Response for Class on 2/7

State Standards

When it comes to standards, I like to take an apprehensive approach. While I am not the biggest fan of the Common Core, I do recognize the importance of having expectations for our students. Learning goals are necessary to push students' effort and ensure that no student is being passed over by the system. That being said, what I think standards don't account for is that student learning isn't linear. We have a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds being represented in our school systems, and these environments can and do affect how well students perform in school. While I appreciate having a basis for comparison when it comes to developing my lessons, I believe that it is the teacher's job to use the standards as a tool, rather than let their teaching be controlled by standards.

This is why I particularly liked the Guiding Visions section on the NCTE/IRA site. These standards specifically state that their purposes are to, "encourage the development of curriculum and instruction that make productive use of the emerging literacy abilities that children bring to school," and "provide ample room for the innovation and creativity essential to teaching and learning." These standards aim to encourage creativity in teaching, to be a help to students and not a hindrance. They recognize that teaching can and should be done in many ways; there is no script for educators to follow that leads to student success. Teachers know how to meet their students where they are, how to get through to them and develop their skills, whether in writing or any other subject. When we are given wiggle room to adjust curriculum as is necessary, we are able to better help our students to learn.

Standardized Testing

Earlier this week, my sister shared a video with me. She knows my passion for teaching and many times has been a witness to my rants about how the system impacts students, so her first thought was to send it to me. I've included the link below, and I highly recommend giving it a watch. This video encompasses many of the ideas present in "Rhode Island Teachers Respond to PARCC: A White Paper." The speaker, Prince Ea, argues that schools need to stop treating kids like they are "one size fits all." With the diversity of backgrounds and home structures present in our schools today, there are so many factors that can affect a student's ability to learn. When we try to squeeze every one of them into the same mold, it isn't going to work; all it will do is create frustration on the part of the students, who feel like they can't learn, and the teachers, who feel helpless to preserve their students' sense of self-efficacy.

When I was reading through the paper, I was taken back to my time in practicums. One of the classroom teachers I worked with spoke with me about her frustrations with standardized testing. The students were not all on grade level, so it made her job even more difficult to prepare them for the PARCC. Her students were frustrated because they didn't understand the tests, and she was frustrated because she felt the tests weren't providing a true representation of her students' abilities. This paper outlines how a number of teachers feel the same way about the standardized testing that is pushed into their classrooms.

One thing that stuck out to me was the emphasis on the affect standardized testing has on the students with disabilities and ELL students. As I stated previously, learning is not linear. Some students have a disability that makes learning more difficult. Some students are new to the country and the language which makes understanding material a challenge. Some students have so much going on at home, it is impossible to focus on their education. The standardized tests do not account for such deviations. This is the "one size" mindset our education system is stuck in. Not only does it negatively impact the students, but it leaves teachers at a loss of what to do next.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqTTojTija8

Solution?

So we have a problem with the system. We have students who need to be held accountable for what they are learning, but the current method is not working. Beyond that, how can educators do anything when decisions are made above their heads?

What I liked most about the standardized testing paper was that it included starting points for solutions. This problem isn't going to just disappear in a day. We have to work at it little by little to make changes. I think that the second suggestion was my favorite: "Offer authentic opportunities for teachers and educational researchers to help plan an assessment system based on the local and diverse student population." Teachers know their students best. They are the ones who differentiate lessons to reach learners in various ways, they are the ones who experience first-hand the diversity in the classroom. If assessments were localized and specific to students, perhaps we would see an improvement in test scores. If we gave students a chance to show us what they know and not just how well they can test, maybe we would see an improvement in their desire to learn.