Measuring Up?

"You don't get better pork by weighing the pig every day" was my favorite take-away from a meeting I attended on Monday night called" ‘Measuring Up’--a Statewide Conversation on High-Stakes Testing & Accountability" at the LBJ School of Public Affairs. You can read about it HERE.  The quote just about sums up the problem with the testing mania that grips Texas public schools, thanks to the Legislature.

The problem is caused, at least in part, by big business interests, led by Bill Hammond and the big education-for-profit outfit Pearson. They hit the legislature with a lot of BS and, perhaps, campaign "contributions" (If anyone knows an investigative journalist looking for a story, there may well be one here.) The truth, for the majority of our children, is that graduation outcomes are mostly unchanged, SAT and ACT scores haven't gotten higher, and kids are not only learning less, but hating it more. The majority of the Lege bought into the myth that children are products and can be tested as such, after first falling for “No Child Left Behind” when Bush was governor of Texas and later President.

Don't misunderstand. Too many schools in lower socio-economic areas were written off in past years. Not much in the way of funding went to them, and that concerned too few of those in power. That, as far as I can see, is the ONLY redeeming quality of NCLB, but then, again, to close a neighborhood school, as if the building were responsible for the underperformance, is asinine. All children deserve a good education, and we must fund all schools and staff them with the best of the best. That is harder to do with all the cuts and with the ugliness being said about teachers by the far right. I taught in a public school many, many moons ago, fresh out of college. It was hard then;  it is clearly harder now. 

Teachers deserve our respect. They're taking all our blueberries, not matter what shape they're in when they get there and doing their best to turn out kids who love learning. At least that is what they used to do. Now, as one special ed teacher said the other night, they're "making them cry." The testing mania is out of control.  It isn't just the 45-60 days a school year that are wasted on "benchmarks, practice tests and actual tests", but the narrowing of the curriculum, reducing the range electives, and all the emphasis on grades, grades, grades, along with almost a billion dollars that it costs each year.

I remember when homework was to help with mastery of a subject; when if one missed some, it didn't lower one’s grade, but showed the teacher and/or parents where he or she needed to work with that student to help him to master the concept. My child has homework every night, and it is all graded, every piece of it. Shoot, Band members even got a grade (as if it were a test!) for returning a piece of paper requiring a parental signature, telling parents the basis on which the kids would be graded. 

Homework is now punitive, as is far too much of schooling. A Montessori teacher who attended the session Monday night told the panel that Montessori schools DO “project-based” learning and project assessments and that they don't obsess on grades, but on learning. He invited participants to visit a Montessori school to observe the Montessori process. I could say the same about Waldorf Schools. They emphasize teaching how to think and kindling the flame of a lifetime’s love of learning. With the public schools’ emphasis on grades, grades, grades, love of learning can be difficult to come by. 

Here is my big question, based on Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock's assertion that schools must be accountable to the LEGE, if that august body is going to “GIVE” us $34 billion (of our money) for our public schools.

When Republicans argue for tax cuts, they generally claim it is because people know better how to spend their own money. So, why, given that these are OUR schools, in OUR communities, with OUR children and paid for with OUR taxes, are we accountable to the Lege, who have acted only as tax collectors and are too often totally preoccupied with raising campaign cash for themselves rather than bothering with details like working for the betterment of our state and specifically with working on  difficult, complex issues like, say, education policy? 

It wasn’t long ago that locally elected school boards, chosen by us from among our neighbors in our community had this accountability, but not now. Now State Lege and some zealots in the US Congress make these  complex, tough decisions. And, as one person courageously noted, when the Legislature holds hearings, it is the people like Bill Hammond and the head of Pearson who are invited to share "expert testimony."  Among those NOT invited: teachers or school principals—those on the front line every day--and especially not parents or students. Those who demand accountability regard the folks who reap a profit out of this system, but not those whose lives are most affected, as experts with opinions worthy of consideration. Parents haven't really been organized or outraged enough to demand accountability from those who collect our money and set the policies for educating our kids. That is beginning to change this year—and not a minute too soon--thanks to groups like Texans Advocating for Meaningful Assessment.

Rep. Aycock asks how we can be sure that schools are teaching.  To answer, I direct his attention to what some schools in New York City have developed: a measurable performance assessment. It allows the students to a meaningful role and involves local community members. What could be better? Of course, in New York these schools are being sued for not using New York's version of high-stake testing. I'm willing to bet that the educational industrial complex is behind the lawsuits. They can't let these schools "get away" with actual teaching, right? It will adversely affect Pearson's bottom line!

The hope here is that this is the year that more parents will involve themselves. When deciding for whom to vote, especially for the State House and State Senate, demand to know where your candidates stand on high-stakes testing, as well as funding for schools. If they were in the Lege last year, check to see if Bill Hammond, Sandy Kress, or anyone else who is lobbying for or involved with Pearson Education in any way has given them campaign donations. See how they voted, not only on the school funding bills, but also on Rep. Donna Howard's common sense bill that  would have put money back into public schools if the Rainy Day Fund grew beyond a certain level. (Had the bill not been voted down, it would have meant additional state funding this year, because the Rainy Day Fund did exceed the specified level.)

Where there are good, pro-public education candidates this year, elect them. Let's don't send the exact same people to the Legislature, because, as my Mother said, "If you do the same things you've always done, you'll get the same results you always have."

 Finally, to my homeschooling friends:

Public education is important to you, too, even when you don't directly partake of it. The majority of kids are educated in pubic schools. That is the reality. It is to everyone’s advantage that they receive a good education, one that will allow them to make a decent living once they get out of high school, whether after they go on to a Career & Tech school, a community college or a four-year university. We all benefit when public schools are strong because these kids are far less likely to need social services, which are expensive, or to land in prison, which is even more expensive. I strongly believe in parents’ right to decide how their kids are schooled, whether that is public, private/homeschool, or any combination of these.