What Will Happen When Parents Find Out We've Been Lying All This Time?
What is going to happen with family find out the school has been lying about education?
In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Many schools have been closed and shut down. Some educators have even exclaimed, "Learning is not happening."
We have mistakenly equated schooling with learning.
Schooling and learning are not the same thing. Schooling is it industrialized process that is focused on how long a person has been sitting in the chair.
Learning it's growing, developing, and changing.
Parents and faculty members have asked questions about the closure of school for possibly the rest of the year and wondering if students are going to have to repeat a grade because they were not in school the entire fourth quarter.
For decades, we have been telling families that attendance in school is required for them to be successful in life. We've been telling family is that a tendency to school required for them to learn.
There are a few things that we have learned through going through this pandemic and school closures.
Number one, as a system teachers do not agree on what a child should learn any given grade in any given content area. Even though many states have adopted the common core state standards, or their minor variation of them, teacher still do not agree what is a essential for each student to learn.
Not only do teachers not agree on what students should learn, neither do they agree on how student should be assessed, nor on what those assessments mean.
Number two, a teacher teaching the exact same course as another teacher can grade in drastically different ways. Those grades can be based on drastically different criteria.
When grades can mean so many different things, they mean nothing.
Number three, I’ve seen teachers and principals post about "Meaningful learning" that needs to happen while students are not in school. That is so arrogant!
Meaningful learning does not require a certified teacher standing in front of the classroom to happen. In this instance, meaningful learning seems to mean: “Learning that is guided by a school employee.”
Parents on their own, students on their own, and students working with any number of caring people, can experience meaningful learning.
Number three, many people have also started bringing up around this conversation. What role does and when you play?
NEW: ‘It shouldn’t take a pandemic’: Coronavirus exposes Internet inequality among U.S. students as schools close their doors https://t.co/QSaCD8ju68
— Tony Romm (@TonyRomm) March 16, 2020
There is very little access to the Internet outside of our schools & clinics in rural interior Alaska, and no access to high speed broadband. This pandemic certainly highlights the inequity our students live with. https://t.co/hUKeW7E3hi
— 𝕃𝕦𝕜𝕖 𝕄𝕖𝕚𝕟𝕖𝕣𝕥 (@lmeinert) March 17, 2020
These two tweets from Luke Meinert and Tony Romm exemplify that there's a difference between any quality and in equity. Tony tweeted about inequality in broadband and internet use. And then Luke equated that to inequity. Equity means giving people what they need equality giving people the same things. To state it another way, equity means people have what they need. Equality means people have the same things.
In our zeal and attempt to have equity, we have often define that as equality. All students do not need the exact same things. That is equality. All kids need the opportunity and access to be successful. That's going to look different Johnny, who’s got a single mom and is the oldest of seven kids then it is for Michelle who has two parents who both make over $100,000 per year.
School will not be extended into the summer.
Students will not be held back or required to retake classes.
We have been telling parents for decades that holding kids back and putting in extra time is what needs to happen when kids are struggling.
That is a lie.
For years teachers and Principals have rejected opportunities to change their practice and adapt to modern technologies and opportunities.
Now, this is forced upon them because some schools are requiring education to continue, while others are just attempting half heartedly for it to continue.
As teachers are finally adopting these new technologies, they are starting to see that the way that we've always done things is not the best way.
One director I know has started asking teachers to finally determine what is essential for kids to know before they end their courses this year.
When this is all said and done, are we just going to go back to the way we've always done education? Or are we going to make a concerted diligent effort to change what we are doing do you serve students in the best way possible?
Sadly, my experience in education the last 15 years has taught me that wants this crisis is over, We are going to go right back to where we were in the beginning.
I think there will be some small changes here and there. And, honestly, that's how it's always been.
Unfortunately, as a system, we are nearly unable to change. I would love to be proven wrong.
Our school closures are all happening at a time when we typically are gearing up for state testing.
Students & staff have anxiety from testing, impending letter grades for schools that work tirelessly, social pressure, & now #COVID19. If leaders are worried about closures impacting state testing, we need the courage to admit we are seeing school wrong.#Suptchat #JoyfulLeaders pic.twitter.com/pfIM8gfO3h
— Jon Laffoon (@laffoon_jon) March 17, 2020
If we have start putting up signs like this to stop people from seeing what might be on the state test we're making our nighttime custodians sign test security agreement because we can't trust him to possibly clean up the trash and not tell a kid about what's on the test, and we have bigger problems!
If you can cheat on a test then what is that test really assessing?
😊
This article from Bloomberg hints at an idea that there is going to be more revolution alongside this pandemic.
I truly hope that this revolution hits education. It’s high time for things to really change.
So, back to my original question: what what parents do when they find out that we been lying to them about school?
Well they demand more from their school?
Will they take it a greater interest in their child's education?
Will they demand grading and assessing criteria that actually make a difference?
I hope so.
