Retention and Social Promotion

Social Promotion and Retention

Social Promotions.  This is the time of year when teachers and administrators begin to evaluate the work of under performing student and discuss the possibility of retaining a student  the  previous grade or “socially promoting “ the student to next higher grade without having met the  benchmarks necessary for promotion. Retention and social promotion have been hot button issues for decades dividing academicians into opposing camps.

One of the issues regarding retention is student performance on state level assessment testing. “The National Research Council recently summarized research, concluding that low performing students who are held back because of their test scores do less well academically and are far likelier to drop out than comparably achieving students who moved ahead in school with grade retention increasing the odds of dropping out…” (from The Flat World and Education by Linda Darling Hammond, p76)

Social promotion is now banned in Detroit. Many other cities and states are considering ending social promotions. Statistical information does not usually present positive pictures of social promotions being successful. There are several issues that need to be addressed when considering either socially promoting a student or retaining him or her in a previous grade.

 (See http://www.educationreport.org/ubs/mer/article.aspx?id=12135)

Things to consider when contemplating retention or social promotion of a student.

1)      It is critical to have parent involvement. Their input is very important. They must buy into whatever plan you come up with.

2)      Rule out a specific learning disability. A non- diagnosis or misdiagnosis would be catastrophic to a student education and their social well being.

3)      Review other options. Extended school year or summer school may be an option depending on the school. However many districts have eliminated summer schools due to budget cuts.

4)      What does the student want? Are they willing to agree to the terms of retention or a social promotion?

5)      How has the school dealt with retained or socially promoted students in the past? Is there a plan for remediation or are school setting student up for further failure?

6)      Are the reasons for retention academic or social?

Please see http://www.greatschools.org/special-education/health/659-repeating-a-grade.gs

Remember Memorial Day

 The fourth Monday in May has been designated as Memorial Day, a national holiday to honor those Americans who died while serving their country in the military. Originally called the Decoration Day, the day was dedicated to honor whose soldiers who died during the Civil War. It was after World War One that the day was dedicated to include all wars. In 1966 President Lyndon Johnson authorized Memorial Day as we know it today. The day is commemorated at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington D.C with the placement of a small American flag at each grave marker.

Memorial Day created a great teachable moment while classroom teachers  can explore the purpose of the holiday ,indicating that it is more than a day of no school, family picnics and the unofficial beginning of the summer season.

I encourage you to take a look at the numerous web sites  that offer lesson plans, printable worksheets and classroom activated for your students.

The Education World web site has numerous lesson ideas for students in all grade levels. Individual and group projects are also explored. Go to   http://www.educationworld.com/holidays/archives/memorial_day.shtml

Another good site is Teachnology. This site also has classroom activities and lesson suggestions.  You can find this information at   http://www.teach-nology.com/themes/holidays/memorialday/

Finally the History Channel, a perennial site for all American holidays and history events has great video clips and a photo gallery. The link is  http://www.history.com/topics/memorial-day-history.

Our students deserve to know about their heritage and their role in American society. Teaching about patriotism should  be a part of the curriculum for all students.  As always your input is welcome. One of the traditions of this day is to read the poem Flanders Fields" written after World War I. A great opportunity for a class participation activity.

We owe a debt a gratitude to those who gave their lives for us.

Congratulations New Teachers !

Graduation Time

May is the time for college graduations.  Students have turned their final term papers and have taken their last exams. After the celebrations and good wishes are over, it is time to get serious about entering the adult world and find a job- not an easy task in this economic environment. For many students who are liberal arts graduates, they may be no defined career path. For teachers it is different. Educators have spent four (or more) years preparing for a specific occupation.  For the most part they are focused on a specific career path.

This past week I had the honor of attending the commencements ceremonies for the Graduate School of Education of the University of Pennsylvania.  Dozens of newly minted doctorates and over a hundred Masters Degree candidates are about to enter the job market, many look for public school teaching jobs. This is what they are about to face. According an article that appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer (May 15^th, 2011) as many as 5000 teachers in the Los Angeles School district may lose their jobs at the end of the current academic year. The Pennsylvania State Education Association, the union that represents over 190,000 teachers in that state, has indicated that as many as 9000 teachers may lose their jobs. Budget cuts and the economy have wrecked havoc with the teaching profession. However that should not deter those truly committed to educating America’s youth from seeking their place in the profession. There are jobs out there, but you need to think outside the box.

Lest this blog seem too depressing, please allow me to share some of the comments made by Dr. Ramon Cortines, Superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District and lifelong educator. Cortines was the keynote speaker at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School commencement.  He remarked that as a teacher you are always a teacher as well as always a learner. Cortines also went on to say that that by becoming a teacher you are making a commitment to improve they quality of life for your students. Teachers are agents of social change. He encourages teacher to be the “guide on the side” rather than the “sage on the stage.”

Dr. Cortines went on to make several recommendations to the teaching profession.

1)      Teacher Preparation- Teachers need to be trained as leaders as well as educators. Many of today’s teachers are not prepared to deal with the mutual partnerships required. Teachers need to constantly refining their practices to keep up with current trends.

2)      Teacher Recruitment- While Tech for America and the National Teaching Project have helped recruit college graduates into the profession. There need to be a more concerted effort. To find a train excellent teachers.  Cortines believes that we need to look at alternate pathways to the classroom.

3)      Evaluation and Review- Today’s methods of teacher evaluation are obsolete and very subjective. There needs to be multiple measures of teacher effectiveness. Teachers should not solely be evaluated on student performance on standardized tests but a set of multiple measures need to be developed, including a peer review process.

4)      Seniority- Just because a teacher has been on the job a long time does not necessarily mean that they are an excellent teacher. Many of the veteran teachers in the classroom today are lacking in technology skills as well as new innovations in science. Seniority is not the best way to evaluate teacher effectiveness.

Dr. Cortines believes as did Nelson Mandela that “Education is the most powerful weapon to change the world. Best wishes for much success to all of you have graduated this year. I hope that if you are a first timer, you will check back to this blog often to help with your chosen profession.

The Death of Osama Bin Laden-A Teachable Moment

The Teachable Moment

Every now and again, an event occurs that just jumps out at a classroom teacher saying this is a golden opportunity to create a relevance between  current events and history. Whether you are teaching geography, social studies,civics or current events, the death of Osama Bin Laden is one of those opportunities that should not be passed up.

There are any number of web sites that would be excellent teaching tools for classroom teachers.

You could direct student to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list where they can see the poster of Osama Bin Laden, with the caption in red and white showing “deceased” at the bottom. The web address ishttp://www.fbi.gov/wanted/wanted_by_the_fbi.

 Another unique opportunity is to have students access the web page of Al Jazeera, the Arab news agency. Here students can obtain, in English, another perspective. They can read how the Arab world is responding to the death of Bin Laden.  Go to http://english.aljazeera.net/.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/ This is the official web site of the White House. Currently you can view video clips and photos about the US government’s successful plan to get Osama Bin laden.

There are many other links to this site, including the story of the White House as an historical building and stories about its past residents.

Additional information about the Bin Laden death can be found at the Defense Department’s web site, http://www.defense.gov/

The major news networks all have links to many of the back stories that have come to the forefront as a result of the Bin Laden killing. http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=13505793  is just one example.

Last week as part of the James Madison program at Princeton University, a panel discussion was held to discuss the impact of Bin Laden’s death. One of the recurring issues was the role of the Pakistani government.  Many of the participants found it incredulous that Osama Bin Laden had been hiding in a town with a military academy only 35 miles from Islamabad for five years. (Incompetence or duplicity)

One of the other issues was the resolve of the US government. This Special Forces mission, ten years in the making, proved to the world that when the US makes a commitment to bring a terrorist to justice, it makes good on its word.

There are many issues that make for great class discussions. Take advantage of them. Your students are ready.

Book Review- "A Chance to Make History"

Book Review” A Chance to Make History by Wendy Kopp

C.2011 Public Affairs Publishing, New York

: A Chance to Make History: What Works and What Doesn't in Providing an Excellent Education for All (Hardcover)

When Wendy Kopp envisioned Teach for America as part of her senior project at Princeton University, I believed that she was on to something very special on two fronts.
First, the program would provide an opportunity for a recent college graduates who had not planned to become teachers, a chance to" test the waters." In an era of chronic teacher shortages, it might have served to attract new recruits into the profession who had not considered teaching previously. Second, Kopp could have made a case for a national service commitment for all college graduates. With an all volunteer military, a required term of national services could have included the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Teach for America or a military option.
Instead, " A Chance to Make History" focuses on Teach for America alums who moved to educational leadership rather than classroom positions. The greatest success in my view was the KIPP Academy program created by two TFA alums, Michael Feinberg and David Levin.
However, Kopp continues to champion Michelle Rhee, a TFA alum who went on to become the controversial chancellor of the DC public schools. Kopp calls her a “transformational leader." Others have labeled Rhee a union busting bully. That should not have been the intent of Teach for America.
I concur with Kopp's assessment that there are no "silver bullets” out there" to cure the problems of public education in America. But given the current war against the teaching profession being waged by a number of governors, Kopp would better serve the profession by convincing TFA alums to stay on the front lines in the classroom and help students. That can help make Teach for America an enduring success and provide a legacy for Wendy Kopp.

This book  can be purchased at Amazon.com. As we are an affiliate, you can order this book directly from our site.