October 23, 2008 
WHY CHILDREN AREN’T THE ONLY LOSERS IN THE LAND OF PUBLIC EDUCATION
There’s been a lot of talk lately about the quality of education and how to fix the problem. This has got me thinking and something has been playing over in my mind…What makes a good teacher and what makes a bad teacher?
Some teachers I would not consider to be good, may be great to others, but what I think doesn’t really matter and certainly would not factor into the future of education.
Here’s what’s going to matter…how children score on standardized tests.
More and more I’m hearing in the news how school districts across the country are going to result-based pay scales and even releasing teachers from their jobs if their students aren’t performing.
Until now, we have heard about how all of the national testing is affecting the kids, but little has been made the news about how the teachers are/will be affected.
Bottom line, though, is there will be the loss of many good and great teachers in the coming years based upon their students’ scores. Now, you may be asking yourself, if they are good and especially great teachers then why are their students’ scores not where they ‘should’ be? The problem lies not in the teaching, but in the learning.
Something that has been ignored during this No Child Left Behind maze is HOW children learn. If that isn’t understood or known by parents, teachers or doctors, then these children will most likely be left behind even though in too many cases, they are very bright!
This ties in to my previous blog discussing the difference between teaching and learning. While the teachers may be teaching, that doesn’t mean the children are learning! So, if a teacher is teaching the information she’s been charged with passing on to her students, but they aren’t learning (ie at least as measured by scoring well on standardized tests), then the teacher risks not getting a raise, or a bonus, or worse yet, they risk losing their job.
Is it their fault that the child didn’t learn what she taught? In most cases, the answer is a resounding ‘NO’!
Conversely, is it the child’s fault that he didn’t learn what the teacher taught him? Again, the answer all too often is ‘NO’!
The question that hasn’t been asked then becomes, how do we make sure both students and teachers are not left behind?
Here are my recommendations based on years of working in and with the school system as well as with students and parents privately.
1. All students should be assessed for skill levels, not just for academic ability. When assessing Kindergarteners, for example, look at not only whether they can write their name (academic ability), but can they control their hands and thoughts enough to write their name (skills). Assessments can begin as young as three and should continue regularly throughout high school.
2. Corrective programs need to start in pre-Kindergarten when needed. Skill weaknesses need to be identified and remediated early. For example, sound discrimination, auditory processing and visual processing are each learning skills that are not addressed in the classroom, but do affect reading abilities. Like assessments, remediation can begin as young as three and continue as long as needed – even through high school.
3. Teachers, administrators, professionals and parents must be educated about how learning happens. When everyone involved in a child’s education understands how a child learns as well as how to address those having difficulty learning, no one is left behind! It becomes easier for parents to help their child; it help professionals guide families and schools in applying the most effective corrective methods; AND it allows teachers to successfully teach, thereby not only receiving salary increases and bonuses, but also ensuring they won’t lose their job!
With all of the research in today’s world about HOW children learn, there’s little reason that any child should not be learning comfortably and to the best of their abilities. If this isn’t recognized, however, they will continue to struggle, schools will continue to fall below expectations and teachers may begin losing their jobs – whether they are a good teacher or a bad teacher.
For all teachers out there…it’s not just about the children being left behind, you, too, may now be joining them in the statistics.
So, are you a good teacher or are you a bad teacher – and will it really even matter in the future if we don’t ensure our students are good learners?
