Measuring Educational Improvement

Assessments like the PARCC, have to do a better job in measuring the growth of the whole child. Ruth Wattenburg's article addresses the flaws in this testing by explaining how the results are not proven to display a clear connection between students' readiness skills and the education they receive at school. As research continues, education becomes more aware of the elements outside school that contribute to a child's educational performance.

  As a child, I was grateful to have a mother who placed me in various grade school and college readiness programs. From these opportunities, I was able to pass the placement test and attend the number one public high school in the state. Until this day my high school holds the title of number one in the state, however, Wattenburg's article leads me to believe that is ranking only persists because of how proficient we'd already proven to be. Can the high school be the sole benefactor of the success of the students or is it a compilation of things?

  The author further explains schools have numerous factors that aren't being accounted for in the PARCC when assessing the students. Every new class that enters a school isn't going to be the same and I believe that was one of the strongest points Wattenburg was trying to make; the performance of the senior class may not reflect that of the freshman class because each student is different. The school may have a varied number of students with disabilities who average a low performance, increase or decrease in skill level due to accessibility and/or gentrification or even students moving or graduating. How do we go about assessing a more accurate performance? The author suggests that assessments track the individual performance of each student as they move up in class within the school. I believe that would be the best but would it be generalizable? Ultimately, that would mean schools shouldn't test students until they've spent a least a year at their schools and just testing for improvement, not standards.

What ways do you think the PARCC can go about making adjustments?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/local-opinions/parcc-results-dont-give-us-an-accurate-picture-of-educational-improvement/2019/10/04/e11cc37c-d65f-11e9-86ac-0f250cc91758_story.html

Finnish Teacher Training

After reading about the comparison to  Finnish schools I was curious to learn more about what kind of training Finnish teachers go through to make them so good. I found two articles, one published a few years ago in The Guardian and one from the university of Helsinki. Some of the things described were:

• Teaching is a highly respected profession 
• Trainees are engaged in hands-on work from day one
• Teachers enjoy wide autonomy and flexibility to organize own teaching
• All teachers are required to have a master's degree, which is a 5 year and 300 credit program 
• Student teachers are engaged in research during their master's program 
• Grade schools are affiliated with universities for easy placement of student teachers 
• Teachers are trained to know when to hand over students to other professionals, such as speech therapists

All of these things sound great and mostly reasonable, although the 5 year masters program is a commitment and makes it difficult to change one's mind, but I keep thinking in circles that the main reason the Finnish system works is that as a society they have a broad acceptance of certain values, so while they have freedom of choice, the core of what they're teaching is the same. Something in the US, I'm not sure we'll ever have. Student teachers are also provided with free education,  so there are no massive loans to pay back and the Finns have universal healthcare, so most students arrive at school with baseline needs met that not all American children have. The  I start to think the US is so different that maybe a one size fits all solution won't work,  but it also won't hurt to take ideas from  different systems to make them work for us.

https://www.helsinki.fi/en/news/education-news/why-is-finnish-teacher-education-excellent-teacher-training-schools-provide-one-explanation

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/jun/17/highly-trained-respected-and-free-why-finlands-teachers-are-different

Mental Health Days for Students?

Life can be hard, but it doesn't always have to be. Over the past decade, there has been a growing emphasis on maintaining a healthy mental state. People are recognizing that as a society, we can benefit from slowing down and smelling the roses. Although there is still a stigma surrounding mental health, it is slowly decreasing as self-care has become a trending theme among many adults. 

As an educator, I have taken many mental health days. I know when I need a break for myself, my students, and my co-workers. I can't be my best if I'm not feeling my best, whether it's physically or mentally. Should the same thinking apply to students? 

Across the United States, school districts, including Baltimore City Public Schools, are opting to include social and emotional learning into the school day. Oregon and Utah even allow students to take mental health days. Just like students can take a day off of school for a physical injury or illness, they can take a day off to focus on their mental health. 

The inclusion of social and emotional learning in schools across the United States will surely grow, as the stigma surrounding mental health continues to decline. The CDC reported in 2017 that "nearly a third of all high school students experienced significant periods of sadness and hopelessness within the previous year, and 17 percent had contemplated suicide." Navigating emotion is a complex process that doesn't come naturally for many people. Educators have a unique ability to impact the lives of children not only through academics but with life skills such as understanding and managing mental health. It will be interesting to see how far school districts will be willing to go to support all aspects of their student's minds. 

Do you think students should be allowed to take mental health days? How do we teach children to utilize this appropriately and effectively? 

The New York Times recently asked students for their input on this topic. Check out their comments: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/19/learning/what-students-are-saying-about-mental-health-days-self-doubt-and-their-fashion-idols.html.

https://www.edutopia.org/article/students-can-now-miss-school-mental-health-day