Twitter Book Club: @alfiekohn The Schools Our Children Deserve (1999) - Ch 1

In 2006 I heard Alfie Kohn speak at the Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs conference in Duluth, MN. His keynote was one of the best I have ever heard. Since then I have read many of his articles and listened to countless interviews with him but until now I had not read what many consider his best work, The Schools Our Children Deserve: Moving Beyond Traditional Classrooms and "Tougher Standards."

I must admit that ideologically I am absolutely in the same camp as Kohn on almost every single issue. I find I disagree with very little of what he says. However, I still struggle to figure out how to reconcile what Kohn clearly points out about teaching, learning, schools, and child development with the current climate of public schools in this country. In so many ways following what Kohn and other progressive educators say and trying to act on them is an uphill battle. I know I have bumped up against this ideological wall on numerous times in my career. In many ways it is the reason why I have not found education to be a very stable profession. If I were more concerned with sorting children and just going through the actions and following the script I would find my own life as a teacher much easier. However, to do so would mean creating environments and following a path that ultimately is less educative for students and self-destructive for my own integrity.

Published in 1999 this book came in at the heels of the current standards-based high-stakes testing movement. Though now 11 years old this book might as well have been written today since everything that was true about the standards movement in 1999 is still true today, only today the more radical points in Kohn's book are more obvious. Diane Ravitch might be just now coming to see the light about the standards movement today in 2010 but what took her a decade to realize Kohn was telling us from the get-go.

Chapter 1
Forward...Into The Past

"The features of our children's classrooms that we find the most reassuring—largely because we recognize them from ... http://tl.gd/7gh7eiless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"On the relatively rare occasions when nontraditional kinds of instruction show up in classrooms, many of us become... http://tl.gd/7gh88pless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"Anything that deviates from this model (Old School of Education) is often reviled as a fad, with special scorn res... http://tl.gd/7ghcmcless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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For me, these firs three quotes summarize what was at the heart of my troubles as an young teacher in the first few years of my career. It's not that these troubles have gone away for me, quite to the contrary, but I am now aware of them. Teachers are constantly given conflicting information about what they should do in their classrooms. On the one hand, they are told they are supposed to establish environments where students can learn but on the other hand they are told, often by the same people, that their students are to remain quiet, stay seated, respect authority (when they say respect they mistakenly mean fear), and be ready to absorb information. I have on more than one occasion been asked by a principal who came to observe my classroom on days when students were working on projects when a better time would be for them to come back and observe me actually teaching. Statements like these are conflicting and extremely confusing to new teachers who have been thrust into a classroom situation never having been asked to consider the difference between teaching and learning. What situations like these also indicate is that those who make statements like these also have not fully considered the difference between teaching and learning (or they do not really understand either one very well).

"All of us develop theories or perspectives through which we understand everything we encounter, yet those theories... http://tl.gd/7ghghuless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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@anderscj book club? Do tell? More info?less than a minute ago via ÜberTwitteriteach4change
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@iteach4change every night I read a chapter of a book on education and start convos by tweeting out quotes. I call it Twitter Book Clubless than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@iteach4change l8r I archive the conversation along with my own reflections on my blog: http://carlanderson.blogspot.com/less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@iteach4change click on the Twitter Book Club tab at the top of my blog to see an index of books I've Twitter Book Clubbedless than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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"Some people may favor subjecting poor African-American and Latino children to 'teaching styles that stress drill, ... http://tl.gd/7ghvqmless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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Lets reprint that one in full:

"Some people may favor subjecting poor African-American and Latino children to 'teaching styles that stress drill, practice, and other mind-numbing strategies' because they assume that 'such children lack ability.' Others swear that they simply have the best interests of these kids at heart when they make them fill in blanks and even chant answers in unison." Alfie Kohn

Case in point:


I would never subject my own children to something like this. If this image doesn't conjure up images of southern-style early 20th century chain gangs I don't know what else would. What happens to children who fail to learn these chants? How many of the children who do memorize these chants really understand what they mean?

"if students aren't learning effectively, it may be because of the persistence of traditional beliefs and practices" Alfie Kohnless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"this teacher-centered model follows naturally from seeing 'the purpose of education [as mastering] a body of knowledge'" Alfie Kohnless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"Headlines about how 'our' schools are doing compared to 'theirs' are based on the premise that what matters is rel... http://tl.gd/7gj1thless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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I absolutely love this quote. In fact, I have used it at least three times this week in conversations:

"Headlines about how 'our' schools are doing compared to 'theirs' are based on the premise that what matters is relative performance, which suggests that we're less concerned with the quality of education than with whether we can chant, 'We're Number One!'" Alfie Kohn

"The present, with its sharply etched flaws, can never compare to the lovely picture of the past preserved by our m... http://tl.gd/7gj2rbless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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"A preoccupation with achievement is not only different from, but often detrimental to, a focus on learning." Alfie Kohnless than a minute ago via Twittelatoranderscj
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Twitter Book Club: John Dewey (1938) Experience & Education, Ch 2

I love this quote. It is so instructive. It quite effectively implies that experience, or rather a series or schedule of experiences, can be planned and executed to induce learning; that intentional scaffolding of planned experiences can be a viable alternative pedagogy.

This quote makes me think of the the philosophy statements (or what most closely resembles the philosophy statements of "common core" charter schools presented by the Heritage Foundation as change. These schools present an uber-traditional schooling option when compared with more progressive charters, magnets, and even most traditional public schools today. There is no need for them to present a "consistently developed philosophy of education" beyond a few abstract words because our "great cultural heritage" (think Heritage Foundation influence here) and tradition does the heavy lifting in communicating their vision.

Knowledge is Power (KIPP) Schools Philosophy:

KIPP builds a partnership among parents, students, and teachers that puts learning first. By providing outstanding educators, more time in school learning, and a strong culture of achievement, KIPP is helping all students climb the mountain to and through college.

"Building partnership," "put learning first," "outstanding educators," "strong culture of achievement," and "climb the mountain," are all very abstract and vague. The only concrete statement that can be derived from their vision is "more time in school." Even the notion of what constitutes "learning" is left to culturally general interpretation.

Teach for America (TFA) core values:

Teach For America's core values reflect how we as an organization want our staff to operate, individually and collectively. Our core values are central to our culture and represent the style of operating that we believe to be critical for moving us most quickly and purposefully toward our goals.

• Relentless pursuit of results: We assume personal responsibility for achieving ambitious, measurable results in pursuit of our vision. We persevere in the face of challenges, seek resources to ensure the best outcomes, and work toward our goals with a sense of purpose and urgency.

• Sense of possibility: We approach our work with optimism, think boldly, and greet new ideas openly.

• Disciplined thought: We think critically and strategically in search of the best answers and approaches, reflect on past experiences and data to draw lessons for the future, and make choices that are deeply rooted in our mission.

• Respect and humility: We value all who are engaged in this challenging work. We keep in mind the limitations of our own experiences and actively seek out diverse perspectives.

• Integrity: We ensure alignment between our actions and our beliefs, engage in honest self-scrutiny, and do what is right for the broader good.

This was the closest thing I could find on the TFA website resembling a philosophy or mission. They reference in their core values a "mission" and "our beliefs" but I could not find either listed anywhere on their site. This is what most closely resembles any kind of philosophy of education from TFA. All of this is extremely vague and relies so much on our cultural interpretations of phrases like, "achieving ambitious, measurable results in pursuit of our vision," "think critically and strategically," "make choices that are deeply rooted in our mission," "challenging work," and "do what is right for the broader good." In this case it seems they have gone out of their way to ensure vagueness.

The same is true for every other type of "reform school" alternative I have found that relies heavily on traditional methods and a "teach harder" approach. No explicit philosophy of learning or of how pedagogy relates to learning is present for any of these institutions. It is not needed because they present us with nothing new.

This reminds me of this statement by JFK regarding why we choose to go to the moon:


I choose to seek out the discovery of the simple and act upon it, "not because it is easy but because it is hard."


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How Diane Ravitch's publisher is connected to Pearson, why we should care, and what we can do about it.

Maybe there is nothing to this but coincidence but I think we need to read Diane Ravitch's new book with caution.

Twitter / anderscj: Could Ravitch's new book & ... via kwout

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I created this video in response to the Texas School Board decision to radically rewrite the curriculum, a decision likely to have Sandy Kress' fingerprints all over it being that he is from Texas, is a lobbyist for the Texas Charter School Board Association and former School Board member for Dallas Schools (in a time when they misrepresented test scores so George W. Bush could claim success as an education governor). I think this applies to Ravitch's call for more and better curriculum.


Additionally, if this theory is correct, Ravitch's has been used as a Trojan horse for the teacher unions as well. I think every single AFT publication I have read this past year has had a piece by her or her protege Diane Senechal. You can read what my thoughts are with Senechal's involvement with the AFT here and here. You can also read more about what I think about Ravitch's call for more curriculum here. So, Scott McLeod asks, "Should we absolve Diane Ravitch of her earlier decisions?" I say NO NO NO NO NO. All of this is still screams of clever ruse. Buy testing materials or buy textbooks it all still drives money to Pearson.

Perhaps this is all post-fact. Perhaps what "The Death and Life of the Great American School System" is not a reversal of Diane Ravitch's thoughts on education reform but rather an opening up of the playbook after the game is over. Perhaps this agenda has already been enacted.

An Invitation Letter to Parents

If there is one force today that I believe can break our cycles of status quo hereditary practices in education and bring us to someplace better a key to it lies in our ability to communicate and share ideas in real-time between educators and education stakeholders. The networks of individuals using tools like Twitter, Blogs, Wikis, YouTube and other social video, Skype, and countless other online communication tools that have come to be commonly known as Personal Learning Networks (PLNs) carry with them a method to let good ideas spread and take seed in even the most draconian of learning environments. Teachers who have plugged themselves into these networks and become actively involved in their own learning have felt this power for transformation. This is truly a grass-roots mobilization machine. However, for school systems to change it requires more than just enlightened educators, it requires enlightened students and parents who will support the change.

Time and again we see true reform efforts fail because the new model doesn't look enough like the common conception of school in the public eye. No matter how rooted in sound theory and philosophy the school will fail if reform efforts do not bring parents and community members with us. So, what we end up with are perestroika efforts at reform like we saw today in President Obama's speech on Education Reform. Changes that are not real change. More testing of students or more rigorous testing of students is not real change. A focus on teaching and instruction is not real change. The spread of a back to basics drill and kill model of schooling like Mastery Charter or KIPP is not real change. The spread of a "put the rich privileged (mostly white) Ivy League graduate who was successful in school in front of the classroom for students to emulate" model that is Teach For America is not real change. These are bureaucratic changes that in the end will only further to strengthen the definitions and delineations between groups of the emerging American Caste System complete with high school dropouts at the bottom "untouchable" level. Schools like Mastery, KIPP, and TFA, by the way, don't have to count their dropouts among their students and therefore can claim higher levels of success since by nature they self-select students. We all know there is a better solution, a real change that is possible. We have examples of it in schools like Minnesota New Country School and the Science and Leadership Academy in Philadelphia.

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Educators, perhaps Obama and Duncan are right to beat up on us. This situation may be our own doing. By focusing so much on ourselves and our students we have neglected to invite a very important stakeholder into the fold, parents & community members. So, what follows is what I propose every Teacher Tweeter, EduPlurker, and Edublogger come this school year send home with their students, an invitation letter to parents (altered to include your information) to join in the discussion:

Dear Parent or Guardian,

I am excited to begin a new school year learning with your son or daughter. I say learning with because I have found to be a teacher today requires one to also be a learner both in and outside the classroom. It is undeniable that the world your child is growing up in is in many ways different than the world you or I grew up in. Much of these changes mean necessary changes in school. For one, we did not have the Internet and fingertip access to the wealth of human information when we went to school. Having such a device in my classroom has meant my role there has been altered. It has removed the necessity for me to always have the right answers for the students and has created a greater need for me to help them develop strategies for finding the right answers on their own.

Things in school are different now than they even were when I went to college. Nothing in my teacher training addressed some of these issues we face in education today. Therefore, I have found a community of other people interested in helping each other find their role in this new world through tools like Twitter, blogs, and YouTube. This community consists of not only teachers but also school administrators, education researchers, graduate students, and other parents. In this space I make my learning about education transparent and you are welcome to follow me in my exploration of new technologies and new ways of thinking. I also invite you to join the conversation. The real education reform happens because of what happens in the classroom and for your son or daughter's classroom what happens will be greatly influenced by the shared dialog happening in this digital space.

I invite you to follow me on Twitter, read my blog, or watch my YouTube videos and join the global conversation influencing your child's education. There are a few things you should know first. This digital space is my learning environment and as such community building activities both serious and lighthearted occur. We have fun in this space and we are serious. The fun elements hold us together and maintain our community and the serious elements help us to progress our learning. Both are necessary for learning both online and in the classroom.

I am @anderscj on Twitter and my blog is http://carlanderson.blogspot.com. Please join me in trying to make your child's education great.

Sincerely,
Carl Anderson

How is Education a Civil Rights Issue?

"Education is also the civil rights issue of our generation." -Sec. Education Arne Duncan

I have been thinking lately about this statement and how it might be applied. Traditional schools greatly favor a concrete-sequential learning modality. Most teachers are concrete-sequentialists. Most of our kids who do not do well in school are not concrete-sequential learners. Knowing about the kind of school Ariel is (the school in Chicago that Duncan founded), could this statement signal a new view of students with non concrete-sequential learning modalities as being repressed or underprivileged under traditional school systems?

There has been a lot of ire lately in the edublogosphere about the appointment of Duncan. Gary Stager and others, who I respect greatly, view Duncan's appointment as another four years of the Bush education policy. The argument centers around the support for charter schools like KIPP, the support for performance based pay, union busting, and standards based testing. I have to respectfully disagree.

Yes, the Obama administration supports charter schools. No, not all charter schools are KIPP. KIPP schools have come under the microscope lately and have been recognized as a scale ready solution for kids in poor neighborhoods. However, the attempt by KIPP teachers, who have reportedly been overworked, to unionize has met much Resistance and has gotten messy. The problem is the administration's support for these schools has to some been seen as the only type of charter school they support. There are three things that keep me cautiously optimistic and unconvinced that the writing on the wall spells "KIPP":

1. Earlier this month the Obama's visited Capital City Public Charter School, a progressive charter school in the DC area. There the president said, "This kind of innovative school...is an example of how all our schools should be."
2. The Obamas send their girls to a private school that operates under a progressive philosophy.
3. Ariel Community Academy, the school Arne Duncan founded in Chicago, follows the same progressive philosophy. The following are excerpts from the Principal's message on the school's website:
   

"The role of the teacher is to assist and advise the student, actively participating and contributing to their learning in order to expand and discover the society they live in and share experiences together."

"[S]tudents should be aware of their own multiple intelligences and utilize a wide variety of abilities to demonstrate what they have learned."

"The design of the curriculum is purposefully broad in order to provide the teacher with many options for planning and implementing individualized, small group, and whole group instruction."

So, could this kind of stated support for progressive education coupled with Duncan's statement about civil rights mean that students who learn differently will now be seen as being unnecessarily repressed? I surely hope so. This is a silent epidemic in our country and one that is being exposed by the largely unpopular No Child Left Behind and the increased spotlight on our nation's dropout rate (National Average is 33%).

This is a difficult problem to draw light to because most educators (most educators are concrete-sequential learners) don't see the problem as a civil rights issue. They can't from their current perspective. "The Color of Fear" is a documentary that brilliantly and effectively explains the problems of privilege and prejudice as they relate to race. Watch this excerpt of the film and every time you hear the word "White" replace it with the word "Concrete-Sequential."



What do you think? Is learning modality a civil rights issue?

Could it be that the writing on the wall is not "KIPP" but rather "Choice"?

Do you think I am way off base and Duncan's is viewing civil rights as it has historically been defined (that of Race, Gender, Ethnicity, Religion, etc)?