This past Monday, President Obama announced a new $900 million proposal to help the nation’s K-12 school system address school districts that are not performing well and seeing many of their students drop out before graduation. His proposal comes at the heels of recent findings that show only 70% of high school freshmen persist to graduation. Breaking down the demographics even further, one can find that students of color, particularly black or Latino/Latina students graduate at a significantly lower rate. The president’s method for addressing the nation’s lowest-performing schools rests heavily on the assumption that standardized testing effectively illustrates student growth and accurately reflects teacher (and ultimately school district) performance. But is standardized testing really an accurate metric for quantifying performance and learning outcomes? And is it really a sound system for determining merit pay for teachers and school appropriations?
Just this week, USA Today published an article detailing the results of a survey administered to over 40,000 teachers across the country, revealing that only 7% of teachers believe standardized testing is a valid measure of teacher performance. Interestingly enough, the results also show that 71% of teachers believe merit pay – a system of financially rewarding teachers for improved student performance – will only have a “moderate” impact or no impact at all. Some research suggests smaller class sizes and increased funding lead to improved teacher and school performance, but other research suggests otherwise. In a recent New York Times article, factors such as per-pupil funding and class size had minimal effect on student performance. Only one factor seemed to have a significant impact on student achievement: exceptional teaching. Controlling for variables such as low-performing school districts, inferior funding, and race, researchers and economists still found that some teachers brought about significantly better results in their students than other teachers in the same building, the same district, and the same grade level.
While I commend President Obama for his willingness to address the achievement gaps in American K-12 education with new levels of reform – and I agree that his intentions behind merit pay and holding schools accountable are admirable – I believe his methodology is not well-calculated and ultimately misguided. Using standardized testing as the primary indicator of student performance and teacher performance is faulty logic because it does not account for the racial and societal inequalities that still exist today in the United States. Therefore, raising standards for schools and using test scores as the foundation for federal appropriations will have minimal, if any, impact on student learning outcomes and the extent to which teachers instruct effectively. The same can be said for merit-pay for teachers.
Instead of devoting hundreds of millions of dollars to initiatives focused on curriculum design, per pupil funding, and assessment of teachers and students based on standardized tests, we should look to teacher preparation programs as a means of teacher and student performance across the board. In the recent NY Times article, exceptional teaching is identified as a primary indicator of student achievement. Teachers who are immersed in comprehensive preparation programs that address multiple methods for taking control of a classroom and becoming a catalyst for student learning – regardless of content or age group – are shown to have the best chances of impacting student performance.
If we can all agree that more effective K-12 education is one way of improving access to higher education, then we must focus our efforts using sound logic. Utilizing standardized test scores as a means of verifying teacher performance and student achievement will only exaggerate American’s educational woes. If we are to really address the problem of inferior school districts, poor performance in the classroom, and lack of access to higher education, then we must first start with the educators of today’s youth. Reform, increased funding, and improvements in preparation programs for teachers are essential to improving performance in our schools.
~Chris Sell
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Chris – Kudos on a very well-written opinion piece! After the articles we read a few weeks ago, the thought crosses my mind regarding the extent to which stereotype threat is a factor for standardized testing in K-12 students. It does raise the issue of whether or not standardized testing is an accurate measure of student success, especially in urban areas. In addition, the fact that so many teachers believe that merit pay and standardized testing are not the answers should be of concern.
ReplyDeleteYour comments regarding the impact of exceptional teaching are valid ones. You mentioned the NY Times article, but even anecdotally, we probably can all think back to a few of those exceptional teachers in our lives. They can make a significant difference in the lives of students and in learning outcomes. I agree that spending the money to raise up an "army" of exceptional teachers could be a worthwhile use of our dollars.
Chris- nice post!
ReplyDeleteI do not believe Obama’s 900 million dollar plan is completely ill-calculated or misguided. I feel there are aspects of community organizing which are not being addressed in this community change initiative. There is little to no mention of community buy-in or even collaboration with the community members to personalize this reform, and I feel this is an ineffective way to go about community change.
To your criticism on quantitative measurement- what is an alternative way to measure progress? Should we try to measure non-cognitive variables as a way to gauge k-12 progress? The issue then becomes the lack of a comprehensive set of proposed non-cognitive variables which are not biased or slanted toward a moderately privileged upbringing. At this time, I am unsure if there is an alternative to quantitative measurement which is both valid and reliable.
Lastly, to the point of quality education for educators, I believe improving teacher education is an awesome idea and a valid entry point for creating change within the school system. However, one of my concerns is that a quality education does not necessarily correlate to quality teaching and engagement over a career, or does it? In terms of quality education in the k-12 system, is student engagement and increased graduation rates only accomplished through academics? What about sports, arts, music and other extracurricular activities which grant students the ability to explore their talents? I did not hear much on the “extras” which I feel are just as important in the quest to engage and graduate students. Just my two cents….