E.D. Hirsch seems to have been the person who first developed the idea of a core curriculum in schools. His premise was that the ability to learn on a more advanced level was dependent on having a base level knowledge first. Although this is a pretty basic idea, and completely logical, I think that schools tend to sometimes ignore children who may be learning below their grade level, and continue moving forward without bringing them up to speed first.
Hirsch's concept seems to be directly relatable to the No Child Left Behind Act, which seemed to work off of the premise that children should already have this basic core curriculum down pact. The idea behind the core curriculum is that children are failing because they don't have this basic knowledge, and that is the result of a neglectful school system in America. By passing ledgislation like NCLB, the government doesn't improve our school system or address the real issues with US educational policy, they simply blame it on the schools and make threats to cut funding. I'm positive that hasn't been an effective strategy.
Ted Sizer's writing on educational policy eventually culminated into the theory behind the Essential Schools movement in the 1980's. The movement soon became what is now "The Coalition of Essential Schools", of which SOF is a member.
In his ideal, educational policy should be determined from the bottom up, at the level of the school, rather than as a result of state or federal directives. Schools, he argued, should abandon one-size-fits-all educational methods like standardized tests, grading and even the grouping of students into classes by age.
(http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/23/education/23sizer.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all)
Up until this quote, I had been completely in favor of virtually everything that Sizer had said about education. This seemed to bring a new aspect of Sizer's philosophy to the table, showing me that Sizer's theory was not only about improving the current system but creating an entirely new system all together. I don't think the problem is the system. I think that the core values of the school system relate directly to the pedagogical way of developing a student, not just instructing a student like a dog or a machine. I think that where the problem lies in how the system is run. The system depends on teachers to function, and the core values of the system are being distorted and lost in translation because of uneffective teachers.
This all just begs the question; what makes an effective teacher? The answer to that lies in bits and pieces in many of the movies that we have been watching in class.
WORK IN PROGRESS!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
HW 44- Big Expectations for School
In the Thomas Friedman article, the main point that he was making, was that we have a failing national school system. The interesting part is, who is it failing? The school systems may be turning out graduates at a lower rate than India and China, but that doesn't seem to be the primary concern of the business world. What they are concerned about is that if we cannot provide these scientists, and mathematicians of tomorrow, than China will. As long as someone, somewhere is being taught and trained to become an expert in technological development. In the article, Friedman quotes the CEO of Intel; Paul Otellini as saying the following:
“As a citizen, I hate it. As a global employer, I have the luxury of hiring the best engineers anywhere on earth. If I can’t get them out of M.I.T., I’ll get them out of Tsing Hua”
This is a quote that provides a really important insight into the way the world as a whole thinks about education. As people, we genuinely want our children to do well, and become successful and intelligent individuals. On the other side of that, is the industrialist perspective. This perspective is that of a person who wants to see schools all around the world turn out workers and assets who will increase the value of his company and develop new technologies as to eliminate competition. Schools as I see it are factories, and the product is ourselves, walking, breathing calculators and minds that the corporate elite can cherry pick to build a more successful and larger company.
In the USA Today op-ed article, the columnist seemed to take a similar position on the topic of school as I have. The idea of school as a factory seems to have historically shown a trend between those who diverted their energy away from school and those who engaged themselves completely in school. In the column, the author Robert Kiyosaki writes:
"The way to train entrepreneurs is almost exactly the opposite of the methods used to train employees. Another common thread about Ford, Gates and Jobs is that they all dropped out of school. This is not to say education is not important, but training entrepreneurs is different from training people to be employees."
The thing is, in my mind, I see myself as a student presented with two options for how I spend the rest of my life. Either I work towards the goal of becoming a wealthy employee, and live as another complacent worker drone, or I figure out how to become part of the elite. The current school system teaches us to learn "skills" that will give us the "competitive edge" when we apply for jobs in our "chosen" career. The system doesn't teach us how to improve the world, how to become a CEO, they teach us that hard work and determination will pay off. But really, it is determination that makes the difference between those who rule and those who are ruled over. The fact is that we are taught to start small, and if we are lucky, we will get to be big.
Becoming successful in a career or field that we genuinely find interesting is rare in America at best. The founder of Ford Motors, Henry Ford showed a strong interest in mechanics from a young age, and with that, he went on to become an engineer for Edison Illuminating Company, and the rest is history. The fact is, that Ford went throughout his life pursuing what he wanted to do. I believe that people who want to be successful have the confidence in themselves to achieve what they want. Schools which set the office cubicle as the limit deny millions of kids the opportunity and the confidence in themselves to change something and do something bigger than themselves.
Of course, I could have summed up the last paragraph by saying that schools teach and enforce complacency, but I wanted to get all my ideas out in this post. Being in school I strongly feel is a chance to gain the skills you need to further your own self, not just get yourself further in the game of life. When it comes down to it, if you are trying to work your way up the ladder in today's world, your not very likely to reach the top. The people in power don't want to see us become successful, they want us to become their employees.
Take the skills and the information you learn in school and use it for yourself. Don't think about where you want to work, think about what you want to create. Think about the company you want to own, not the company you want to work for. Pursue something that you want to do, something you are good at. If you aren't good at it, take your interest out of school. Become good at it. As long as we live a life of settling down, we won't ever be able to break the cycle. Personally, I want to break the cycle, even if it's only for myself.
“As a citizen, I hate it. As a global employer, I have the luxury of hiring the best engineers anywhere on earth. If I can’t get them out of M.I.T., I’ll get them out of Tsing Hua”
This is a quote that provides a really important insight into the way the world as a whole thinks about education. As people, we genuinely want our children to do well, and become successful and intelligent individuals. On the other side of that, is the industrialist perspective. This perspective is that of a person who wants to see schools all around the world turn out workers and assets who will increase the value of his company and develop new technologies as to eliminate competition. Schools as I see it are factories, and the product is ourselves, walking, breathing calculators and minds that the corporate elite can cherry pick to build a more successful and larger company.
In the USA Today op-ed article, the columnist seemed to take a similar position on the topic of school as I have. The idea of school as a factory seems to have historically shown a trend between those who diverted their energy away from school and those who engaged themselves completely in school. In the column, the author Robert Kiyosaki writes:
"The way to train entrepreneurs is almost exactly the opposite of the methods used to train employees. Another common thread about Ford, Gates and Jobs is that they all dropped out of school. This is not to say education is not important, but training entrepreneurs is different from training people to be employees."
The thing is, in my mind, I see myself as a student presented with two options for how I spend the rest of my life. Either I work towards the goal of becoming a wealthy employee, and live as another complacent worker drone, or I figure out how to become part of the elite. The current school system teaches us to learn "skills" that will give us the "competitive edge" when we apply for jobs in our "chosen" career. The system doesn't teach us how to improve the world, how to become a CEO, they teach us that hard work and determination will pay off. But really, it is determination that makes the difference between those who rule and those who are ruled over. The fact is that we are taught to start small, and if we are lucky, we will get to be big.
Becoming successful in a career or field that we genuinely find interesting is rare in America at best. The founder of Ford Motors, Henry Ford showed a strong interest in mechanics from a young age, and with that, he went on to become an engineer for Edison Illuminating Company, and the rest is history. The fact is, that Ford went throughout his life pursuing what he wanted to do. I believe that people who want to be successful have the confidence in themselves to achieve what they want. Schools which set the office cubicle as the limit deny millions of kids the opportunity and the confidence in themselves to change something and do something bigger than themselves.
Of course, I could have summed up the last paragraph by saying that schools teach and enforce complacency, but I wanted to get all my ideas out in this post. Being in school I strongly feel is a chance to gain the skills you need to further your own self, not just get yourself further in the game of life. When it comes down to it, if you are trying to work your way up the ladder in today's world, your not very likely to reach the top. The people in power don't want to see us become successful, they want us to become their employees.
Take the skills and the information you learn in school and use it for yourself. Don't think about where you want to work, think about what you want to create. Think about the company you want to own, not the company you want to work for. Pursue something that you want to do, something you are good at. If you aren't good at it, take your interest out of school. Become good at it. As long as we live a life of settling down, we won't ever be able to break the cycle. Personally, I want to break the cycle, even if it's only for myself.
Monday, March 8, 2010
HW 43- Before Bed Thoughts
I remember my first day of school not first hand, but through bits and pieces I've strug together from pictures, video and what little memory I have from that age. I remember that I was focused on making friends, meeting people. I was learning how to interact with people, and virtually no actual work was assigned. I particularly recall playing alot with blocks. I think that I always liked building and putting things together. When I got to school on the first day, the people I met were the kids who also gravitated towards the blocks. Even at a young age, we found friends in those who shared our common interests.
Now I find that I have the same interests, but I no longer get to build in school. Because of art class (and my father teaching me to draw), I became interested in art. Because of recess I loved to play and I became athletic. Today, these oppertunities are no longer available to me in school. Pursuing what I want to do is not something that has a place in school apparently. We are told that we are supposed to do work in school, not play or build.
I still feel this urge to be creative and explore even in the 12th grade. I can't take the time right now to draw, because I am supposed to be writing this journal. I want to learn the piano, but I need to wait until afterschool on a day where I don't have homework and I don't have to study. We are given a little freedom at the beginning of our time at school, and from that point on we are given schedules and must adhear to them. The freedom that I had as a kindergartener I don't think was childish, but apparently it is not appropriate after a certain age. Personally, and quite frankly I think this is propoganda, framing creativity as the equivilant to laziness, and promoting essay writing and mathematics as worth while.
Now I find that I have the same interests, but I no longer get to build in school. Because of art class (and my father teaching me to draw), I became interested in art. Because of recess I loved to play and I became athletic. Today, these oppertunities are no longer available to me in school. Pursuing what I want to do is not something that has a place in school apparently. We are told that we are supposed to do work in school, not play or build.
I still feel this urge to be creative and explore even in the 12th grade. I can't take the time right now to draw, because I am supposed to be writing this journal. I want to learn the piano, but I need to wait until afterschool on a day where I don't have homework and I don't have to study. We are given a little freedom at the beginning of our time at school, and from that point on we are given schedules and must adhear to them. The freedom that I had as a kindergartener I don't think was childish, but apparently it is not appropriate after a certain age. Personally, and quite frankly I think this is propoganda, framing creativity as the equivilant to laziness, and promoting essay writing and mathematics as worth while.
Monday, March 1, 2010
HW 42- Global Education Rankings
Constantly, we are told in America that our education "ranking" is slipping, going down to 18th, 20th, 30th or whatever. I really didn't understand what this was based off of. Are people in India learning at triple the rate we are? What do these rankings mean, and what makes up a 1st rate education system, and why is America not considered a country which offers this?
Source #1: http://www.educationalpolicy.org/pdf/Global2005.pdf
The first source I looked at took me a while to find. I searched for a good amount of time, trying to find who exactly was deciding which country ranked where. Eventually I found the Educational Policy PDF report on educational quality and accessibility from 2005.
Source #1: http://www.educationalpolicy.org/pdf/Global2005.pdf
The first source I looked at took me a while to find. I searched for a good amount of time, trying to find who exactly was deciding which country ranked where. Eventually I found the Educational Policy PDF report on educational quality and accessibility from 2005.
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