but the rights of due process are not easily negotiated or redefined.
In some ways I'm happy that this teacher doesn't think she needs tenure. Maybe we finally live in a world where parents and administrators are more supportive when their teachers try innovative teaching practices. Maybe teachers are free to assign grades to students without outside influence. Maybe communities are more tolerant of teachers who affiliate with a religion, political party, or sexual orientation that differs from their own. Maybe teachers, such as the one in the video, can now be outspoken without risking their jobs. But let's get serious -- this is not the world in which we live and the teacher in the video, whether she thinks she needs them or not, is a noble professional who deserves some protection against these kinds of pressures. I want her to be able to argue for what's best for her students and not fear for her career because her sentiments might be unpopular, whether it's with her administration or union officials. Again, this is not about her performance. The protection from pressures I've described above should and can be dealt with separately from concerns of poor performance.
I admire the spirit of the young woman in the video and hope she sees the differences between her union contract and tenure. I also hope she is admired for speaking out and is received in her school with understanding and respect. I also hope she and others learn to calm the discourse, understand the critical distinctions in these important issues, and work to do not only what's best for children, but what's right for their teachers as well. Reforms done "with" are destined to be more successful than reforms done "to," and that kind of cooperation is going to take a refined level of debate.
A Week for Irony and Contradictions in Education
The recent past has been wrought with irony (or at least contradictions) in all corners of education. Let's look at a list:
Read Bruce Baker's "If money doesn't matter..." Bruce examines the argument that "we keep throwing money at education and it hasn't made a difference," and points out that (a) schools with lots of money tend to do well, and (b) people who make that argument don't mind throwing money at charter schools.
Just days after Vanderbilt University released their study finding no improvement in test scores in Nashville's merit pay system, schools around the country (including Colorado) received millions of dollars from the federal government to implement merit pay systems.
NBC's "Education Nation" summit will gather "the foremost policymakers, elected officials, thought leaders, educators, members of the business community and engaged citizens" to discuss issues in U.S. education. Unfortunately, the list of invited panelists NBC is promoting doesn't include any teachers, students, principals, or professors. The only university-affiliated participant on the list is the President of the University of Phoenix, who happens to be a major sponsor of the event.
In a post called "Does Education Pay?" the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) criticize the College Board for "a confusion of correlation with causation." The day before, the CCAP asked, "Should We Abolish Colleges of Education?" and use this logic:
If I missed anything you want to add to this week's list, feel free to add them in the comments.
References
Floden, R. E., & Meniketti, M. (2005). Research on the effects of coursework in the arts and sciences and in the foundations of education. In M. Cochran-Smith & K.M. Zeichner (Eds.), Studying teacher education: The Report of AERA Panel on Research and Teacher Education (pp. 261-308). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Read Bruce Baker's "If money doesn't matter..." Bruce examines the argument that "we keep throwing money at education and it hasn't made a difference," and points out that (a) schools with lots of money tend to do well, and (b) people who make that argument don't mind throwing money at charter schools.
Just days after Vanderbilt University released their study finding no improvement in test scores in Nashville's merit pay system, schools around the country (including Colorado) received millions of dollars from the federal government to implement merit pay systems.
NBC's "Education Nation" summit will gather "the foremost policymakers, elected officials, thought leaders, educators, members of the business community and engaged citizens" to discuss issues in U.S. education. Unfortunately, the list of invited panelists NBC is promoting doesn't include any teachers, students, principals, or professors. The only university-affiliated participant on the list is the President of the University of Phoenix, who happens to be a major sponsor of the event.
In a post called "Does Education Pay?" the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) criticize the College Board for "a confusion of correlation with causation." The day before, the CCAP asked, "Should We Abolish Colleges of Education?" and use this logic:
- U.S. students "perform in a mediocre fashion" on international tests.
- Kids need remediation and/or drop out of college because of their mediocre education.
- Good teaching is better than mediocre teaching.
- Most teachers studied at a college of education.
- The teachers who didn't go to a college of education are as good or better than those who did, such as Teach for America teachers. (Sorry, CCAP, that's rarely true.)
- Colleges of education support anti-knowledge and anti-intellectual biases and make their poor students look good by inflating grades.
- Colleges of education don't want teachers to be rewarded for student learning because student self-esteem is more important than knowledge.
- While there might be some good colleges of education, most of the people who really understand education are not in education schools.
- Courses in education are less helpful for math teachers (for example) than advanced math courses. (This was not the finding by Floden and Meniketti (2005), who say it's not as simple as "more math is better.")
- THEREFORE, we should close colleges of education, which are a "blight on true 'higher education' [that] should be discouraged at all institutions depending on taxpayer funds."
If I missed anything you want to add to this week's list, feel free to add them in the comments.
References
Floden, R. E., & Meniketti, M. (2005). Research on the effects of coursework in the arts and sciences and in the foundations of education. In M. Cochran-Smith & K.M. Zeichner (Eds.), Studying teacher education: The Report of AERA Panel on Research and Teacher Education (pp. 261-308). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Teaching as a "Moral Craft"
I recently read The Peculiar Problems of Preparing Educational Researchers by David F. Labaree, and was particularly struck by this paragraph:
I've heard other people argue that the teaching profession doesn't compare well to other professions, like being a doctor or lawyer. After reading this, I'm happy they don't - teachers have good reason to feel like they're doing something special.
References
Labaree, D. F. (2003). The peculiar problems of preparing educational researchers. Educational Researcher, 32(4), 13-22. Retrieved from http://edr.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/32/4/13.
The main reason for [teaching as a moral craft] is that, unlike most professionals, teachers do not apply their expertise toward ends that are set by the client. A lawyer, doctor, or accountant is a hired mind who helps clients pursue goals that they themselves establish, such as to gain a divorce, halt an infection, or minimize taxes. But teachers are in the business of instilling behaviors and skills and knowledge in students who do not ask for this intervention in their lives and who are considered too young to make that kind of choice anyway. By setting out to change people rather than to serve their wishes, teachers take on an enormous moral responsibility to make sure that they changes they introduce are truly in the best interest of the student and not merely a matter of individual whim or personal convenience. And this reponsibility is exacerbated by the fact that they student's presence in the teacher's classroom is compulsory. Not only are teachers imposing a particular curriculum on students, then, but they are also denying them the liberty to do something else. The moral implications are clear: If you are going to restrict student liberty, it has to be for very good reasons; you had better be able to show that the student ultimately benefits and that these benefits are large enough to justify the coercive means used to produce them (Cohen, 1988; Fenstermacher, 1990; Tom, 1984).
I've heard other people argue that the teaching profession doesn't compare well to other professions, like being a doctor or lawyer. After reading this, I'm happy they don't - teachers have good reason to feel like they're doing something special.
References
Labaree, D. F. (2003). The peculiar problems of preparing educational researchers. Educational Researcher, 32(4), 13-22. Retrieved from http://edr.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/32/4/13.
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