User talk:Marlereric

Eric Marler Mr. Toney Contemporary Issues, 6th Hour Final 18 December, 2009 Student Reading 2 1. The article raises the question of what we should do with our education system, in terms of a reform. Where should our tax money go for education? According Education Secretary Arne Duncan, our tax money should only go towards schools that have a reform effort. 2. What are major issues, problems, criticisms and questions in school reform efforts? There are several issues that clot the pores of the face of school reform. One such question raised is whether this supposed “reform” actually improves academic improvement. Mr. Arne Duncan, the US Education Secretary exemplified Michael Bloomberg’s changes that affected graduation rates. However, Diane Ravitch conducted a study that found that this was not necessarily correlated with academic improvement. It’s also been found that while graduation rates for high school go up, failure rates for college remain the same 3. Which of these efforts seem to you best to promote student “education”? Why? This may be the only area I am conservative about. I am skeptical of this myself, but I digress. I believe I would lie with “Obama’s” line about how the ultimate responsibility lies with  the children. We live in a Darwinian society, after all. The strongest survive. In one of my elementary classes, we hatched eggs in an incubator. We the chicks started hatching after weeks, there were several eggs where the birds couldn’t break their eggs. None of the other chicks tried to help them. If they couldn’t make it, that’s natural selection at its best. The students should not rely on wholly on the school to make them succeed. First and formost, the students should rely on themselves. 4. Secretary Duncan thinks we should consider lengthening the school day and the school year because “you’re competing for jobs with kids in India and China.” What does that statement suggest about what the secretary thinks is a major purpose of the schools? Do you agree? Why or why not? Mr. Duncan thinks the major purpose of schools is to prepare students for a workplace. I disagree with this statement. Schools aren’t for preparing students for a job, that’s what college is for. 5. Consider the points the president made about school improvement. How important do you think each one is? Why? Can you envision difficulties in making these improvements? I don’t think the points made by the president are important. The president—as presidents tend to do—just makes vague, ambiguous suggestions that can be left up for interpretation of the citizens (the voters). Therefore, actually making these improvements would be difficult, because they’re not defined.

Eric Marler Mr. Toney Contemporary Issues, 6th Hour Final 18 December, 2009 Student Reading 2 1.	What questions do you have about the reading? How might they be answered? I have several questions about the reading. The first that comes to mind is what which reform effort, if any, we should pursue? I would answer this through a professional in the field of child psychiatry and sociology; I’d ask someone who can understand all the factors that go into this intricate subject. 2.	What is one reason why Professor Darling-Hammond thinks school reform efforts fail? According to her, what do teacher in America need that teachers in some other countries already have? Professor Darling-Hammond thinks reform fails because of the way children learns is different, and reform seems to take away a teachers ability to use discretion whilst considering teaching methods. She believes that American teachers should be envious of teachers in other countries because they get more time to plan lessons, meet with students and parents, and observe each other in the classroom setting. 3.	What is wrong with “fill-in-the-bubble standardized tests,” according to critics? What would such critics regard as more “authentic assessment”? What do you think and why? The critics say the fill-in-the-bubble tests do not present “authentic assessment”. Professor Darling-Hammond, the professor of education at Harvard says that countries with better education use methods of problem solving and critical thinking, rather than bubble games. 4.	What do you think is meant by: “Top-down teaching standards and curriculum mandates” “Emphasis on rote learning” “a corporate sensibility” “for-profit charter schools”? I am not sure what any of those points mean. To find out, I could probably ask our principal, who is usually pretty well-versed with his knowledge of education. 5.   What is “never questioned” by many school reforms, according to Kohn? Would   you criticize the items he noted? Why or why not? *sigh* Kohn lists the following items that are never questioned by school reform: “a heavy reliance on fill-in-the-bubble standardized tests to evaluate students and schools, generally in place of more authentic assessment “The imposition of prescriptive top-down teaching standards and curriculum mandates. “a disproportionate emphasis on rote learning memorizing facts and practicing skills “a corporate sensibility and an economic rationale for schools, the point being to      prepare children to compete as future employees. “charter schools, many run by for-profit organizations” Yes, I would criticize the items he noted. Those are all valid areas which should be investigated via reform. Some of these, such as the organizations over education seems too corruptible to me.” 6. Professor Darling –Hammond argues for replacing standardized tests as the main method of evaluating student progress. What would she replace them with and why? Darling-Hammond argues for replacing standardized tests with real world investigations, and complex problems, and orally defends ideas and engages actively with each other. She goes on to explain that many serious intellectual activities such as these are being driven into “other nations’ assessment systems” and at the same time driven out of U.S. Schools.