Have you ever silently inquired as to the cognitive ramblings of the author of this fine blog? Well silently inquire no more! Coming soon: Observing Life. A new blog by me, aimed at telling you all sorts of stuff you should know!
More or less, I have much more to say that just doesn't fit the boundaries of this venue. So I've decided to start another blog (did you know 50,000 are started a day?) so that I could delve more into thoughts I have on other subjects. This one will be decidedly more of a personal weblog, rather than the issues-based blog here.
I will let you know when this blog comes online.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Speaking of the new Secretary of Education...
After writing my last post, I came across this article. This article, entitled "Meet the New Story, Same as the Old Story" encapsulates, at least in part, my feelings toward the pick of Duncan as Ed. Sec. Though our guiding assumptions about the Obama Administration may not be the same, we both agree that this was not the best pick out there for the position which so dearly impacts the nation as a whole. To quote the author of this post, Will Richardson: "But more than anything, why this choice depresses me so was articulated in an Ira Socol post from a couple of days ago that just resonated deeply with what I’ve been witnessing the last few years: we generally seem to have lost our imagination when we think about education." How sad is this problem?
Education is both an art and a science, or so professors would have us believe. It consumes one's ability to use scientific practices of data analysis (something I have witnessed far too little of in my observations), and creative ingenuity to find solutions to classroom problems. Now, in my brief time as a student of education, and soon a student teacher, I have witnessed supposed creative expression on the part of teachers. But it lacked substance. This creativity was not linked to data. It wasn't linked to results either.
When will a movement gain steam which truly teaches teachers to both foster creativity, in student-centered lessons, as well as create meaningful, measurable gains? This can only be done purposefully. It can only be done through meticulous planning, analysis, reflection and re-planning. Does anyone see any of this happening under this guy?
Education is both an art and a science, or so professors would have us believe. It consumes one's ability to use scientific practices of data analysis (something I have witnessed far too little of in my observations), and creative ingenuity to find solutions to classroom problems. Now, in my brief time as a student of education, and soon a student teacher, I have witnessed supposed creative expression on the part of teachers. But it lacked substance. This creativity was not linked to data. It wasn't linked to results either.
When will a movement gain steam which truly teaches teachers to both foster creativity, in student-centered lessons, as well as create meaningful, measurable gains? This can only be done purposefully. It can only be done through meticulous planning, analysis, reflection and re-planning. Does anyone see any of this happening under this guy?
Thursday, December 18, 2008
There's a new Chief in town
As we all watch the latest to come out of the Obama Administration, a [fairly] new announcement is sure to impact the focus of this particular publication.
Arne Duncan, Obama's Secretary of Education, hails from Chicago schools where he sat as the superintendent. While there, he worked to hold schools accountable while still keeping people concerned with the schools happy. Hailed by news agencies far and wide, his reputation proceeds him. In Chicago, he worked hard in the 3rd largest school district in the Nation to raise student achievement and close schools which were not improving, usually to measurable gains. The New York Times reported on his nomination here.
My interest in this news break is not that he has been nominated, but the message paraded with his nomination, that he is in fact one who could mediate between the two main camps of education minds in America: those who believe in teacher's unions, such as the NEA, the nation's largest, and those who believe in quick school reform. The differences between these two groups could not be larger.
On one side, teacher's unions believe that teachers should be sheltered and protected from the sweeping hand of reform. These believe in automatic teacher tenure, and rights of the teacher over the administration. While unions have their advantages, they also create problems
in turning schools around, touted as America's answer by others.
This other side, represented by people like Joel I. Klein, of NYC Public Schools, and Michelle Rhee, of D.C. schools, and groups such as Teach For America. This camp, usually to the opposition of teacher's unions, pushes for reform in sweeping fashions. They dismay the unions because their sweeping reform usually targets teachers who have become too comfortable in their jobs.
Duncan's role in the Obama Administration stands to bridge the gap between these two groups, and move education in a positive direction despite the ongoing debate between these two camps. How is this possible? These two groups are so opposed and so backward that they have very little in common. They constantly fight to push their platforms, which may or may not be the best goals for the students. While this candidate might be the best Obama had to bridge this gap, does that mean he is better than Klein or Rhee, or any number of other reform candidates? It appears that in the quest to find the perfect mix, we might just get a washout. It is far too early to tell, true. But we must keep striving to find answers. We must all pay attention to the growing debate between these two camps, and the movement on behalf of Duncan to bridge this gap. After all, isn't it the children which should be the focus of America's education system?
Arne Duncan, Obama's Secretary of Education, hails from Chicago schools where he sat as the superintendent. While there, he worked to hold schools accountable while still keeping people concerned with the schools happy. Hailed by news agencies far and wide, his reputation proceeds him. In Chicago, he worked hard in the 3rd largest school district in the Nation to raise student achievement and close schools which were not improving, usually to measurable gains. The New York Times reported on his nomination here.
My interest in this news break is not that he has been nominated, but the message paraded with his nomination, that he is in fact one who could mediate between the two main camps of education minds in America: those who believe in teacher's unions, such as the NEA, the nation's largest, and those who believe in quick school reform. The differences between these two groups could not be larger.
On one side, teacher's unions believe that teachers should be sheltered and protected from the sweeping hand of reform. These believe in automatic teacher tenure, and rights of the teacher over the administration. While unions have their advantages, they also create problems
in turning schools around, touted as America's answer by others.
This other side, represented by people like Joel I. Klein, of NYC Public Schools, and Michelle Rhee, of D.C. schools, and groups such as Teach For America. This camp, usually to the opposition of teacher's unions, pushes for reform in sweeping fashions. They dismay the unions because their sweeping reform usually targets teachers who have become too comfortable in their jobs.
Duncan's role in the Obama Administration stands to bridge the gap between these two groups, and move education in a positive direction despite the ongoing debate between these two camps. How is this possible? These two groups are so opposed and so backward that they have very little in common. They constantly fight to push their platforms, which may or may not be the best goals for the students. While this candidate might be the best Obama had to bridge this gap, does that mean he is better than Klein or Rhee, or any number of other reform candidates? It appears that in the quest to find the perfect mix, we might just get a washout. It is far too early to tell, true. But we must keep striving to find answers. We must all pay attention to the growing debate between these two camps, and the movement on behalf of Duncan to bridge this gap. After all, isn't it the children which should be the focus of America's education system?
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Refocusing
It has been a very long time since a post has been made on this site, but hopefully soon it will pick back up. This blog will now take a more focused look at education, since it is closer to the career and research interests of the author. So stick around, new posts will follow soon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
