Here is an article that The Columbus Dispatch published earlier this week. The article comes after the graduation committee made some recommendations to the Ohio State Superintendent of Instruction about new graduation requirements.
Here is another informational/op ed from The Columbus Dispatch about the new graduation requirements. This one is more for your reading and thinking on.
Questions To Consider:
1. What do you think of the new proposal that eliminates the need to "pass tests?"
2. Does such a proposal really "water down" a diploma? Is there a better option that doesn't involve a test?
3. What do you think, is it too hard to graduate with our current system?
second article changed its subfolder to April 1 - here is the updated link
ReplyDeletehttp://www.dispatch.com/special/20170401/are-graduation-requirements-for-ohio-students-too-tough
I'm a little torn. But as I look at it, I feel like we're all trapped in the box. We look at the issue of graduation requirements based on our understanding of education which carries with it too many assumptions. I don't agree in watering down the graduation requirements. I want kids to graduate from high school college and/or career ready.
ReplyDeleteThe assumptions we need to get away from are that high school is four years long. I think this assumption has placed a stigma on students who are said to be "held back." No. You weren't held back. You haven't met the standard yet. Here are your deficiencies. Here's a plan to address them. Here's the test again. Great. Now you're done.
I feel like our current education system is an outdated one-size-fits-all, assembly that holds students back from their true potential. Our problem is we put kids through this cookie cutter sytem, then we test them, and then we determine whether they have met the standard. I know a lot of students who could meet the current high school standards in two years. I know a lot of students who could meet the current standards in six years. But we're trapped in a four-year system, that operates on 8AM to 3PM schedule, starting in August and ending in May.
And because we're trapped in this crazy cookie cutter mindset, we assume that the new standards are going to hurt a lot of kids. We forget that the system itself is hurting kids by holding them back from their true potential. And what happens? Public education gets the brunt of the blame, while charter schools who are thinking outside the box get held up as being innovative. And then we get a new Secretary of Education and everyone is worried about what she will do to public education. But we've done this too ourselves by refusing to fix a broken system.
Here's my proposed solution. Test kids at the beginning of year. Identify their deficiencies. Design an instructional approach to address the gaps in their understanding. Then when they have completed the formative process, they retest. Then when they meet the standard they move on. Using this approach, some students would demonstrate they were "college and career ready" in a couple of years while others might take longer.
--end rant and if-I-had-my-druthers fantasy--
Copy and paste/send to our legislators..done
ReplyDelete