Re: kappan - teachers divided on tests

[AazZ <llon@ATTBI.COM>]

Just a couple of black flags over an otherwise excellent program:

(a) In my school (and some others, particularly bigger high schools) the
mentors (we call them coaches) who have been hired to execute this
program do very little mentoring (or coaching) and very little direct
work with teachers, new or experienced, in classrooms at all. Instead
they are sucked deeply, nearly exclusively, into quasi-administrative
and organizational duties under the principal's direction. Most of these
duties have to do with local "lubrication" of the state accountability
system, which is driven exclusively by standaridized tests, in a naked
attempt to raise scores.
(b) The funds for this new mentoring program in California were carved
directly out of funds that had been long promised to high schools to
maintain expensive and (for the most part) successful state-funded
technology programs. These technology programs have been put in almost
all high schools in California the last several years at great expense
to both local school districts and the state through a program called
Digital High School. All funding for this program was suspended this
year after the mentor funds and some additional staff development
programs for administrators (including funds for an Aspin Institute
visit for Supers) were carved out of the budget in the legislative
conference committee following passage of divergent budgets by the
Assembly and the Senate (both of which had included the technology funds
buyt not the mentoring funds in their passed budgets). The main
last-minute lobbiests for the mentoring program were Governor Ray Romer,
Super of Los Angeles Unified, who found himself with a budget shortfall
due--in part--to his initiative in implementing the program the state
later funded, and Eli Broad, a Los Angeles real estate tycoon who has
been promoting various "business" analogy models of school reform in Los
Angeles for a long time. Broad is currently embroiled in a controversy
in which he has been caught trading his financial influence (through
promised donations to a private college) in a quid pro quo deal to "buy"
a candidate to run against a fairly independent minded school board
member.

LLon King


|-----Original Message-----
|From: Assessment Reform Network Mailing List 
|[mailto:ARN-L@LISTS.CUA.EDU] On Behalf Of Karen Canty
|Sent: Monday, November 18, 2002 1:01 PM
|To: ARN-L@LISTS.CUA.EDU
|Subject: Re: kappan - teachers divided on tests
|
|
|Monty,
|
|I have noticed a distinct difference in our district since we 
|have been able to have on staff a full-time teacher who acts 
|as a mentor to new teachers - both teachers new to the 
|profession and teachers new to our district.  The state 
|provides some funding through a grant and we also receive 
|money for what used to be mentor teachers but is now funded 
|another way.  Our mentor came to a board meeting with a new 
|teacher at the end of the year last year to give a report (she 
|had 21 either brand new or new to the district teachers); it 
|was amazing...there is a real structure to the mentoring based 
|on a model developed at the University of Santa Cruz.  It 
|includes classroom observations, suggestions for improvement 
|and time to talk - which for the new teacher was the best 
|part.  As much as I hate state-mandated stuff, in California, 
|since local dollars for education are almost non-existent in 
|most districts, to have the state fund things is not such an 
|anomaly; we've just come to accept it, I think, and these two 
|programs happen to be good ones that if there weren't money 
|from the state, most districts would be hard-pressed to 
|provide it on their own....plus our County offices (I know 
|most folks don't have those) received funds to train the 
|mentors - for free to districts - so there is now a group of 
|mentors who can mentor each other.
|
|So my hope is that our new teachers and other districts across 
|the state who use the grant money from the state well will not 
|be caught in the trap of "give me a scripted curriculum 
|because at least I know I'm doing 'something'"
|
|And believe me, I've seen veteran teachers who do exactly the 
|same thing.  Several years ago we adopted a new math program 
|that didn't require as many worksheets, problems for homework, 
|etc.  One of our most veteran (then) third grade teachers said 
|to me..."well, ok, if I have to, but I'm not throwing away any 
|of MY dittos!"  And I'm sure she used them until she retired!
|
|Karen
|
|-----Original Message-----
|From: Assessment Reform Network Mailing List 
|[mailto:ARN-L@LISTS.CUA.EDU] On Behalf Of Monty |Neill
|Sent: 
|Monday, November 18, 2002 10:20 AM
|To: ARN-L@LISTS.CUA.EDU
|Subject: Re: kappan - teachers divided on tests
|
|As I think the original poster who is perhaps getting flamed, 
|I am not worried about that.
|
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