When I first started to read Chapter 21, I thought it looked like another scheme for "consultants" to make a lot of money. However, once I read further into the chapter it seemed more and more legitimate.
To completely revamp an entire State, district or school would indeed take a lot of direction from someone who knew the process as well as willing participation from most who are involved. I say most because not EVERYONE is going to be on board with any changes when you have teachers, administrators, students, tax payers and parents from all socio-economic backgrounds involved. However as stated by the Reiser & Dempsey (2007) on page 216 in the conducting community forums section, “… getting many stakeholders involved in the journey toward excellence…” the more ownership you can give to the stakeholders the more they will see value in making it succeed. This will help them desire to help you succeed rather than want to hinder your progress. I know I have said this before, but I think it is important enough to repeat; there are so many things that schools do that come under fire and would have been met with much less opposition if the students, parents, teachers and tax payers were informed of the decision ahead of time and even involved with some of the details… no matter how insignificant they seemed.
While I have not heard many good thinks about the Department of Education, I think some form of standards are needed. Before the Department of Education came into play, individual states and even county standards were enough because many people did not move away to other states our countries. The reality today however is that many people do move, many times and all over the world. Our students need to be educated to a level that will help them compete in the global job market. I experienced this first hand my first time in Germany. When I was there I had a 2.6 (out of 4.0) GPA. It was a real wakeup call for me when I walked into a fifth grade classroom that was doing calculus to speak English with them. The teacher apologized for their lack of English skills, but when they opened their mouths they seem to speak fluent English. The fact that these 5th graders were probably more marketable than I, a Junior in High School really inspired me to work very hard my last year in High School. Another part of the German system, please forgive me for sounding like a socialist here, is that they have 3 different types of schools one for students that will begin to learn a skilled trade at 16, one for students who will get the equivalent of an associate’s degree and one for students getting a bachelors, masters or PhDs. One thing I would change about this system is their method for placing the children. In Germany in 4th grade the students are given a test. The results of this test decide which course the children will follow. I think this should be up to the students themselves as to which path to follow. I am certain that I would have been in the lowest group if tested in the fourth grade. Although the blue collar industry is shrinking, I went to school with many kids who knew they were going to take over the family farm, work at GM etc… so school for them was just something postponing what they were going to do and it was a distraction for the students who were college bound. So in conclusion I would have to say that I support the idea of state, country and to some extent global standards.
Reiser, R. & Dempsey, J. (2007). Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall.
Monday, June 2, 2008
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5 comments:
I agree to revamp an entire state, district or school would take alot of hard work from someone who knew a ton on info on all aspects. And yes there will always be those that are going to fight the process.
Melissa
Katherine,
Calculus in the fifth grade, that’s impressive. I am always surprised on how much farther students of other industrialized nations are in terms of grade levels. It is obvious that great value is placed on education in those countries and students take personal responsibility for their learning.
I once had an apprentice who came from Vietnam with his family when we was twelve years old. When he started his apprenticeship he already had a Masters degree in mechanical engineering from Michigan State. Quite frankly, he had more formal education than I had, but he was the best student I have ever taught. He took notes on everything I said, did everything I asked the first time I asked it, and never had an attitude. When I asked him about his work ethic he told me that education is extremely important to his culture, his family, and then to himself, in that order.
Jeff Tyler
Revamping the entire district is a task that could be difficult, however I think it could be done! It is true that you cannot please everyong all the time, but I believe that you can please a large portion of them if it is done the right way. There is no question that our education system could use some revamping. I hope that someone steps up to the plate soon!
It seems like schools have to hire consultants to add legitimacy to their efforts. Unfortunately, a project is often judged by how much money is thrown at it.
The stories about how other countries education systems are more rigorous than ours always sort of scares me. Sometimes I wonder if we are living in a modern day Rome that is going to go they same way ancient Rome did.
I agree, you will never have all people on board for change. But wouldn't it be exciting to try it on a state or national level WITH THEB RIGHT LEADERSHIP. We have to do something.
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