Dear readers:
Please utilize this link to access my guest post today on Diane Ravitch's blog. It includes a brief summary of the shocking attacks on the teaching profession in Louisiana. I am very honored to have been asked to submit a guest post for this prestigious blog.
Thanks,
Mike Deshotels
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Another Stupid Education Study
Will Sentell, education reporter for
the Baton Rouge Advocate has found another excuse to bash experienced
teachers because of their suspicion of the new Value Added teacher
evaluation systems. His article today reports on a so called “study”
conducted by a group called TEACH +PLUS. This study which consists
of an unscientific survey of public school teachers' opinions about
the importance and desirability of using student standardized testing
as a major component of school and teacher accountability. As
expected, the more experienced teachers are chastised for being
suspicious of the new value added method for evaluating teachers
while the new teachers seem to be enthusiastic about having their
careers as teachers tied to student performance. Has it occurred to
the reporter that maybe the experienced teachers know something about
the real factors affecting student performance primarily because
they are experienced?
The conclusions of such a survey seems to be that older teachers are just resistant to change and don't care as much about improved student learning. This is like saying that experienced doctors should be open to using patient death rates as a way of rating the effectiveness of doctors. However no one would question an experienced doctor's objection to this, pointing out that doctors who serve the most "at risk" patients are likely to have higher patient death rates. No doctor should be rated as effective or ineffective by such a stupid measure. But the reformers think its OK to treat teachers that way.
The conclusions of such a survey seems to be that older teachers are just resistant to change and don't care as much about improved student learning. This is like saying that experienced doctors should be open to using patient death rates as a way of rating the effectiveness of doctors. However no one would question an experienced doctor's objection to this, pointing out that doctors who serve the most "at risk" patients are likely to have higher patient death rates. No doctor should be rated as effective or ineffective by such a stupid measure. But the reformers think its OK to treat teachers that way.
Not surprisingly this study was funded
in part by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In addition, this
relatively new organization, TEACH+PLUS looks suspiciously like most
of the new AstroTurf organizations that are funded by the ALEC
member organizations. Such groups have minimal credentials in
education research but are determined to totally revamp pubic schools
using the so called corporate reform models. For example, the
president of TEACH+PLUS, Monique Thompson, as far as I can tell from
her resume' has never spent a day of her life in the classroom. She
did spend half a year as an assistant principal in an experimental
school in Washington DC.... I guess she would spent time in a Holiday
Inn Express except that it is probably too cheap an accommodation for
a person of her social status.
Ms Thompson recently gave testimony to
the Congressional Committee on Education and Labor where she
lectured the committee on importance of effective teachers.
(something she has never had an opportunity to be herself) She
paraphrased the common misstatement about the Hanusek-Rivkin Research
by testifying the following: “Teachers are the most important
factor in determining whether a child has a lifetime of choice or
challenge.” (Notice how she worked in the current reform catchword
“choice” into this common lie about educational research.)
Please read this post by Educators for All to see what the real
research finding was.
What's interesting is that this reform
group's major project has been an attempt to attract effective
experienced teachers to inner city Boston schools by by offering extra pay
in the amount of $6000 to $8000 over normal pay. Even more
interesting is the fact that the effectiveness of these teachers is
determined not one bit by any value added data. It seems that the
major factor they are using to determine teacher effectiveness is an
interview by TEACH+PLUS staff. (by people who mostly have no
experience in teaching or teacher evaluation)
I personally agree with the idea of
paying our best and most experienced teachers extra to teach in high
poverty schools. It makes perfect sense because the job there is more
difficult and often more time consuming, especially if you do it
right by trying to improve positive parental involvement and giving
such kids extra help. But I don't think this AstroTurf educator group
funded by the ALEC reformers is qualified to make this or any other
recommendation. It is ironic that their study criticizes the very
teachers they say are most vital to helping at risk students and that
their own selection process for effective teachers does not use the
value added system they are promoting.
Special Report:
I just watched an interview with Bill Gates on the Fareed Zakaria show. For such a smart man, he sure is dumb about education. Fareed asked him if all the research his foundation had done had identified what makes a great teacher.
"Yes, it has!"
"So tell us exactly what it is Bill."
Bill Gates then kind of beat around the bush and finally said something about a teacher who is more interactive and is able to better engage students in the learning process. Big discovery! The problem is, Bill then goes on to talk about how if we would just spend about 2% of what we normally spend on teacher salaries to use data and new evaluation techniques to ID the best teachers and train or somehow get all teachers to perform like the best teachers, we would soon have the best education system in the world. According to Gates, its all about the teacher! Not one word about attacking poverty. Not one word about the lack of books in some children's homes. Not one word about parent responsibility. Not one word about ensuring discipline in all classrooms. With helpers like Bill Gates, public education does not need more enemies! See the Inconvenient Truth About Edcuation Reform in the Washington post. Now we are seeing much evidence that it is all about the money, not the children!
Special Report:
I just watched an interview with Bill Gates on the Fareed Zakaria show. For such a smart man, he sure is dumb about education. Fareed asked him if all the research his foundation had done had identified what makes a great teacher.
"Yes, it has!"
"So tell us exactly what it is Bill."
Bill Gates then kind of beat around the bush and finally said something about a teacher who is more interactive and is able to better engage students in the learning process. Big discovery! The problem is, Bill then goes on to talk about how if we would just spend about 2% of what we normally spend on teacher salaries to use data and new evaluation techniques to ID the best teachers and train or somehow get all teachers to perform like the best teachers, we would soon have the best education system in the world. According to Gates, its all about the teacher! Not one word about attacking poverty. Not one word about the lack of books in some children's homes. Not one word about parent responsibility. Not one word about ensuring discipline in all classrooms. With helpers like Bill Gates, public education does not need more enemies! See the Inconvenient Truth About Edcuation Reform in the Washington post. Now we are seeing much evidence that it is all about the money, not the children!
It is sad that the Advocate continues
to try to discredit the very teachers who have dedicated their
careers to the well being of our students in favor of the deformers
who profit and draw big salaries while pushing destructive programs
on children and teachers.
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