Read this teacher’s account of her experience in the D.C. public schools
before they descended into test-prep obsessive policies.
She raised the money to take her class to her native state of Montana. And
what a trip they had!
After you read it, ask yourself this question: Would they have learned more by prepping for the
standardized tests or by their extended and amazing field trip?
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Recently while hiking down Gaviota Peak, west of Santa Barbara, I encountered what seemed like an endless stream of kids coming up the mountain. Spring break day camp program? Private school excursion? I finally asked one of the adults: it was the entire student body of a small gr. 4-8 public school! The adult, a PE teacher, explained that he’d been wanting to organize this for years, but that the administrators refused because of testing pressure. Now that the pressure has relaxed here in CA (for now), the principal let them take the whole day for the hike.
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Wow! How cool is that!?! If the trend continues, they might need hiker traffic control on the side of the mountain. Those students will remember and take from that experience forever – the seeds that were planted in those young minds that day.
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A striking contrast between a genuine teacher and a faux teacher.
Thank you, Kelly Dwyer, for keeping it “real.”
Not “rheeal.”
😎
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I taught third grade for two years in a small charter school in the Fruitvale neighborhood of Oakland, CA. Almost all the kids were Hispanic new immigrants whose parents spoke only Spanish. Many had never been outside their small neighborhood. I took them on educational fed trips every month–science museums, Alvin Ailey Dance Company, the SF Symphony, and the pinnacle of them all–an overnight camping trip. The trips were integrated into the curriculum and all had an academic purpose. They were the highlight of the month and year. We held a bake sale every month to pay for them, so the cost the school and the parents nothing (well, other than cupcakes, hot Cheetos and baggies of sliced cucumber and jicama with lime and chili powder). The second year, we had a new principal who had not only never been a principal, but had only taught for two years and was completing his teacher certification (as the only certified teacher, I had to be his master teacher!). He told me he didn’t like the field trips because they were time away from test prep. He called it “Exotic education” and said, and I quote, ” That’s good for rich kids, but not for these kids.” I don’t think he realized the irony inherent in his racist/classist attitude (he himself was Black).
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I had a principal once who was similar to the one you’ve described. This man only wanted drill, even for kindergarten students. For his own children, he purchased workbooks and “Hooked on Phonics” and was genuinely perplexed when his children did not excel in school.
He looked down on my colleagues and me because we stressed appropriate instruction as well as the critical child engagement. This was twenty years ago. Our children grew up to attend “first-tier” colleges and became lawyers, doctors and scientists. His barely finished high school.
My fantasy is to write to this man and say
“If you had learned from us instead of putting us down, your children might have turned out better” but of course I’d never do that. From my reading, I know that many people like him did not really internalize a good education but just kept pursuing a degree until they accomplished their goal. This might be typical of people whose parents had limited opportunities themselves.
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In part I of the blog on my experiences in DC I reported on my more recent stint as an ESL teacher in DC. The “cluster chair,” in my most recent stint in DC, literally banned all field trips for the schools under his “leadership” until the test scores rose. (Approx 30 blocks from the worlds’ most extensive and impressive network of museums.)
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That sounds like a typical charter- A principal who has no business leading a school and concerns about test prep.
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Which part was the typical charter, the first year of field trips or the second year of no field trips? Both years happened in a charter school.
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I obviously concur and empathize. See my reply to Linda’s experience below.
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Children learn by doing. We’ve known this for a long time. This is why students from test prep academies often get to college and find themselves woefully behind.
Recently my son campaigned for a political office. Everyone pitched in to help, even my ten and twelve year old grandchildren, along with the neighbor girl, also ten. Soon they emerged themselves in imaginative play and starting writing and distributing their own ‘flyers” to the neighbors. They injected their own humor, telling friends “you’d better vote for me or else.” Soon the children were tossing around words like “candidate, run-off, opponent, campaign,” etc. The day after Election Day, the neighbor’s mother said, “Wow, they’ve learned more about an election than they did at school!” Indeed.
Privileged children benefit from many authentic out-of-school experiences such as the one I just described, and that’s why so many of these children are years ahead of their impoverished peers by the age of six. Instead of getting these experiences at school, these at-risk students are often given hours of deadly dull drill, the very activities guaranteed to turn them off to learning.
The good news is that change is in the air. In California, First Five, an organization dedicated to the education of young children, is running commercials to make parents aware of how crucial home learning is. Also, many states are planning educational experiences for our youngest citizens.
When we are truly earnest about providing “equal opportunities” for every child, we’ll respond to the research and abandon the smoke and mirror practices that are taking place at the present time.
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For nine years I took 3rd/4th grade students on an all day field trip to the Grand Canyon. The Rangers taught a geology class to them on the rim. We studied geology in science for a few weeks before we went. These were Title I children. Most had never been out of their neighborhoods. These field trips were wonderful for these students. It opened up their whole world. I wanted them to have a different view of the world, of the possibilities in their lives. I hoped they might see that they could escape from poverty. If they worked hard at school, they could go on to college and become a ranger, a geologist, or maybe even a teacher. My team made sure we took other field trps, as well. We went to the symphony program for schools, a farm to pick vegetables, etc. I am sad to know that my team no longer does this. They told me they are too busy with test prep. They might go to one local trip per year. How do these students see possibilities in their lives if no ever shows them, and if all they ever know is test prep? Perhaps the “reformers” don’t want them to see possibilities.
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