Since Act 60, Vermont education spending has increased from $750 million to $925 million in 2001. However, are we getting better quality?
Recently, I met privately with local teachers from three different school districts who shared their concerns about education policy. I learned that most kids aren’t motivated to improve, their attitude is apathetic, only 12 percent do homework, and their focus is on videos, shopping and doing nothing.
During this last session, Rep. Al Perry and I wrote to our new education commissioner, David Wolk, to express concerns affecting education quality in our public schools. In the past few years, Vermont has established high standards for all students but we thought there was much work to be done.
We asked Commissioner Wolk what he thought about the practice of grade inflation and social promotions and whether our new state standards will ensure that our graduates have the knowledge and skills required for college since today, thirty percent need remedial help in their first year.
The Commissioner assured us that current standards do not support social promotions or grade inflation. Also, the high expectations as reflected in the Governor’s diploma will enable our students to be globally competitive. However, kids who are academically challenged need alternatives to keep them motivated.
Recently a parent called a local talk show host and indicated his daughter needed additional tutoring to improve poor performance. The school administrator indicated there was no help available and she would be promoted regardless of performance. A school I contacted couldn’t identify how many students aren’t promoted nor provide a grade profile for courses taken.
Everyone is concerned about education quality but the argument you hear is the need for more money. Clearly, that isn’t the answer and neither is teacher bashing. Teachers need protection to compel excellence from students and only reward good student performance. This is contrary to progressive educators, who now emphasize group projects rather than individual performance. They focus on the “whole child” and his/her social and emotional development, and advocate “discovery learning.” Students also participate in cooperative learning and collaborative projects, rather than phonetics, direct instructions, drills and computation skills.
A recent New York Times article talked about the new focus on “Constructivist” math. The procedure de-emphasizes correct answers, relies on “flexibility” and “reasonable values” answers. One popular program, Mathland, suggests students count a million grains of birdseed to get a feeling for the size of a million. The movement has prompted professional mathematicians to charge that a generation of school children has no idea how to add, subtract, multiply or divide.
An editorial written by Richard Benedetto, a Gannet News Service columnists, stated “Without parents teaching their children that education is important, and without parents standing behind their kids every day with encouragement and support, the best efforts of schools and teachers is destined to fail.” Motivation and apathy wouldn’t be lacking if parents’ expectations were explicit to students and schools.
It is with home schooling. The Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee championship top three finalists this year were all home schooled. About a quarter of home school students are enrolled in one grade or more above their age-level peers, and their median test scores on tests are “well above” those in public and private schools. Home schools are joining the ranks of charter schools and vouchers as critical paths towards better education.
Parents have to take charge of schools to ensure the courses, standards and education goals are challenging. Not many people in Vermont are aware of charter schools which are allowed in 37 states. Nationally, there are 1700 such schools and the President is committed to reach 3000 by the end of this year.
Charter schools are public schools, organized and run by parents, teachers and/or community groups. They are run as private schools using public funds but are exempt from state regulations.
Their charters allow the school to concentrate on math, arts, science or special needs. They can require a longer school day and/or year. Teachers normally volunteer for an assignment to a charter school because it allows them to teach, be more innovative and not encumbered by unions and state rules and regulations.
When I offered an amendment to the school choice bill this year to just study whether charter schools would meet education needs in Vermont, the NEA, the school board and superintendent associations opposed the measure but Vermonters for Better Education were supporters. It was defeated by one vote in the House.
It isn’t as easy to improve education quality as it appears on the surface. Parents and the public must become knowledgeable about schooling, much as they are about business or home buying. They must be involved to help young people develop skills and character to be productive citizens and good and responsible neighbors. Parents must challenge the system and if radical changes aren’t made, and rapidly, our democracy is at stake and mediocrity will be our accepted education norm.
Rep. Frank Mazur
South Burlington