tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post1438292131355894049..comments2023-12-15T07:51:27.673-08:00Comments on Betrayed - Why Public Education Is Failing: Teacher education programs part of the problemLaurie H. Rogershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367210923946752695noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post-6322249746660979252009-03-03T22:11:00.000-08:002009-03-03T22:11:00.000-08:00Standards based instruction is a fool's game - tea...Standards based instruction is a fool's game - teachers are limiting themselves by teaching one standard at a time. The concern should be foremost literacy and then blending ideas together. So fewer problems with more big ideas. <BR/><BR/>A good example is blending geometric and algebraic ideas to teach the Pythagorean theorem.<BR/><BR/>A right triangle on a rectangle so students have to find the length of the base in order to find the area of both shapes. <BR/><BR/>Mixing fractions and square roots of numbers rather than using whole numbers only.<BR/><BR/>Frequently my only written directions are: Solve for x, Find the slope.<BR/><BR/>We did a similiar triangle problem today to find the length of a shared side - this results in taking the square roots of both sides to find the correct answer. CPM does this problem in algebra 1, but I don't believe Holt teaches it until near the final chapter. Reform math doesn't teach it all as far as I know. <BR/><BR/>This is a ninth grade second semester extended algebra (2 year) course and almost 100% Latino.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post-12047168338022387152009-02-19T15:52:00.000-08:002009-02-19T15:52:00.000-08:00You write the following:"Can we ever expect profes...You write the following:<BR/><BR/>"Can we ever expect professors currently in the colleges of education to step back and say, “Gee, maybe we were wrong”? Most of them taught reform, promoted it, fought for it, received grant money for it and published material on it. It takes a big person to admit an error, especially one this costly in children’s futures. I expect most of them to support reform until they die."<BR/><BR/>This is because ideology is more important than results. You are right. They will not change their minds because they will not admit they are wrong because their ideology is more important than truth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post-10835592333036361882009-02-16T13:14:00.000-08:002009-02-16T13:14:00.000-08:00There are 53 Math Science Partnerships in the US. ...There are 53 Math Science Partnerships in the US. The MSP in Oregon is PRISM (partners are the Dana Center and Achieve, Inc) the same organizations involved in Washington's reform movement. <BR/><BR/>The MSP in Washington State is NCOSP directed by the former director of the AAAS, a major political force in this farsical reform saga. <BR/><BR/>Yes, the NSF grants stipulate that schools who participate have to adopt reform curriculum. In that sense, the curriculum is imposed.<BR/><BR/>What you have are mostly two reform movements tied to one funding source. <BR/><BR/>One of the players is a new generation of nonprofits spun out of the Coalition of Essential Schools movement (Ted Sizer) that promote structural reform through standards-based instruction.<BR/><BR/>The other major player is the reform curriculum movement (NCTM leadership) that is promoting higher standards for teachers and replacing traditional pedagogy with technological remedies (mostly computer assisted instruction eg. carnegie learning, novanet, Plato). <BR/><BR/>Pull the plug on the NSF-EHR and you will reduce this group to the status of beggars.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post-26878241053757248932009-02-15T17:01:00.000-08:002009-02-15T17:01:00.000-08:00There are two avenues for Math and Science Partner...There are two avenues for Math and Science Partnerships. One through the U.S. Dept. of Ed. and the other through NSF. I don't believe that either are supposed to require mediocre math programs, although that may be happening.<BR/> <BR/>If you know of specific instances where funds that were intended to improve teacher's mathematical preparedness are being used to promote ineffective and incoherent curricula, please contact your state representatives, as well as the Inspector Generals of the US Dept of Education and NSF. <BR/><BR/>It's a terrible misuse of public funds that takes advantage of our trust and betrays our children.concernedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14374789062880735051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post-67353325082015938782009-02-07T00:21:00.000-08:002009-02-07T00:21:00.000-08:00The study that came out in 2008 on teacher quality...The study that came out in 2008 on teacher quality, called "No Common Denominator" can be accessed here:<BR/><BR/>http://www.nctq.org/p/publications/docs/nctq_ttmath_fullreport_20080626115953.pdf<BR/><BR/>It is the most comprehensive study I have seen yet, on how elementary school teachers are educated and certified to teach. <BR/><BR/>I recently had the opportunity to visit a small catholic school in India. They hire only graduates in Math and Science, along with a post-graduate degree in Education, to teach kids from 3rd grade onwards. High school teachers are required to have a minimum of a master's degree in their field of expertise (For example, a high school math teacher is required to have at least a master's degree in math, and a post graduate degree in education). They are a private school, but their tuition is about $25 per month, along with a $300 one time fee, hence affordable to most middle income people. The contrast is student achievement was striking. Their first 10th grade graduates had a 100% pass rate in the national 10th grade exit exam. Not only that, 85% of those who passed did so at the highest level of achievement (somewhat like getting straight A's)<BR/><BR/>I read in a book that during the turn of the century, doctors were not required to have any undergraduate training. After many medical mishaps, the powers that be decided to make a doctor's diploma a post-graduate degree. That returned the profession to some level of credibility. We may need to insist the same for teachers.Sudhakar Kudvahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02668203988582650729noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post-55234385194605853712009-02-06T21:03:00.000-08:002009-02-06T21:03:00.000-08:00Hey it's terrible all over. Since Goals 2000 we po...Hey it's terrible all over. Since Goals 2000 we poor teachers have been subjected to training in more bogus methods sold to schools by more snake-oil salesmen than you can imagine... to the detriment of children everywhere.<BR/><BR/>We were told do not teach spelling, phonics, number facts, do not employ practice, the works.. it sucked and I quit because of it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post-65676396366711372372009-02-05T22:17:00.000-08:002009-02-05T22:17:00.000-08:00This is an excellent article and you have certainl...This is an excellent article and you have certainly captured the heart of the real problem with math education-- and education in general--in America today. Whether one is talking of Washington DC, Washington State or Washington County, Florida, what you have written is true. Students have been betrayed by their teachers and the teachers have been betrayed by their schools of education. Those schools of education have been led astray by many wealthy not-for-profit foundations which reward them with grants,and then they in turn spread their confusion and lies via seed money for k-12 schools. NSF, Dana, Gates do this on a huge scale.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-762201600804179432.post-76293564382745296372009-02-05T17:01:00.000-08:002009-02-05T17:01:00.000-08:00What the parent's movement lacks is focus. First, ...What the parent's movement lacks is focus. First, change the curriculum. If schools taught one curriculum, teacher programs would know how to prepare teachers and schools would not be as dependent on local colleges for graduating new teachers. <BR/><BR/>If districts adopt Core Plus then teacher programs have to train teachers with Core Plus.<BR/><BR/>Actually, with MSPs the reality is reversed. Nationally, there are 53. Districts that are members must adopt the curriculum in order to receive support. <BR/><BR/>An MSP (sponsored by a teacher education college) provides staff training only if the district adopts the DOE's approved curriculum. The reason you have Core Plus at all in Washington <BR/>(16% district usage) is due to MSP leverage. <BR/><BR/>If you examine each of their alternative programs carefully, you will probably see a large turnover of students, low graduation rates (below 10%), and a district nearby serving as a catch-all for the school refugees.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com