Once again we have national/ state test results released and people seem to be wondering "what happened?" This time the results are for the NAEP Science assessment. Needless to say, there are folks that are concerned and have actively voiced their opinion on the matter. Why should I be any different? So here is my opinion?
What were people expecting, with the clarity of the NCLB focus on essentially reading and math -- it is not hard to figure out that other highly important areas of the curriculum such as: science, social studies, arts, etc. somehow get left out of the equation. At the same time, in the 21st century, more than ever we need students to be well-informed problem solvers (e.g., The Global Achievement Gap). While NCLB might be headed in somewhat of the right direction -- with improved performance -- it falls woefully short of what we need. IF every one of our students, as targeted, were fully proficient with the NCLB math and language arts targets in 2014 (the NCLB target year) -- where would we be? I would suggest that we would have students that can read and compute -- but have few other skills to meet the challenges of this century. We need to make sure we don't settle for NCLB targets alone.
In RUSD, the Board and others are actively advocating for much more than the NCLB standard.
Elementary teachers have their days so regimented with required math and ELA minutes that they have no time to do the wonderful, exciting social studies and science projects most of us got to do as children.
ReplyDeleteI think the most alarming part about the NAEP Science results is found in the fact that 47% of 4th grade white students demonstrated proficiency, whereas only 11% of African-American, and 14% of Hispanic 4th grade students demonstrated proficiency. As we look forward to improving our place in The Global Achievement Gap, we must maintain a focus on address our own domestic achievement gap. It would be nice to hear what measures are being taken in RUSD to ensure that this gap does not persist in our schools. Maybe a guest blogger? Perhaps a school board member, or science curriculum specialist? Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteThe thing I find most troubling about the recent NAEP Science results is found in the data addressing the domestic achievement gap. According to the data, 47% of white 4th grade students demonstrated proficiency on the assessment; whereas only 14% of Hispanics and 11% of African-Americans achieved proficiency. While we must continue to address the "Global Achievement Gap," we can not neglect the obvious domestic achievement gap. It would be useful to hear what steps RUSD is taking in order to address these kinds of issues. Maybe a guest blog by a Board Member or one of our science curriculum specialists.
ReplyDeleteWhy is "core curriculum" being added to RUSD standards that are expected to be taught in the 4 hours and 55 minutes a day that students are present? Will students be required to learn both Core Curriculum AND the RUSD standards? How is Core Curriculum going to match up to the California Standards tested on the CST?
ReplyDelete...and we can't teach our children to think, problem solve, govern, and learn without Science and Social Studies..which, with the district standard of 75 minutes a day for math, and 120 minutes for ELA, leaves an hour and forty minutes a day to teach a thorough job of Science, Social Studies, P.E., Performing Arts, and Visual Arts...yeah...good luck with that.