Another third-grade teacher weighs in on the damage that politicians and legislators and testing corporations are doing to children:
Forget all of our methods classes in college. Forget developmental learning. Forget that children are not all the same. Every word above is true. I too am a third grade teacher. Or perhaps I should say I am now a third grade test administrator.
Education is no longer recognizable. There is very little time for teaching. We can no longer encourage children to think through issues and come to conclusions. They must have only the conclusion that is on the test(s). Students are now afraid to take any risks which is what all our great thinkers and innovators do. They are afraid it won’t be the correct choice on the test.
I have been a student, a parent and a teacher. This is a situation in which no one thrives. Not even the lucky students that test well and naturally. There is no time to challenge them to be lifelong learners, only test passers. Once they get to real life, and must perform at a job, sadly they will learn that no one gets paid to pass tests. We are raising a generation of students that hate school and we are giving them very little in the way of skills to navigate life.
And finally, I have to say, I don’t know who is writing these so called tests but I can tell you they don’t seem as if they have been in a classroom for a while. I have taught third grade for 20 years. These measures are not developmentally appropriate . The only purpose I can see is to separate the fortunate from the unfortunate. I can’t wait to see how sad our drop out rate is when these kids have learned that they are not successful because a test said so. We know from research that boys, especially African American boys, will quit trying if they see no way to succeed. Shamefully, we are setting ourselves up for a disaster. Why won’t anyone listen to the educators? Why have politicians begun running our schools, our curriculum, and our future? The people voting to enact these absurd tests haven’t been in a classroom in a very long time. How does that give them the knowledge to impact our future in such a drastic way?
I won’t quit. Someone has to be there for these kids. But the state of North Carolina is not helping their students and have demoralized their educators. Every day I go to see those smiling faces and everyday I have hope that things will change before it’s to late. You can be sure I will do my research when I vote and I encourage others to do so as well.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Very well stated! I hope that someone with money who can overpower these corrupt greedy people quickly steps in to help us save our kids!
MOST people will quit if they don’t see a way to succeed… and it’s the same with non-human animals… it’s called “learned helplessness.” By “raising the bar” too high, children learn they cannot succeed, so they will quit trying… and that’s actually a survival strategy… it makes sense to invest one’s energy in something that’s productive, not fruitless, is it not?
Well Said!
Hannah: exactly!
But, if I may, let me make a crucial distinction between the schools the leading charterites/privatizers and their principal enablers and enforcers send THEIR OWN CHILDREN to and those for OTHER PEOPLE’S CHILDREN.
The schools for OTHER PEOPLE’S CHILDREN are currently being retooled to ensure that the vast majority of children are taught by any means necessary, fair or foul, “learned helplessness.”
The schools for THEIR OWN CHILDREN increasingly look nothing like the former because they are providing an enriched education that encourages, challenges and teaches its graduates to be all they can be.
Just click on the few links provided below to see that the leaders of the “new civil rights movement of our time” know perfectly well that what they are mandating for OTHER PEOPLE’S CHILDREN is starkly different from what they are ensuring for THEIR OWN CHILDREN.
Link: http://www.harpethhall.org [Michelle Rhee]
Link: http://www.sidwell.edu [Barack Obama]
Link: http://www.ucls.uchicago.edu [Rahm Emanuel]
Link: http://www.delbarton.org [Chris Christie]
Link: http://www.lakesideschool.org [Bill Gates]
Thank you for making an excellent point.
😎
“Forget all of our methods classes in college. Forget developmental learning. Forget that children are not all the same. Every word above is true. I too am a third grade teacher. Or perhaps I should say I am now a third grade test administrator.
“Education is no longer recognizable. There is very little time for teaching. We can no longer encourage children to think through issues and come to conclusions. They must have only the conclusion that is on the test(s). Students are now afraid to take any risks which is what all our great thinkers and innovators do. They are afraid it won’t be the correct choice on the test.
“I have been a student, a parent and a teacher. This is a situation in which no one thrives. Not even the lucky students that test well and naturally. There is no time to challenge them to be lifelong learners, only test passers. Once they get to real life, and must perform at a job, sadly they will learn that no one gets paid to pass tests. We are raising a generation of students that hate school and we are giving them very little in the way of skills to navigate life.”
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
People like David Coleman, N.Y. State Ed. Commissioner John King, and Mike Petrilli are are reading statements like the one above and— like THE SIMPSON’S Mr. Burns—saying to themselves…
“Excellent… it’s all working just the way we planned it,” as each puts his hands together at the fingertips.
Trust me. The reality described above is exactly the end-game they fervently desire.
But those guys never win.
If you’ve hung around a library or a movie theater, everyone knows those guys bring about their own demise (if we want to use story analogies).
Here here.
Remarkably, our teachers are doing their best to create an environment that is the best thing they can create out of the situation for the children. What other choice do we have right now? For the children, we will fight for the best but we will also maintain a loving and caring environment, with creativity and positive expectations for our children.
I was happy to hear a principal say, out loud, at a non-school event, that what is happening right now is education malpractice. And we need to break on through to the other side. Nevertheless, I see teachers shielding children from negative energy, seeking to maintain professionalism in the midst of mandates and striving to let children be children, while helping them prepare for their futures—–and also voicing their concerns to those who have the authority to do something about it.
I’m not giving up on NC either. It’s my home.
“I see teachers shielding children from negative energy, seeking to maintain professionalism in the midst of mandates and striving to let children be children, while helping them prepare for their futures—–and also voicing their concerns to those who have the authority to do something about it.”
Shielding from “negative energy”, maintaining professionalism, sounds like symptoms of the GAGA disease.
I knew I could count on you to say that, Duane.
Boy, I wish I had a principal like that. My two administrators are CC cheerleaders. I teach Spanish and have been relegated to second-class citizen status, since there is no standardized test in Spanish. My schedule has been gutted to give kids more seat time in the CC content areas.
In my district, two years of a world language is a graduation requirement, and the district has specific benchmarks that students are expected to reach in order to receive credit. Those benchmarks are based on the assumption that students will have four to five hours of classroom instruction per week. I currently have them for less than two hours a week, yet my administrators expect me to have them to benchmarks by the end of the academic year. I have argued until blue in the face that this is an unrealistic expectation. They just shrug and say, “Well, you’ll have to do the best you can.” It is as if they gave me a hammer, a nail, and two boards and told me to build a three-story townhouse. Finally, about three months ago, I just stopped arguing. To borrow a line from former Rep. Barney Frank, it was like arguing with a dining room table (actually, arguing with our vice principal is like arguing with a place mat!).
If I were 39 instead of 59, this would quite likely be my last year of teaching. As it stands, I will simply have to hold on and ride this nightmare out until I either retire, or the toll all of this is taking on my physical and mental health put me in an early grave. I’d say right now that either one is as likely as the other.
Joanna–
I meant to reply to this comment but I hit the wrong link and my comment ended up being a reply to Duane, below. Hope you will take a moment to read it.
Bob, I know other people where you are in their career too.
The administrator who said this is a pioneer for dual language immersion programs, which are great. Despite Duane’s strong feelings about GAGAers, NC is a right to work state and I’m not willing to just walk away from children. I would rather know (as a mother) that there are people in there protecting children from mandates as best they can, while fighting for something else, rather than walk away and leaving the children to simply rely on those who are not going to protect them. I will do that because I want that for my child.
At risk of falling into Godwin’s law, my movie role model is LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL. As adults, we have to protect children. If it can’t be done all at once, you take baby steps (as one regular blogger noted here yesterday). If you are together in a bad situation, you try to help the child within the situation. This is more like a sickness that we are dealing with, than a peer pressure situation, such as the simplistic and dismissive mantra of Mr. Swacker.
The GAGAer characterization doesn’t fit for adults trying to help children on a sinking ship. You help them as you try to fix the leaking holes and get the life boats ready. You don’t walk away and leave them there to drown.
hear hear. . .
which is it anyway?
It’s the second one.
I am here and still fighting too. I am thankful to this teacher and all the others willing to stick it out here in NC. My children are grateful too!
I am also not planning to give up — but I’m not going to play by the rules either. I’ll be teaching the way I see fit — the way that’s best for the kids — until I’m fired for it.
And when that day comes? Well, society: bed — made — lie.
I was always taught I had to differentiate and use best practices in my lessons I do not think we talk about this anymore. Just about tests , data, LFS, PLC, SLC, … What happened to PD where you may visit other schools and programs and collaborate with other good teachers. I am retiring .. But never giving up this fight.. I,m In …
This is off topic, but you guys might be interested. It’s a poll on de Blasio’s public ed priorities.
“Focus more on public schools over charter schools” polls at about 60/35
That’s a good number for deBlasio 🙂
Perhaps not surprisingly, it’s 65/30 for people with “children in household who attend NYC public schools” because of course most people attend public schools:
I agree with the post that we need to gather a list of good public school supporters in all of the elections coming up. The NPE will support them too. We all need to pitch in on this!
The thing, is though, if they are seeking election they are not likely to isolate charter school patrons. While most do use public schools, enough voters utilize charters that there has to be a way to not scare them off in a defensive reflex.
I genuinely think many parents jumped on the charter wagon, at least in Buncombe County, for the real ideas of experimental approach. . .in fact, Asheville City has the option of the charter as part of the lottery for the magnet system. (I’m not really sure how it works for the county; our systems are independent of one another city and county).
I think we are so far down the charter road that it really is going to be more like the family law bar. . .trying to sort out an equitable system of resources and access for the children. So we have to have people who can accept that reality and help make it be the best we can. I do not believe there will be a complete going back to neighborhood schools.
As far as us being a right to work state, I actually think we have that in our favor for being able to take the “blended family” approach. It’s one less hurdle. It’s like not having a pre-nup to work around; we can take on the issues head on. When I read slams against NC for being right to work, I think to myself, “well, it’s never really been a problem for us.” And it wouldn’t be now if we didn’t have canned legislation that is not really applicable to NC’s set of circumstances (but rather just brought in by novices doing what their corporate backers told them to do).
In other words. . .I think we can work with this. So, yes a list will be good, but realistic expectations about what a candidate will be able to say and do is necessary. We are all in this together.
Veteran teacher-students at the middle level are afraid to take risks with answering questions in class and joining in class discussions. We believe the over use of standardized testing, has caused students to believe there are only right and wrong answers when it comes to learning. We are very concerned about their problem solving and critical thinking skills. I believe we must find our voice and educate the parents. It is time to do what is best for students.
You probably already know this, but parents may not see changes over time because their kids only attend in a certain window, generally. If one has an 8 and 10 year old, for example, those two are moving thru the system at the same time, and the parent sees only that snapshot of that time.
They don’t have a view of what they’re doing in 3rd grade, for example, over 15 years, only teachers do.
It’s obvious to me because I have three older and one much younger and I’ve watched it change over time.
Parents don’t know it’s changed. They don’t have a comparison.
Some parents can compare. My oldest is almost 14, and I have three other children aged 8, 6. and 2. I can clearly see the debacle that CCSS has wrought in my community’s public schools when I look at what my 6 year old is experiencing in 1st grade as compared to what my 14 year old experienced years ago.
Well, and modeling that begins with realistic problem-solving for education policies.
There is not one right or one wrong answer here either. Particularly with how far “reformers” have gotten with their vision.
The blended family is the best analogy I can come up with. At least half of us are familiar with that. So that’s a strength we can build on for problem solving.
“It is time to do what is best for students.”
It’s always been time to do what’s right for the students.
“Ron Poirier
March 7, 2014 at 8:44 am
Some parents can compare. My oldest is almost 14, and I have three other children aged 8, 6. and 2. I can clearly see the debacle that CCSS has wrought in my community’s public schools when I look at what my 6 year old is experiencing in 1st grade as compared to what my 14 year old experienced years ago.”
Yeah, I can too, because mine are 25, 24, 20 and 11 and they all went to the same schools.
I remember when they had field trips and “portfolio projects” and they don’t have those anymore. My eldest son actually remembers his 4th grade portfolio project as the high point of his grammar school years. He liked how they worked on it all year.
It’s really sad, because it increases inequality as far as experiences. This is a working class rural area and I know a lot of our kids were only going to the zoo or the museum if they went on a school field trip. I can and do take my 11 year to those places, but the median income is 32k here and a lot of parents don’t have the time or money to drive 60 miles to go to a museum or a state park. Now the kids simply don’t go.
I can’t imagine what ed reformers are thinking. What will their legacy be? Making school a grim, joyless march wholly controlled by test scores? It’s appalling. They’re not helping low income kids. They’re harming them.
They would read your questions and look at you like you had three heads. “Is she implying that we should… CARE? About… POOR kids?”
Then maybe they’d shake their heads and laugh. Or come to the conclusion that you meant what they usually do — that you should PRETEND to care about poor kids, while the cameras are rolling.
The level of cluelessness is amazing. They’re doing online test prep as homework now. There’s a huge portion of people here who don’t have internet access. I know this because they’re my clients.
My son tells me “the poor kids” have to skip recess to get the test prep done, because they need a computer and an internet connection and they only have that at school.
Great! Let’s make “the poor kids” skip recess. Let’s make sure we publicly identify them as “the poor kids” and deny them the 20 minutes of going outside that everyone else gets.
I don’t blame the district. They have no control over this madness. It’s ALL imposed from these ridiculous think tanks and foundations and captured politicians.
“I don’t blame the district.”
I don’t either, just the people who in the district that insist that these things come to past and I blame those who then institute these abuses.
Good nazis??
Which is why I chose to stay in the classroom rather than move into administration after completing my master’s in ed leadership. I don’t make for a good “yes-man” and have a penchant for verbally questioning every and any boneheaded idea coming from the numb-skulls sitting in the Ivory Towers, having circle-jerk meetings to discuss trivialized “data.” If I don’t believe in it, I’m not going to do it, and I’ll be damned if were in a position where I had to tell people to follow a policy or protocol I didn’t believe in.
Exactly, Zak. When I quit teaching to go into a completely different field, everyone asked me why I didn’t become an assistant principal. I said because I have a conscience, and I could never kiss enough butts to get that high up the food chain. There aren’t enough true professionals in admin, just more politicians.
Zak,
Same for me as far as the administrator part goes.
My heart bleeds for you and others going through this. Your attitude is commendable.
I’ll note that while my situation isn’t as dire (yet), I find my situation not dissimilar. And I teach in a very good school with great kids who want to learn. But the kids I teach (“non-Honors”) who will be CC-tested starting next year generally aren’t close to the level expected on the PARCC tests. I’ll be battling the same issues you are now…hopefully with the same approach.
I just wanted to say “thank you so much” to the author for what you are doing. My son is in 3rd grade in NC and I believe the teachers in this state are heroes for soldiering on in the current enviornment, particularly with what third grade is going through this year. I am in awe of my son’s teacher this year. He loves going to school, which is shocking considering the constant testing and pressure he is under, and I know his attitude is a direct result of the determination and dedication of his teacher. I’m frustrated the students and teachers are having to go through so much nonsense. I will certainly make sure my vote counts for education!
I got have to say, as a perspective educator, or i do suppose i agree that saying I am working to get into a field of test management, it is amazing hear teachers stepping up and fighting back, even if it is only through words. But we all have to start somewhere right? When i sat in on a 9th grade world studies class not to long ago, the most commonly asked question in the room was about when the next test/quiz would be. I too am very scared about what will happen to this generation of students when they realize that “the next quiz” won’t cause a pay raise.
FYI: NC people who can get to Raleigh- we need to attend!
TO:Members, Committee on Common Core State Standards (LRC)(2013)
FROM:Rep. Bryan R. Holloway, Co-Chair
Sen. Dan Soucek, Co-Chair
SUBJECT:Meeting Notice
The Committee on Common Core State Standards (LRC)(2013) will meet at the following time:
Thursday March 20, 2014 10:00 AM 643 LOB
The Legislative Research Commission (LRC) Committee on Common Core State Standards will hold a public hearing on implementation of Common Core state standards in North Carolina public schools at the March 20, 2014 meeting. The two hour public hearing will be held from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm in Room 643 of the Legislative Office Building.
All speakers must sign-up in advance. Sign-ups for 30 speaker slots will be available online on the General Assembly website beginning at noon on March 13, 2014 and ending at noon on March 18, 2014. Sign-ups for 30 speaker slots will also be available at the meeting location, Room 643 of the Legislative Office Building, beginning at 9:00 a.m. on March 20, 2014, prior to the public hearing. All speakers will be limited to two minutes to address the Committee. Additional information regarding conduct of the public hearing can be found at the LRC Committee on Common Core State Standards website at http://www.ncleg.net/documentsites/committees/BCCI-6614/Committee%20on%20Common%20Core%20State%20Standards%20Public%20Hearing%20Guidelines%20-%20March%2020%202014.pdf
I was told I could disseminate and ask for feedback. This concerns NC.
Dear Colleagues,
I have been asked to give a brief summary of the first meeting of the Educator Effectiveness and Compensation Task Force, which met Tuesday, February 26, 2014. The committee is co-chaired by Senator Jerry Tillman and Representative Rob Bryan and is made up of 18 legislators and educators. The charge of the committee is to make recommendations on whether to create a statewide model of incentives to encourage the recruitment and retention of highly effective educators and to consider the transition to an alternative compensation system for educations.
The meeting started with an overview of how we compensate teachers and principals now, and the review included pay scales for 2013-2104. Then, three examples of “strategic staffing” were presented: 1) Guilford County Schools, where they used RTTT money to differentiate pay for hard-to-staff schools (those in poverty) and hard-to-staff positions with a little extra salary. They also had extra pay for teacher leader roles, such as model classrooms, peer evaluators, EVAAS experts, and professional developers. The program ends when the money runs out. 2) Pitt County schools used RTTT money to incentivize teachers to move from high performing schools to low-performing schools. They also provided additional stipends for leadership roles. It included 29 teachers and they got some good press out of it and higher student achievement results. But 31% of the teacher left the program for positions with less money, due in part to mistrust on teams and poor team performance. It was so negatively received they will not continue it. 3) Samson County Schools offered signing bonuses for STEM areas and EC teachers.
The presentations were followed by a brief discussion. Senator Tillman asked for ideas on who else should present at the sessions (I suggested Brian Hassel of Public Impact) and he made it clear that the ideas were to come from us.
So, if you have ideas, please send them my way. I have collected a number from the Charlotte region but would like to hear from you.
Thanks,
Ellen
—————————————————————————————-
Ellen McIntyre, Ed.D. | Professor and Dean
I have a response but it has too many links in it to not receive limbo in awaiting moderation land. I will just put in the first link.
This pretty much sums up my views and the research. https://edpolicy.stanford.edu/blog/entry/693
Value Added has been discredited over and over but still persists. I can live with it as long as it is a very small portions of a teacher’s evaluation ( 10% would be maximum when examining teacher effects on student achievement). ( I linked to the Haertal paper)
The best way to evaluate teaches is to use Peer Assistance and Review or New Teacher Center some other type of program where we mentor teachers (I had links to both programs)
Linda Darling Hammond did a nice talk about North Carolina a few years ago at NCSU. Here is her PPT with great points on this issue.
(link to IEI site)
Merit pay has never worked and I have research on that too.
I can also show that higher achievement is happening in states with unions but I am positive they do not want to hear that.
I hope this helps. Let me know if you need anything else. This seems like all I read and do these days. 🙂
Janna
The Nation magazine has a superb article on North Carolina this month and the people fighting against this Nazi- ism – if there be such a word. Great article. I recommend reading it and joining the crowd fighting to reset the anti people agenda.