Twitter Book Club: John I. Goodlad (1979) What Schools Are For - Chapter 4

"The norm by which the performance of schools is now judged is entirely inadequate from one perspective (cont) http://tl.gd/673upqless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"The affixing of accountability for improving performance according to the standard now used inhibits the (cont) http://tl.gd/673vdqless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"many people outside of schools who think they know what will lead to improvement and who are imposing (cont) http://tl.gd/6740uqless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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This statement I believe to be partially true. It is why I am starting to think that in order to make real substantive changes in education one needs to leave the classroom and grow into an outsider role. An educator like Tim Walz who left the classroom for the House of Representatives is perhaps in better situation for change than the teacher fighting the struggle in the classroom. Problem is, the teacher who leaves the classroom to fight for the changes they thought they needed ends up passing on changes for others that they felt they need, not necessarily what kids or current teachers need. In many ways this is a paradox.

"neither satisfied nor dissatisfied parents give much thought to whether their children's curricula were (cont) http://tl.gd/6742mlless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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I think this is a condition we are schooled into. A passing thought I had this morning was that maybe the Libertarians have a good point in their drive to restrict what schools do. If we reduce what schools do to a more basic purpose it will force other institutions to take responsibility for what they have let schools take the burden for. On the other hand, this approach would need to be coupled with other measures to ensure equity happens by some other means.

"how a student spends precious time in school and how he feels about what goes on there is of much greater (cont) http://tl.gd/674446less than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"Use of norm-referenced standardized test scores as the standard for judging student, teacher, and school (cont) http://tl.gd/6745coless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"Is the time not overdue for seriously considering other ways of accounting for what goes on in the education system?" Goodladless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"what about this school administrator's criterion of a successful school: 'I know this is a better school (cont) http://tl.gd/6748adless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"my further guess is that more complex intellectual processes not easily measured will decline at an even greater rate." Goodladless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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My concern as well. In fact, I believe we have seen this happen large-scale in the past ten years.

"Schools are caught up in society's conflicts when they try to educate for changing circumstances." Goodladless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"The family is potentially our most powerful educative institution. Nonetheless, it is regarded primarily (cont) http://tl.gd/674g7dless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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How do we restore this role for the family? This, I believe, is one of the issues Education Nation on NBC ought to be discussing. Yes, we need good schools, but we need to recontextualize what role they play. They ought to be seen as resources to help families in educating their children, not as the sole proprietor.

"There are few instances in our society of organizations increasing in size without increasing in (cont) http://tl.gd/674hbuless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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@anderscj Thanks for the gems from Goodlad. Do you Oprah, Arne, Gates, or the DFERs have read any of his work?less than a minute ago via webDan McGuire
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@sabier I doubt it, but I think his work did in large part add fuel to the beginning of the charter movement.less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@sabier problem is the direction they take it bastardizes it's original intentions. Instead of creating places 4 R&D they create inequities.less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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"Scholars and innovators in research and development enterprises outside of schools rarely possess the (cont) http://tl.gd/67k6ttless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"legislators assume not only that they know what is best for schools but they will give it, even though (cont) http://tl.gd/67k7uvless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"It would be easy to suggest that the improvement of schooling rests with educators...But it would be (cont) http://tl.gd/67kcncless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"Teachers, in turn, are more tied to their disciplines and the teaching of content than oriented to the (cont) http://tl.gd/67kfi0less than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"Our schools must be reconstructed, one by one, by citizens and educators working together." Goodladless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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I had a dream last night, that after watching "Waiting for Superman" and watching the whole PR campaign on Oprah and MSNBC this week the American people saw through the crap and rallied to actually help improve their own schools. It was sort of a "peasant revolt" against the corporate "common core" options being sold to them by the "reformers" acting from their ivory towers and imposing reforms on them instead of with them. In my dream parents became driven to take an involved role in school in places where none had done before. In my dream local businesses donated supplies to fix up crumbling infrastructure. Then I woke up wondering, could it happen?

"The goal-oriented factory model furthers the instrumental role of schools, taking attention almost (cont) http://tl.gd/67ki9bless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"the indices of improvement used in the model are such that a school can appear to be getting more healthy wh (cont) http://tl.gd/67kiv8less than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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@anderscj i have not read anything of Goodlad's. Can u suggest some links or books... I want to read what you are tweetingless than a minute ago via Twitter for iPadJoe Bower
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@joe_bower http://www.amazon.com/What-Schools-Are-John-Goodlad/dp/0873674677/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1285570328&sr=1-3less than a minute ago via webanderscj
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"It was of great importance to the health of the system that the children began to see the difference (cont) http://tl.gd/67ks2rless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"We gave little or no thought to outcomes but a great deal of attention to each other, to how we wanted to (cont) http://tl.gd/67kss6less than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"The issues of accountability are substantially more complex in the ecological than in the ends-means model (cont) http://tl.gd/67ktp3less than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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I love these last two tweets. They are from a story Goodlad tells about a class he taught where for some act of fate he ended up teaching a class of students in a classroom that was effectively situated as a one-room schoolhouse. In that environment he had a lot of leverage and flexibility to do whatever he felt necessary. He ends up establishing a culture of shared goals and shared experience. It really is a lovely description of what I believe is one vision of an ideal learning environment.

"We can no longer be content with standardized achievement test scores in a few subjects as the sole (cont) http://tl.gd/67ku9tless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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@joe_bower I have not read anything else of Goodlad's. I read this book in a grad school Ed policy class and it made a strong impression.less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@joe_bower At the time I was so pressed to speed through it I never really got to digest it the way I would have liked to. So, now I am.less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@joe_bower The strange thing is, I think, the charter movement began heavily influenced by Goodlad's work...less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@joe_bower ...but what it has devolved into, with corporate entanglements and "common core" legislation, is a departure from Goodlad.less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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I do wonder if Duncan, Oprah, Rhee, Canada, and crew have read any John I Goodlad. How could we get them to?