What is the demographic make up of students opting out?
1
Now take a look at the new SAT questions https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sample-questions/math/calculat... referenced in a different article in the NYT. Each question is blah, blah, blah, ad nauseum. Lots of words, complex situations, all totally unnecessary to teach/test the essential underlying principle. And math textbooks in the US are exactly like that -- full of blah, blah, blah (I tried to use my child's textbook to teach her percentages and the only good use for it was to hurl it away and feel better). This is why US students, are on average, abysmal at math -- at arithmetic, at algebra, at any form of abstraction.
(And yes, I could do all those painful SAT problems -- easily -- but then, I did not attend high school in the US and so I could parlay my only-a-bit-better-than-average math ability to become an engineer.)
(And yes, I could do all those painful SAT problems -- easily -- but then, I did not attend high school in the US and so I could parlay my only-a-bit-better-than-average math ability to become an engineer.)
3
The blame should really be on the American parent who typically doesn't equate education with better income or a more informed citizenry, i.e. better voter. In fact, it's quite the opposite: Americans generally like being anti-intellectual and anti-education -- for it wouldn't be cool otherwise.
4
There is so much we can learn from the College Board. "The SAT should offer worthy challenges, not artificial obstacles,” said College Board President David Coleman, when asked why they had eliminated the essay writing section of the test.
One way to avoid seeing our children slip in math and reading skills is to stop testing them on such "artificial obstacles". Let's simply put them on a deserted island in a remote region of the Pacific Ocean and see how they learn to survive - Howzzat for a worthy challenge? But then there is always a possibility that someone who can still write might turn it into a novel and win the Nobel prize!
One way to avoid seeing our children slip in math and reading skills is to stop testing them on such "artificial obstacles". Let's simply put them on a deserted island in a remote region of the Pacific Ocean and see how they learn to survive - Howzzat for a worthy challenge? But then there is always a possibility that someone who can still write might turn it into a novel and win the Nobel prize!
Who are we fooling? A common lament is that Common Core or whatever is in fashion has made it impossible for parents to help children with their homework, without recognizing that we are so far along in our decline that the parents themselves are innumerate and are as tethered to their screens as their kids.
1
Watch the Republican "debate" tonight and you'll understand better how intellectual discipline, reasoned thinking, and scientific method are scorned at this ostensibly highest level.
How can we expect our children to do better in this environment?
How can we expect our children to do better in this environment?
6
I continue to be amazed at some people scapegoating of black and hispanic children. WOW! So surreal!
A child who has not been taught to hold a pencil correctly can hardly be expected to have been taught mathematics...
4
This should be no surprise. When you tinker with public education, placing it in a figurative petri dish, you mix together 14 and 3/4 years of No Child Left Behind and a followup with Arne Duncan, remove teachers from the conversational mix.....voila! This is what you get.....and...... this is not over yet. We have had a sustained demise of student skills because we went away from basic common sense education. It's not the teachers, stupid. It is the narrowing of curriculum and the ever present greed of corporations. It is their ever present desire to sell their tests, software, test prep material and charterization the education business. We have lost a whole generation of children to this insanity. Too many corporate, oligarchical fingers in the pie. They need to get out. Why not try it OUR way for a change? Provide the support and wraparound services to the communities that are having a harder time so the playing field can be leveled. Provide better access to healthcare, mental health services, recreation services to communities that are bereft of same? Make schools community hubs of support and trust. Forget demonizing teachers and unions. They are not the problem. They are the solution. We are the light, not the darkness.
10
This article should be called: "Students perform poorly in subject areas in which they have received no instruction":
"Education officials said that the first-time decline in math scores was unexpected, but that it could be related to changes ushered in by the Common Core standards, which have been adopted by more than 40 states. For example, some of the fourth-grade math questions on data analysis, statistics and geometry are not part of that grade’s guidelines under the Common Core and so might not have been covered in class. The largest score drops on the fourth-grade math exams were on questions related to those topics."
These test scores don't seem to reflect much other than that we have made sweeping changes to our curricula. Perhaps the students have shown great improvement in other areas not adequately tested (or weighted) by this test. Before we use the NAEP results to evaluate educational progress, it seems as though the test should at least be aligned with national standards.
"Education officials said that the first-time decline in math scores was unexpected, but that it could be related to changes ushered in by the Common Core standards, which have been adopted by more than 40 states. For example, some of the fourth-grade math questions on data analysis, statistics and geometry are not part of that grade’s guidelines under the Common Core and so might not have been covered in class. The largest score drops on the fourth-grade math exams were on questions related to those topics."
These test scores don't seem to reflect much other than that we have made sweeping changes to our curricula. Perhaps the students have shown great improvement in other areas not adequately tested (or weighted) by this test. Before we use the NAEP results to evaluate educational progress, it seems as though the test should at least be aligned with national standards.
1
I'm sure this will sound flippant, but I mean it in all earnestness. I submit that the most glaring defect in the American public education system is reflected in the popularity of Fox (so-called) News. The fact that so many Americans mistake it for actual information is appalling. A number of surveys have found that Fox viewers are more poorly informed than people who watch no television news.
http://www.businessinsider.com/study-watching-fox-news-makes-you-less-in...
If tests could help identify the type of student who is likely to become a Fox viewer, then educators might be able to put them on a path to genuine self-education. Until such tests available, the number of tests imposed on children should be reduced. We could then stop obsessing about student test scores, and start discussing what it really means to be educated.
http://www.businessinsider.com/study-watching-fox-news-makes-you-less-in...
If tests could help identify the type of student who is likely to become a Fox viewer, then educators might be able to put them on a path to genuine self-education. Until such tests available, the number of tests imposed on children should be reduced. We could then stop obsessing about student test scores, and start discussing what it really means to be educated.
4
Our math scores are stagnant or dipping and I wonder how similar test scores are faring in Europe, the far East and other parts of the world? Many of us have known that, for decades, the math, science, language skills of many Americans have been weaker than citizens of other nations. However, this hasn't been a problem as long as the US can bring foreign STEM professionals from overseas. This foreign pipeline has kept corporate America staffed but relying in foreign professionals leads to neglecting the education of our own citizens.
Behind it all, is the status quo. Keep the status quo and the economic and social power will remain in the hands that it is now. But neglecting the education and economic future of our own can lead to dire consequences.
Lets party on!
Behind it all, is the status quo. Keep the status quo and the economic and social power will remain in the hands that it is now. But neglecting the education and economic future of our own can lead to dire consequences.
Lets party on!
8
I can console you, it is getting worse here all the time as well. The basic problem is that every manager in education thinks experience of teaching is redundant, because he is already an expert, having finished school as a pupil himself. The managers only communicate with each other, and talk down to their underlings.
The more old fashioned the teaching methods, the better the results: this also applies to countries.
Just ask people of all ages what 7 times 8 is, or 144 divided by 12, you will often be surprised: even people with Alzheimer's still know it! But the kids . . .
Almost only kids of which the parents can afford to pay tutoring can pass high school nowadays, which to me seems rather unfair.
The more old fashioned the teaching methods, the better the results: this also applies to countries.
Just ask people of all ages what 7 times 8 is, or 144 divided by 12, you will often be surprised: even people with Alzheimer's still know it! But the kids . . .
Almost only kids of which the parents can afford to pay tutoring can pass high school nowadays, which to me seems rather unfair.
1
I live in a small community in rural Idaho. We help mentor and tutor both young and old to take a college placement exam for those planning to go attend two year colleges. The students log into the math section of the exam and begin answering problems that become increasingly advanced. None of our students have ever made it into basic algebra. They test out at the eighth grade math level.
This is truly frightening.
This is truly frightening.
5
This is why...my 4th grader is learning double digit multiplication. Sounds great, except I have to teach her this: 45 x 35 = 25+200+150+1200 = 1575, . Or 16 x 23 = (10+6) x (20+3) use the FOIL Method 16x23 = (10x20) + (10x3) + (6x20) +(6x3) add all the Partial Products together.WHAT? and then the teacher will say but on the test she can use any method that she wants, right, no. Because on the test, it say "Solve for Product, use Partial Product Method". Something is really wrong here. I can't just teach her multiplication tables, I have to also teach all these methods. Why because I have heard over and over from Parents that "not all children learn the same" , well this is what you get.
15
"If I was a student..."said the executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers in the last paragraph of this article. Did anyone else cringe at the lack of the correct "If I were?" Tenses, people! No wonder education in the US is in trouble.
22
Maybe he didn't feel in a subjunctive mood that day.
4
That would be mood not tense, Janet. Still cringing (cringe, present tense).
6
No! *Mood* (subjunctive instead of indicative) is the problem here, not tense.
3
It's amazing that we were able to produce engineers and scientists, even building rockets to the moon, for so many decades without this Common Core nonsense.
I've seen the Common Core homework assigned to the children of my friends. To call it a jumbled, incomprehensible mess is charitable. Before our political leaders delay the development and mathematical comprehension of an entire generation, perhaps it's good to remember what has worked well for decades.
It's fine and well to take new approaches to subjects like history and social studies, but with empirically-based subjects like math and science there are processes, formulas, and standards that must be taught and maintained in order to be successfully applied in the working world.
I've seen the Common Core homework assigned to the children of my friends. To call it a jumbled, incomprehensible mess is charitable. Before our political leaders delay the development and mathematical comprehension of an entire generation, perhaps it's good to remember what has worked well for decades.
It's fine and well to take new approaches to subjects like history and social studies, but with empirically-based subjects like math and science there are processes, formulas, and standards that must be taught and maintained in order to be successfully applied in the working world.
11
My family and I live in one of the top ten school districts (based on mandated testing). Here is the secret to their success:
My second grade son' math homework is focused exclusively on addition and subtraction word problem, which is the same thing that he has been doing from kindergarten. They bring home University of Chicago's "Everyday Math" workbook pages every night and every single night, it is the same thing - addition and subtraction word problems. I recently asked the teacher why she won't start on multiplication or division or fractions and the answer was that "We may get into it in the Spring, but that is not on the second grade curriculum."
What is going on is clear. The kids are assessed on addition and subtraction word problems and therefore that is exactly what the teachers are going to teach. There is much more incentive to them to make sure those kids can get addition and subtraction word problems consistently correct 100% of the time rather than spend any time on anything else, regardless of how valuable.
It is stupid, cynical, and over the long run very destructive, but absolutely explains what is showing up int NAEP report.
My second grade son' math homework is focused exclusively on addition and subtraction word problem, which is the same thing that he has been doing from kindergarten. They bring home University of Chicago's "Everyday Math" workbook pages every night and every single night, it is the same thing - addition and subtraction word problems. I recently asked the teacher why she won't start on multiplication or division or fractions and the answer was that "We may get into it in the Spring, but that is not on the second grade curriculum."
What is going on is clear. The kids are assessed on addition and subtraction word problems and therefore that is exactly what the teachers are going to teach. There is much more incentive to them to make sure those kids can get addition and subtraction word problems consistently correct 100% of the time rather than spend any time on anything else, regardless of how valuable.
It is stupid, cynical, and over the long run very destructive, but absolutely explains what is showing up int NAEP report.
7
The Common Core Math Standards are NOT internationally competitive. That decline in 4th grade math can be directly attributed to CCSS-M. Read Tom Loveless and you will find the problem. => Instructional Time
Implementing Common Core: the problem of instructional time
http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2015/07/09-chalkboard-common-co...
Implementing Common Core: the problem of instructional time
http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2015/07/09-chalkboard-common-co...
2
Ever observe the subtle transfer of knowledge from smart kids to smart phones? But seriously, as a parent I am concerned with those yet to be fully understood long-term effects of increased screentime on our young. Be interesting to see how those metrics dovetail in with these over time.
4
My daughter is working on Algebra, independent study. Not one teacher at her K-6 school feels comfortable answering questions when she gets stuck. All are certified as qualified to teach, but none of them can look at a problem and offer a hint.
To me, this says that part of the problem is that many of our elementary school teachers don't actually know math. To the extent they do know math, their knowledge is thin.
To me, this says that part of the problem is that many of our elementary school teachers don't actually know math. To the extent they do know math, their knowledge is thin.
22
So why is a student studying a 9th grade algebra topics for independent study student asking 6th grade teachers - not you, her parents? I assume you approved of the independent study. If this is independent study, why ask K-6 teachers to ignore there classes of K-6 kids to personally tutor one kid for free on a subject that is not there current teaching focus?
Even if the K-6 teacehrs know the algebra, the principal should tell the teachers to focus on the K-6 standards and tell you, the parents, to please hire a private tutor to support your student on her admirable goal to learn algebra early.
Even if the K-6 teacehrs know the algebra, the principal should tell the teachers to focus on the K-6 standards and tell you, the parents, to please hire a private tutor to support your student on her admirable goal to learn algebra early.
Greg, why don't you lean in and answer your young daughter's questions when she gets stuck with Algebra? She must be pretty bright pre-teen, or you surely would not have allowed her to sign up for independent study.
2
What he said.
2
I find the following statement very troubling: "If I was a student, it would be hard to know which ones to take seriously,” said Chris Minnich, the executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers..."
Is he suggesting that today students only "take seriously" certain tests? Should they not understand that ALL tests should be taken seriously? If they're not taking tests seriously, then it is highly unlikely that they take homework seriously, or school in general.
Children pick up what they hear from parents, and parents who blow off the idea of frequent testing of any kind sure don't help. Unfortunately, anything that is not "fun" or entertaining, is disliked by both students and their parents. I hear parents say things such as "Stupid test - who needs to know what a bunch of men in Europe did 200 years ago? I don't remember and I'm doing just fine."
We're a failing nation.
Is he suggesting that today students only "take seriously" certain tests? Should they not understand that ALL tests should be taken seriously? If they're not taking tests seriously, then it is highly unlikely that they take homework seriously, or school in general.
Children pick up what they hear from parents, and parents who blow off the idea of frequent testing of any kind sure don't help. Unfortunately, anything that is not "fun" or entertaining, is disliked by both students and their parents. I hear parents say things such as "Stupid test - who needs to know what a bunch of men in Europe did 200 years ago? I don't remember and I'm doing just fine."
We're a failing nation.
6
@India -
I have sympathy for the notion of not taking these test seriously and am considering holding my child out for standardized testing or instructing him to intentionally whiff it. This is not because I think the test is "stupid" or "not fun". It is because I fundamentally disagree with directing an educational curriculum around a test where the objective is to maximize the number of test-taker getting above a minimum score and would look to undermine such a testing system however I can.
I (for one) think it's healthy for a children to figure out early how to distinguish between when authority figures have their best interests at heart and when they are just jerking them around.
I have sympathy for the notion of not taking these test seriously and am considering holding my child out for standardized testing or instructing him to intentionally whiff it. This is not because I think the test is "stupid" or "not fun". It is because I fundamentally disagree with directing an educational curriculum around a test where the objective is to maximize the number of test-taker getting above a minimum score and would look to undermine such a testing system however I can.
I (for one) think it's healthy for a children to figure out early how to distinguish between when authority figures have their best interests at heart and when they are just jerking them around.
4
So, we now have a new curriculum that is not working, these test scores who this, and we blame everything else? How about returning education to local control, and not to federal bearcats? WE teachers know what our kids need to know, and how to teach it. As a side note, the only mathematics person who sat on the common core development refused to sign off on it....any wonder why?
8
From what I've seen, a core problem for the Common Core approach to math, ironically, is that the approach is being guided by "math people". By that, I am referring to people who really get math at its most amazing, abstract levels; the kind of math understanding that governs the Universe.
The problem is that unless you have a firm grasp on the concrete underlying math skills that the abstract is built on, you will have neither the abstract nor the concrete. Some of the ideas of Common Core philosophy, such as having math in schools be more applied/functional is absolutely a good idea. However, the reality is that to be more applied, you will need to spend more time on developing and mastering the underlying computational skills. I'm sure that the individuals who put together the framework in Common Core had good intentions; but the reality of elementary and high school classes and students are not reflected in the structure that Common Core math is being implemented with.
The problem is that unless you have a firm grasp on the concrete underlying math skills that the abstract is built on, you will have neither the abstract nor the concrete. Some of the ideas of Common Core philosophy, such as having math in schools be more applied/functional is absolutely a good idea. However, the reality is that to be more applied, you will need to spend more time on developing and mastering the underlying computational skills. I'm sure that the individuals who put together the framework in Common Core had good intentions; but the reality of elementary and high school classes and students are not reflected in the structure that Common Core math is being implemented with.
13
In the last few years, many businessmen have tried to reform education - from Bloomberg who had a lot of power to make changes to various groups supporting testing, accountability, charter movement, etc. Yet, no meaningful changes take effect. Everything clearly indicates family issues which arise from parents holding multiple minimum wage jobs to support a family, lack of a nuclear family, poor nutrition, poor discipline, poor societal value for a teacher, lack of decent pay for professional skills in the rush for globalization, etc. Changes in these are not easy and hence every one tries band aid solutions which are either geared to support their theories OR support their patrons.
17
I have been tutoring high school students in math and science for the past 3 years. I have a B.S. and an M.A. in physics. The students I teach are asked to study algebra and geometry but have never learned basic arithmetic. It doesn't make sense to ask a student to simplify 6x/3y when the student doesn't know what 6/3 is--and many don't. I'm not making this up! Students attempting to understand algebra and geometry cannot do so without a foundation in basic arithmetic.
I was working with an intelligent sophomore yesterday afternoon on her geometry. She was asked to divide 180/20. She could not do this in her head even after simplifying it to 18/2. She simply did not know what 18/2 was without her calculator.
Students cannot perform even the most basic arithmetic operations without a calculator. And being able to use a calculator is not the same as understanding what they are doing. We have utterly failed to provide our children with the most basic sense of numerancy.
The emphasis in school has shifted too far toward learning "concepts" at the expense of content. Drill and practice are no less essential to education than to playing basketball.
I was working with an intelligent sophomore yesterday afternoon on her geometry. She was asked to divide 180/20. She could not do this in her head even after simplifying it to 18/2. She simply did not know what 18/2 was without her calculator.
Students cannot perform even the most basic arithmetic operations without a calculator. And being able to use a calculator is not the same as understanding what they are doing. We have utterly failed to provide our children with the most basic sense of numerancy.
The emphasis in school has shifted too far toward learning "concepts" at the expense of content. Drill and practice are no less essential to education than to playing basketball.
58
Ah, yes. Drill and Practice. The dreaded Rote Learning. Don't bother me with studying tensor calculus, just tell me what General Relativity is and I'll understand the Universe.
3
Bingo! An outside voice hits the nail on the head. And this has nothing to do with Common Core. It's been going on for years. My own children are in their 20's and we are survivors of "the math wars" of the 90's and the early 00's. The attitude of the teachers then was that memorizing math facts was bad, and calculators were good. Getting an actual correct answer was bad. Getting an estimate was good. Hard work was not fun, and if math wasn't fun then you wouldn't learn to love math. Loving math was good. Doing math was bad, ie, not fun. Most K-6 teachers cannot "do math" themselves. How do you expect them to teach it? My daughter had a high school math teacher who TOLD us in a PTA meeting that she hated math and couldn't do math herself without a calculator. THIS is the problem, NOT Common Core, and NOT the standardized tests.
I forced all three of my children to memorize all their math facts at home, even if their teachers did not require it. I got the Cliff Notes for all the high school math subjects and used them at home to teach my kids what the teachers refused to teach them. I showed them how to work word problems, do long division, understand fractions and basic algebra. I forced them to get actual answers to problems and not just an estimate. To this day I fell like my children learned math IN SPITE OF THE SCHOOLS and not because of them. One of the three kids even has a PhD in Math. SHE is "math person". No thanks to the school system.
I forced all three of my children to memorize all their math facts at home, even if their teachers did not require it. I got the Cliff Notes for all the high school math subjects and used them at home to teach my kids what the teachers refused to teach them. I showed them how to work word problems, do long division, understand fractions and basic algebra. I forced them to get actual answers to problems and not just an estimate. To this day I fell like my children learned math IN SPITE OF THE SCHOOLS and not because of them. One of the three kids even has a PhD in Math. SHE is "math person". No thanks to the school system.
6
Since the advent of the Dept of Educ in 1978 we have spent billions on education and SAT scores are lower. Education is not a fed responsibility yet we insist on it getting involved. Unlike other countries who have top quality public teachers and administrators running and setting education policy, the U.S. Has academic and politicans, who without exception never went to public schools but are products of private education. This is just one Ot the major problems with our system.
2
Blame it on the Conservative Christian Texas Board of Ed and their finagling with textbooks, history, math and science and disavowing "critical thinking". The only way to go is down..., further down, that is.
Countries ranked on math and science, at age 15:
1. Singapore
2. Hong Kong
3. South Korea
4. Japan
5. Taiwan
6. Finland
7. Estonia
8. Switzerland
9. The Netherlands
10. Canada
11. Poland
12. Vietnam
20. UK
US? 28.
Languages? Only 18% of Americans report speaking a language other than English.
“We are a nation that is unenlightened because of religion. I do believe that. I think religion stops people from thinking.” ~ BILL MAHER
* Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), via BBC, 13 May 2015, http://www.bbc.com/news/business-32608772
Countries ranked on math and science, at age 15:
1. Singapore
2. Hong Kong
3. South Korea
4. Japan
5. Taiwan
6. Finland
7. Estonia
8. Switzerland
9. The Netherlands
10. Canada
11. Poland
12. Vietnam
20. UK
US? 28.
Languages? Only 18% of Americans report speaking a language other than English.
“We are a nation that is unenlightened because of religion. I do believe that. I think religion stops people from thinking.” ~ BILL MAHER
* Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), via BBC, 13 May 2015, http://www.bbc.com/news/business-32608772
3
19% of US high school graduates can't read.
1
While I generally endorse criticism of all things Texan, that doesn't lead to much critical thinking.
I noticed that your Top Dozen are relatively small except for Japan (127 million people). In fact, the US population (330 M) is nearly as large as the Top 12 combined (390 M). Also, compared to the US, the Top 12 is not very ethnically diverse. In fact, the number of foreign born US citizens (56 M) is larger than the population of each of the Top 12 except for Japan and Viet Nam (90 M).
Although I wish our ranking were much higher, I think it is important to consider that our size, diversity, and immigration policies are variables that contribute to our relative poor showing in math and reading. Cultural mixing creates social turbulence - a child from a non-English language family thrust into a new culture might experience difficulties in math and science. To expect those disadvantaged children to perform as well as a child in Singapore is unfounded.
Which second language should one speak? Chairman Mao complained that he could not understand most of his fellow countrymen. If he spoke five dialects of Chinese, he still wouldn't understand most of them.
I noticed that your Top Dozen are relatively small except for Japan (127 million people). In fact, the US population (330 M) is nearly as large as the Top 12 combined (390 M). Also, compared to the US, the Top 12 is not very ethnically diverse. In fact, the number of foreign born US citizens (56 M) is larger than the population of each of the Top 12 except for Japan and Viet Nam (90 M).
Although I wish our ranking were much higher, I think it is important to consider that our size, diversity, and immigration policies are variables that contribute to our relative poor showing in math and reading. Cultural mixing creates social turbulence - a child from a non-English language family thrust into a new culture might experience difficulties in math and science. To expect those disadvantaged children to perform as well as a child in Singapore is unfounded.
Which second language should one speak? Chairman Mao complained that he could not understand most of his fellow countrymen. If he spoke five dialects of Chinese, he still wouldn't understand most of them.
The photo included here shows everything that is wrong with the math education in this country. The student has a laptop and is doing long division. In the name of all that is good and holy, why?! Seriously, the useful skill we're missing here is how to do fast division and get an approximate answer. The laptop is for getting the 15 decimal places you want. Once we reduce division to a rote process devoid of all meaning, then division and math lose meaning. It's hard to imagine teaching something with no meaning.
1
Get rid of the tests! We don't need kids to memorize stuff, we need them to understand it. Tests are not capable of measuring understanding and they destroy the love of learning, both for teachers and students.
4
If you have no knowledge--"memorizing stuff"--you have no basis for understanding things.
How can you understand rain if you don't understand clouds, or evaporation?
How can you understand why a mammal is different from a reptile if you don't know the characteristics for each?
How can you understand rain if you don't understand clouds, or evaporation?
How can you understand why a mammal is different from a reptile if you don't know the characteristics for each?
6
Install programs on cell phones that require those using them to answer simple, reasonable math questions in order to log on, then make it necessary to write complete sentences with proper grammar when texting, and watch what happens. The technology they all love is dumbing them down. How many texts have you read, or even sent for that matter, would pass muster from a good teacher?
3
The hand-wringing about math comprehension and finger-wagging about Common Core seem a bit out of place given the following sentences: "some of the fourth-grade math questions on data analysis, statistics and geometry are not part of that grade’s guidelines under the Common Core and so might not have been covered in class. The largest score drops on the fourth-grade math exams were on questions related to those topics."
Seems like a whole lot of nothing to me.
Seems like a whole lot of nothing to me.
2
That's the whole point. Common Core does not cover essential topics and teachers are incentivized not to teach topics other than the Common Core topics that are tested on.
1
Having read the article, I can summarize the collective explanation of every person quoted as "actually, we have no idea why this is".
It's quick to point out that whites scored better than persons of color. Here's an experiment - take that person of color, remove them from their family/neighborhood/environment - and have them live in a "white" area. I imagine the scores will increase. In other words, it isn't the color of his/her skin - it's the quality of the environment they live in.
Spend all you want on "schools" - won't matter unless you change the environment for those kids.
It's quick to point out that whites scored better than persons of color. Here's an experiment - take that person of color, remove them from their family/neighborhood/environment - and have them live in a "white" area. I imagine the scores will increase. In other words, it isn't the color of his/her skin - it's the quality of the environment they live in.
Spend all you want on "schools" - won't matter unless you change the environment for those kids.
6
How does the Asian demographic fit into your color argument?
Who could have predicted this.... other than EVERYBODY? Parents, educators, and students have been screaming their heads off for years about this Common Core and Everyday Math garbage and all we get are deaf ears, folded arms, and pats on the heads telling us that we just don't "get it".
Arne Duncan has been at the forefront of this movement and was one of the most recalcitrant and unhelpful stakeholders in this whole debacle. He consistently treated critics (especially those with children directly affected) with a mix of disdain and condescension and has not moved the needle on iota to address real concerns. Rather, he seemed to take this view of "Just wait and you'll see how great this is."
Well... here we are. We now see exactly how great Sec. Duncan's tenure has been. I hope maybe in his (obviously forced) retirement, he will able to consider that perspectives other than his own may be (just maybe) not totally worthless. I for one am glad he's gone and think our country and its education system will be better for it.
Arne Duncan has been at the forefront of this movement and was one of the most recalcitrant and unhelpful stakeholders in this whole debacle. He consistently treated critics (especially those with children directly affected) with a mix of disdain and condescension and has not moved the needle on iota to address real concerns. Rather, he seemed to take this view of "Just wait and you'll see how great this is."
Well... here we are. We now see exactly how great Sec. Duncan's tenure has been. I hope maybe in his (obviously forced) retirement, he will able to consider that perspectives other than his own may be (just maybe) not totally worthless. I for one am glad he's gone and think our country and its education system will be better for it.
11
Spin, spin, spin - the bottom line is STILL that schools are getting worse.
3
An accurate headline would highlight how much tougher the new tests are than previous ones and that this is the first year of the new tests--of course scores are lower and, no, they are not a reflection of students' abilities but a reflection of a pretty drastic change in the tests. Emphasizing the drop in scores serves only to elicit the habitual responses about the "dumbing down of America" and diverts from the real issues of the overemphasis on standardized testing- which is so hard on students and on teachers. Just two days ago, AZ voted to overturn the Common Core standards after at least a year of teacher's trying to adjust curricula and after only two test sessions. Talk about teacher whiplash: now what tune are we supposed to be dancing to? (Excuse the mixed metaphor!). The emphasis on standardized tests is exhausting for teachers and students and does nothing to improve education.
Families are the basic fabric of a nation and play a very important roles on the outcome of children’s education. The deteriorating of the American family and the rise of the single family household have not only contributed to the decline of testing scores of our children but also the crumbling of the society in general and no amount of efforts from school and educator can substitute the values installed by the family in our children. Many of antipoverty public policies such as cash payments to dependent children have exonerated the responsibility of a male played in a household and directly contributed to the breaking down of the American families
4
It does seem odd that testing includes a number of topics not covered in the class room curriculum, Common Core related or not. Assuming this was known -- why are the lower scores that big of a surprise?
5
Trying to lay the blame for the decline on Common Core math doesn't make much sense to me. As somebody in a math-oriented profession, and going through exactly how they are teaching math in at least first and second grade, the techniques make complete sense to me as an accurate reflection of how people actually do mental math.
There's another factor that received very short shrift but deserves emphasis, because every single friend of mine who teaches public schools has raised this issue: Right now, out of the days available for teaching (at least in Ohio), a little over half of them are devoted to issuing standardized tests. Congratulations: In your efforts to focus on performance testing, you've cut teaching time by 50% and are wondering why kids aren't learning as much. This is another manifestation of a classic management mistake of asking for so much reporting from subordinates that they spend more time creating reports than they do performing the work they're reporting on!
There's another factor that received very short shrift but deserves emphasis, because every single friend of mine who teaches public schools has raised this issue: Right now, out of the days available for teaching (at least in Ohio), a little over half of them are devoted to issuing standardized tests. Congratulations: In your efforts to focus on performance testing, you've cut teaching time by 50% and are wondering why kids aren't learning as much. This is another manifestation of a classic management mistake of asking for so much reporting from subordinates that they spend more time creating reports than they do performing the work they're reporting on!
12
I'm not sure about the 50% (that seems a little high). What I am sure about is that teachers are now incentivized to use 100% of classroom time teaching to the test.
1
I have a copy of the Chicago Public School 8th Grade Reader from 1919. I am prepared to bet a large sum that most of that system's teachers could not pass the final reading and vocabulary tests in that reader. Would they and their union be prepared to bet their jobs?
Democrats, as all establishment politicians do, use education and anything else they can for their personal advantage. So public education has little to do in fact with education. It's about steering contracts to cronies and contributors, pandering to unions making large contributions and a jobs program for largely Democrat voters. The children hardly enter into the equation. Proof? American test scores have been in steady decline since the 1960's without any meaningful reform.
Democrats, as all establishment politicians do, use education and anything else they can for their personal advantage. So public education has little to do in fact with education. It's about steering contracts to cronies and contributors, pandering to unions making large contributions and a jobs program for largely Democrat voters. The children hardly enter into the equation. Proof? American test scores have been in steady decline since the 1960's without any meaningful reform.
7
I am prepared to bet a small sum of money that teachers from 100 years ago did not have the behavior management skills required to control a 21st century classroom.
1
Which has declined more, the quality of public education, or the quality of parents? That seems a vital question. Does anyone have data on this? I really don't have any insight about this, but I don't think it can be ignored.
3
Maxine - Scores have NOT been going down - they have consistently been going UP since the NAEP test started in 1990. The article clearly states that only this year "for the first time since 1990, the mathematical skills of American students have dropped." So this year we had a drop just of only 2 points and in the past we have never had a drop, even with a flood of immigrants to the US and an increase in poverty in those years.
I'd say that shows the US schools are doing much better than ever, even with more challenging kids to teach.
I'd say that shows the US schools are doing much better than ever, even with more challenging kids to teach.
1
Unfortunately, this report leaves so many basic questions un-answered that it's almost devoid of substantive content.
"The average fourth-grade math score this year was 240 on a scale of 500, down from 242 in 2013, the last time the federal assessment results were released. The average eighth-grade math score was 282, down from 285 two years ago."
--- And what are the confidence intervals corresponding to each average? And/Or the max-min range? It's almost impossible to conclude anything from a 100*2/240 = 0.83% change in the average score. What is the median- what is distribution of the scores. While not a full report is expected, info that actually allows one to understand the effect should have been reported.
"A study released Monday showed that some items included in the national assessments are not covered by the Common Core before the grades in which they are tested."
--- So all/some students were tested on material they had never encountered before? And there was a -0.83% downward shift in the mean that's biased by this- that almost sounds as if the students actually did better than expected if one were to control for these questions.
"The average fourth-grade math score this year was 240 on a scale of 500, down from 242 in 2013, the last time the federal assessment results were released. The average eighth-grade math score was 282, down from 285 two years ago."
--- And what are the confidence intervals corresponding to each average? And/Or the max-min range? It's almost impossible to conclude anything from a 100*2/240 = 0.83% change in the average score. What is the median- what is distribution of the scores. While not a full report is expected, info that actually allows one to understand the effect should have been reported.
"A study released Monday showed that some items included in the national assessments are not covered by the Common Core before the grades in which they are tested."
--- So all/some students were tested on material they had never encountered before? And there was a -0.83% downward shift in the mean that's biased by this- that almost sounds as if the students actually did better than expected if one were to control for these questions.
6
Common Core is not the problem. It is a standard. How each state/school/teacher decides to meet that standard is up to them. But we need to have the standards because some states' ideas of a quality education are incredibly bad. Just imagine moving your child from Minnesota public schools (best in the country) to Louisiana (toward the bottom of the list). We need national standards, this should be obvious. As far as the methods, it's just different ways to achieve the same end. If math is easy for a child, then they shouldn't have any problem. If math is more challenging, there are other strategies to try, because everyone learns a little differently. There also is more applied math concepts - which I wish I had learned now that I'm an adult. I help my 5th and 6th grade children with their homework throughout the week, helping them figure out questions, etc. and I have a better understanding of math NOW than I did when I was their age. I think they have a better understanding too, which is great. And if you don't understand why your child got a certain problem wrong you could always - I don't know - ask the teacher? I'm sure they'd be happy to explain their rationale to you, or consider that they might have made a mistake. The real problem is poverty - that something like half of the students in public school receive free or reduced price lunches. We are raising a generation of Americans in pronounced poverty. That is the problem we really need to solve.
4
Our immigrants used to come from high scoring countries in Northern and Western Europe but today are overwhelmingly from the 3rd world. That might have something to do with it.
7
The most alarming piece of information in this article isn't the decline in scores. It is the fact that at no point in the past couple of decades test scores have even reached 300/500, which would be a C minus.
Talk about low expectations! No wonder we are electing morons. We have become a country of ignorant fools.
Talk about low expectations! No wonder we are electing morons. We have become a country of ignorant fools.
2
Like any other problem we want to fix we first have to admit that we have a problem. We spend much more on education then any of our economic competitors. There is an inverse ratio in play that indicates the more we spend the less we get. Public education is, by and large, an astronomically expensive failure. Test scores have been trending downward for decades. The average entering college freshman reads at a 7th grade level. Our schools are often just warehouses for kids and just as often dangerous and chaotic.
The second step in fixing a problem is assigning responsibility. This is the step that liberals hate. The truth is that the public education industry in this country is the creature of the Democrat Party and liberals. Car manufacturers, drug companies, grocery stores, businesses are all publicly held responsible for shoddy, dangerous products and lousy service, but not the public education industry. Why? The answer is politics, union political contributions and liberal ideology. The education industry is a hostage of liberal Democrats. So, no one is ever held responsible for serial educational failure. Someone else did it.
Until we can acknowledge these simple truths why bother printing the statistics and stories about American educational failure? Nothing meaningful will be done, just more fads like Common Core, unisex bathrooms and condom distribution to the children of the unhip and immigrant proletariat.
The second step in fixing a problem is assigning responsibility. This is the step that liberals hate. The truth is that the public education industry in this country is the creature of the Democrat Party and liberals. Car manufacturers, drug companies, grocery stores, businesses are all publicly held responsible for shoddy, dangerous products and lousy service, but not the public education industry. Why? The answer is politics, union political contributions and liberal ideology. The education industry is a hostage of liberal Democrats. So, no one is ever held responsible for serial educational failure. Someone else did it.
Until we can acknowledge these simple truths why bother printing the statistics and stories about American educational failure? Nothing meaningful will be done, just more fads like Common Core, unisex bathrooms and condom distribution to the children of the unhip and immigrant proletariat.
3
That's right, Maxine. Let's refrain from distributing condoms so that the unhip & immigrant proletariat can continue to produce unwanted, illiterate offspring.
Nothing like fixing a problem with simplistic reasoning based in religious magical thinking.
Nothing like fixing a problem with simplistic reasoning based in religious magical thinking.
Education begins in the home, continues in the home and in the community. Schools were designed to teach skills and basic knowledge, but we expect them to compensate for the rot that runs through society from richest to poorest. Ben Carson was "educated" but denies basic science. Trump is wealthy and is a disgrace to a civilized society. And Jeb was supposed to be the smart one.
Tests can show trends. The trend is not upwards. We are turning out incomplete human beings, many of whom prefer guns to smarts.
Tests can show trends. The trend is not upwards. We are turning out incomplete human beings, many of whom prefer guns to smarts.
5
"But the District of Columbia repeated some of the strength it showed in 2013 by raising fourth-grade reading and math scores and holding eighth-grade reading and math scores steady."
This is not accurate -- 8th grade math scores have gone down. Please check the NAEP site http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/ and amend the article. You might also check changing demographics (more whites) in the lower grades when reporting 4th grade scores.
This is not accurate -- 8th grade math scores have gone down. Please check the NAEP site http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/ and amend the article. You might also check changing demographics (more whites) in the lower grades when reporting 4th grade scores.
1
Oh my goodness, Math scores are down by less than 1% for 4th graders, and by 1% for 8th graders, and using tests which apparently have not been equated.
Asians do better than whites. Whites do better than blacks. Study after study shows that. I don't think it's going to change.
1
What do you expect when you exchange education of a thinking person for optimization of a production/service asset?
4
As long as parents, teachers, school authority and politicians don't understand the simple fact that technology is not at all required at school level and that paying attention in class, reading the lessons on day to day basis and practicing problems on day to day basis with the single motto that nothing can be achieved without education and systematic life, things are sure to go astray doesn't matter whether it's America or some part of Africa.
7
The elementary school teachers I know (and know well) struggle to teach Common Core math to their 4th and 5th graders. Why? The teachers have received NO training in how to teach CC math. They beg for it, but very little has been developed or distributed to the educators. Strike 1.
Meanwhile, these teachers are operating in a Title 1 school, and entire classes are Latina/os. English is their second language--and in a few cases English isn't even their second language yet. Nonetheless, these students must explain in writing how they reached a particular answer to a Common Core math problem. Hmmmmm. They are now doubly hampered. What's worse? Teachers who have been in this district for years say that traditionally the Latina/o students have excelled in math! Now they are being robbed of that success. Some educators, myself included, look at this and wonder: is this on purpose? Because a better plan to further marginalize, even denigrate, these children could not be devised. Strike 2.
Meanwhile, I have to laugh when I read that parents need to help their children more on homework. It is very hard to do when the parents' English skills do not include writing and reading and often enough even speaking. This is further complicated by parents who work 2 and 3 jobs. The Cleaver family is no longer home; we have to face this reality. It is no longer feasible to dream about parents as the educational back-up plan. Failure to face reality: Strike 3.
Meanwhile, these teachers are operating in a Title 1 school, and entire classes are Latina/os. English is their second language--and in a few cases English isn't even their second language yet. Nonetheless, these students must explain in writing how they reached a particular answer to a Common Core math problem. Hmmmmm. They are now doubly hampered. What's worse? Teachers who have been in this district for years say that traditionally the Latina/o students have excelled in math! Now they are being robbed of that success. Some educators, myself included, look at this and wonder: is this on purpose? Because a better plan to further marginalize, even denigrate, these children could not be devised. Strike 2.
Meanwhile, I have to laugh when I read that parents need to help their children more on homework. It is very hard to do when the parents' English skills do not include writing and reading and often enough even speaking. This is further complicated by parents who work 2 and 3 jobs. The Cleaver family is no longer home; we have to face this reality. It is no longer feasible to dream about parents as the educational back-up plan. Failure to face reality: Strike 3.
9
Exactly. These parents are able to teach the children long division and times tables, but they are "not allowed," thus rendering them powerless. Explaining one's answer and word problems are gibberish. When I learned arithmetic, the memorization process was sure footing - after securing these life-long skills, I was then able to think about the concept of "ten's place" myself. It's a better learning process. In addition, the "explaining" of one's work and the reading of word problems throws yet another task at the child - doing the formula is the problem; why add another problem on top of it?
If we have to "explain our work" in Math, then why aren't we explaining the English language? We have gotten rid of teaching subject, verb, adjective, adverb and the creation of complex sentences.
If we have to "explain our work" in Math, then why aren't we explaining the English language? We have gotten rid of teaching subject, verb, adjective, adverb and the creation of complex sentences.
Let's see...Arne Duncan has just resigned as Secretary of Education. John King, who was ousted from New York State, has replaced him as "interim" secretary, thus eliminating an embarrassing vetting process. The Race to the Top is is five BILLION dollar fiasco. Money that should have gone directly to the public schools and teacher training went to Common Core. Obama and the Dept. of Education just issued a press release - they backtracked and claimed we are testing too much, thus co-opting the Opt-Out Movement, initiated by parents. Meryl Tisch resigned from the New York State Board of Regents, due to the backlash from the Opt-Out Movement and the fiasco on teacher testing. Did you know that in New York State, the new Common Core based teacher and education administrator exams have been so badly rewritten that everyone fails them and you can use the previously published - old tests? They are calling this the "safety net" to correct the faulty new tests. This, only after the teacher must pay Pearson Educational Publishing hundreds of dollars to take the new test? This falls on Cuomo and Tisch. This money should be refunded to the teachers! Charter schools throughout the country are scandal-ridden, with multi-million dollar kickbacks from no-bid contracts exposed. Obama's education policies are a huge blight on his administration. And, an intrepid reporter should expose the money U.K. based Pearson Publishing has made on U.S. educational textbooks and tests.
11
@mario -
I can't help but agree with you. I am a huge Democrat and a big Obama supporter, but on Common Core and education policy generally, his administration has totally whiffed.
New York State has been paying Goldilocks for years on this stuff (Too hard; wait! now, they're too easy.... Not enough tests; Stop! Now too many), so it's no wonder that Cuomo has failed to right that ship. We should be used to stunning incompetence and cronyism on the state level - it's New York; it's just what we do.
I can't help but agree with you. I am a huge Democrat and a big Obama supporter, but on Common Core and education policy generally, his administration has totally whiffed.
New York State has been paying Goldilocks for years on this stuff (Too hard; wait! now, they're too easy.... Not enough tests; Stop! Now too many), so it's no wonder that Cuomo has failed to right that ship. We should be used to stunning incompetence and cronyism on the state level - it's New York; it's just what we do.
1
I'm surprised that students can do math and read at all. Where in American society do they do either of these two things except in school. My adult friends, all of whom are college graduates, read nothing but newpapers and use calculators for all math. How are young people to become proficient at these things when they rarely have to do them. Reading someone's Facebook page is not going to improve reading ability. The schools are not at fault. American society is.
3
Add to the list of the downsides of increased immigration.
5
Let's just assume standardized tests tell us everything about learning (they don't but let's assume). Education budgets keep getting slashed every year, classes are bigger, there are less administrators, more demands on teachers, etc.
Why would anyone expect anything else than scores dropping? It's amazing that it took until 2015. If you're cutting funding and expecting higher scores, you're kidding yourself.
Why would anyone expect anything else than scores dropping? It's amazing that it took until 2015. If you're cutting funding and expecting higher scores, you're kidding yourself.
3
Well, here's some food for thought.
We have become inundated with contributing to churches through the "poor kids'" voucher systems.
Test scores in Math show kids falling behind. Voucher schools, by law in Governor Scott Walker's Wisconsin, do not need to test, nor publicize any testing data if they do test. So the public taxpayers who are footing the bill for the voucher system have no clue about how these schools do.
I personally know a family whose children were in a parochial school system that was Not a voucher school. However, because of the very generous taxpayer voucher distribution in WI, $7,000 per student, more than half of the school's tuition cost, the school went voucher. And guess what, a child who has left this school, in second grade, who is now attending a very respected and high standard public school, now needs Math tutoring four days a week.
Of course this is only one example, but if the family had not moved, this knowledge deficit would not even have been recognized, let alone corrected.
The voucher system in this country is a sham. In addition to poor standards, at least in WI, parents who qualify with income limits are not asked to provide any further income information once the child has enrolled. If the family's income would substantially improve - no matter - taxpayers are still held liable for paying the private tuition $ for the entirety of the child's education in that school. It could be for eight years even on a wealthy income.
We have become inundated with contributing to churches through the "poor kids'" voucher systems.
Test scores in Math show kids falling behind. Voucher schools, by law in Governor Scott Walker's Wisconsin, do not need to test, nor publicize any testing data if they do test. So the public taxpayers who are footing the bill for the voucher system have no clue about how these schools do.
I personally know a family whose children were in a parochial school system that was Not a voucher school. However, because of the very generous taxpayer voucher distribution in WI, $7,000 per student, more than half of the school's tuition cost, the school went voucher. And guess what, a child who has left this school, in second grade, who is now attending a very respected and high standard public school, now needs Math tutoring four days a week.
Of course this is only one example, but if the family had not moved, this knowledge deficit would not even have been recognized, let alone corrected.
The voucher system in this country is a sham. In addition to poor standards, at least in WI, parents who qualify with income limits are not asked to provide any further income information once the child has enrolled. If the family's income would substantially improve - no matter - taxpayers are still held liable for paying the private tuition $ for the entirety of the child's education in that school. It could be for eight years even on a wealthy income.
4
Do these numbers include students in Charter Schools? Over the past few years, we've seen many stories about how Charter schools are failing their students by not providing the best education.
I think we're seeing such falling numbers as a result of charter schools, overly zealous testing (where only results matter) and the onslaught of GOP cuts to education funding. And, of course, the attack on teachers and their "huge (not huge" salaries.
I think we're seeing such falling numbers as a result of charter schools, overly zealous testing (where only results matter) and the onslaught of GOP cuts to education funding. And, of course, the attack on teachers and their "huge (not huge" salaries.
3
I have a feeling that if math and reading scores could be raised significantly , it would have happened by now. It seems to me I have been reading articles like this over the past thirty years, and nothing appears to have changed. Parents are the number one motivators, and until that happens in each family, we will be celebrating a .1% increase in math or reading.
3
I believe the Times and the tests are in error.
These tests, like all school tests, measure ACCOMPLISHMENT NOT ABILITY, particularly since they now require using a standard process to reach the answer.
I always used my own ways to get to a correct answer on these kinds of tests. My teachers actually lauded me for creativity in math and said I had a far stronger ability for math than my peers. Turns out that was true as I aced everything including a getting perfect SAT score of 800.
Perhaps if these kids were taught something besides how to pass a particular test, they might actually be able to grow and use innate abilities!
These tests, like all school tests, measure ACCOMPLISHMENT NOT ABILITY, particularly since they now require using a standard process to reach the answer.
I always used my own ways to get to a correct answer on these kinds of tests. My teachers actually lauded me for creativity in math and said I had a far stronger ability for math than my peers. Turns out that was true as I aced everything including a getting perfect SAT score of 800.
Perhaps if these kids were taught something besides how to pass a particular test, they might actually be able to grow and use innate abilities!
4
This is not a story about education and testing, it's a story about demographics.
As the article briefly mentions, the percent of Hispanic students has risen from 10% to 25% since 1990 and Hispanic students have lower scores.
When any population with high levels of wealth and education absorbs a large number of people with low levels of wealth and education, the results are inevitable. Not only do the average levels of wealth and education fall, but the variances increase (i.e.. inequality).
As the article briefly mentions, the percent of Hispanic students has risen from 10% to 25% since 1990 and Hispanic students have lower scores.
When any population with high levels of wealth and education absorbs a large number of people with low levels of wealth and education, the results are inevitable. Not only do the average levels of wealth and education fall, but the variances increase (i.e.. inequality).
6
It's important to remember that standardized testing is not the final answer to a person's academic knowledge. As human beings we are able to digest solid numbers better than a paragraph of information. Sort of like reviewing a book or a movie. One person may give it a 4 star rating and another may give an analysis of the plot and characters. My point is that we rely too heavily on a bureaucratic system when developing the mind of a child.
3
When discipline, diligence and accountability are eroded via political correctness and social promotion then replaced by absurd acronyms such as STEM and STEAM, merely masking the obvious, we have an academic decline and new equation to ponder called incompetence. The U.S. is and has been in freefall brought about by internal decay via ideational narcissism. Living in the northwest and observing technology companies fueled by immigrant labor is making this American math and science decline very apparent.
2
Lower scores means the private testing companies can sell more study guides for next year. It's a winning situation for them and a losing one for students.
Standardized tests only benefit the private corporations that publish them.
Standardized tests only benefit the private corporations that publish them.
13
I think a more accurate headline would be: Nationwide Test Shows Dip in Students' Math Scores.
3
What are we to expect, when the states, instead of giving teachers and educators time to develop curricula and materials, handed them programs and tests, and told them "implement this?"
Core standards are a good idea. Centralized curricula, materials, methodology are not. Tests which require specific teaching materials are not. Implementing new, untried tests which can hurt both teacher and student, is not.
Give teachers time to develop Core material. Implement the changes grade-by-grade so that you are not expecting a kid in the eighth grade to catch up on 8 years of change. Develop independent tests, and test them to determine if they are valid, especially if you are going to tell people that jobs and grades depend on them.
This is management 101. Roll out change, don't drop it in. "Make it so, number 1" is not effective management.
Core standards are a good idea. Centralized curricula, materials, methodology are not. Tests which require specific teaching materials are not. Implementing new, untried tests which can hurt both teacher and student, is not.
Give teachers time to develop Core material. Implement the changes grade-by-grade so that you are not expecting a kid in the eighth grade to catch up on 8 years of change. Develop independent tests, and test them to determine if they are valid, especially if you are going to tell people that jobs and grades depend on them.
This is management 101. Roll out change, don't drop it in. "Make it so, number 1" is not effective management.
43
Your argument is the same as that used in the UK when a system of national schools was instituted in the 19th C. The same texts and standards were to apply in England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Rough edges had to be smoothed out, but in general the scheme has been a success.
In Ireland after independence, the system was adapted to allow religious domination of schools, and partisan history was taught: different histories from parish to parish. Isn't that a serious argument against your complaints? Why should a great country like the USA accept the teaching of creationism in any of its schools?
In Ireland after independence, the system was adapted to allow religious domination of schools, and partisan history was taught: different histories from parish to parish. Isn't that a serious argument against your complaints? Why should a great country like the USA accept the teaching of creationism in any of its schools?
I have in front of me, "Basic Mathematics, A Survey Course" by Walter W. Hart, 1942. It's Preface tells us: "'Basic Mathematics' is a survey of secondary mathematics for students who are preparing for service in the armed forces and industry, or for study of pure and applied science, including engineering in colleges or other schools offering technical training. It is designed for upper grade students, girls as well as boys." It was my mother's book---from her high school senior year.
It's contents tell us what knowledge was generally expected of a graduating high school senior: I. Arithmetic Computations, II. Elementary Geometry, III Mensuration of Figures, IV. Elementary Algebra, V. Logarithms, VI. Elementary Trigonometry, VII Demonstrative Geometry. VIII. Solid Geometry, IX Advanced Algebra.
The purpose of the book was to teach a student how to use mathematics as a tool. It's purpose was to teach the student how to solve practical problems such as air, sea and land navigation; and how to calculate distance from airspeed, and fuel consumption, when damage to the aircraft's engines reducing their power, and loss of fuel were factored in.
I believe almost all parents in America would be happy if their graduating high school seniors could navigate their way through the 'basic mathematics' of this survey of mathematics text for high school students from 1942. But, this article tells me that it is unlikely they would be happy.
It's contents tell us what knowledge was generally expected of a graduating high school senior: I. Arithmetic Computations, II. Elementary Geometry, III Mensuration of Figures, IV. Elementary Algebra, V. Logarithms, VI. Elementary Trigonometry, VII Demonstrative Geometry. VIII. Solid Geometry, IX Advanced Algebra.
The purpose of the book was to teach a student how to use mathematics as a tool. It's purpose was to teach the student how to solve practical problems such as air, sea and land navigation; and how to calculate distance from airspeed, and fuel consumption, when damage to the aircraft's engines reducing their power, and loss of fuel were factored in.
I believe almost all parents in America would be happy if their graduating high school seniors could navigate their way through the 'basic mathematics' of this survey of mathematics text for high school students from 1942. But, this article tells me that it is unlikely they would be happy.
13
the common core is actually trying to do what the goal of the book says math should be
Is there no one in the education community who understands that no matter how many classes in education methods are required, a teacher must know the content of the course, math, in order to be effective. Advance degrees in education still require mostly education methods and very little content of the course to be taught. That has not changed in the 50 years since I left college. In addition the so called new math being taught limits parental help since the parents by and large, do not understand it.
5
Very little of what you said is true. Content mastery is consistently shown as one of the least important aspects of teaching. Parents not understanding "new math" basically tells you the old way of teaching wasn't working because it is based in real life problem solving. Real life isn't filled with algorithms.
1
Thank you. I taught for over 35 years and saw, particularly in the last dozen, an influx of English teachers who couldn't write a paragraph or speak without making errors in grammar and usage.
And I was told by experienced math teachers that new department members couldn't do math.
Sorry -- if you don't know your stuff, you can't possibly put it across with any vim or conviction and inspire kids to excel.
And I was told by experienced math teachers that new department members couldn't do math.
Sorry -- if you don't know your stuff, you can't possibly put it across with any vim or conviction and inspire kids to excel.
1
The major reason for poor math performance is clear to me. It's due to unscrupulous universities and professors. I know that because I'm a former math professor.
I most recently taught at Wash. U. in St. Louis. Earlier, I taught at a regional state school, where many future teachers were "taught" - "excellently", according to the school's marketing.
Those experiences led me to the conclusion that higher ed dumbs down k-12 - not the other way around, as many professors claim.
Explanations and documented stories are on my blog inside-higher-ed. Here I will give only a very brief description of what happens.
Many major universities are more than willing to grant doctorates and masters degrees to people that the professors know are not qualified. There are many reasons for this. One of them is large government grants to enable them to meet "national needs". (I describe my experience with such a case on my blog.j)
Some of those graduates go on to "teach" our future teachers. Many of them don't know their subject well enough to teach it, but that doesn't stop them from becoming "professors". (Stories of how little they know are on my blog.) Then we get teachers who know little or no content - no fault of their own.
The final result of all of this is a damaged economy and society, and wasted lives, along with rich colleges. This total unaccountability must stop. It will be hard these rich and powerful institutions. Only tremendous political will can do it.
I most recently taught at Wash. U. in St. Louis. Earlier, I taught at a regional state school, where many future teachers were "taught" - "excellently", according to the school's marketing.
Those experiences led me to the conclusion that higher ed dumbs down k-12 - not the other way around, as many professors claim.
Explanations and documented stories are on my blog inside-higher-ed. Here I will give only a very brief description of what happens.
Many major universities are more than willing to grant doctorates and masters degrees to people that the professors know are not qualified. There are many reasons for this. One of them is large government grants to enable them to meet "national needs". (I describe my experience with such a case on my blog.j)
Some of those graduates go on to "teach" our future teachers. Many of them don't know their subject well enough to teach it, but that doesn't stop them from becoming "professors". (Stories of how little they know are on my blog.) Then we get teachers who know little or no content - no fault of their own.
The final result of all of this is a damaged economy and society, and wasted lives, along with rich colleges. This total unaccountability must stop. It will be hard these rich and powerful institutions. Only tremendous political will can do it.
10
Common Core has been a disaster and the Feds involvement in education is not only unconstitutional but counter productive. Why do we think more tests will result in higher scores? Stop the insane testing. The hard truth is family involvement is the best predictor of academic achievement and any solution requires recognizing this. However, dealing with this problem points to issues politically charged issues. It's easier to say failing scores are all part of a failed education system. We will never learn.
4
With all school boards locally funded with property taxes why is this a surprise?
4
When oh when will the NY Times hire a reporter or a headline writer who understands the basic difference between ability and achievement? Nothing has happened to Americans' math abilities. What has happened is that there has been a slight dip in math achievement.
10
Did anyone actually read the article? The decline in test scores is due to the demographics of the schoolroom. We have more lower performing students proportionally, so test scores go down. In social science, the most replicated finding is the persistence of IQ and achievement differences between racial groups. This has been known for generations. The science is settled.
So when schoolchildren, as a cohort, have more of the low achieving groups, the scores must necessarily go down. Guess what? This is exactly the effect we see.
Now acknowledging these differences, as one must if one is intellectually honest, how would this effect public policy?
So when schoolchildren, as a cohort, have more of the low achieving groups, the scores must necessarily go down. Guess what? This is exactly the effect we see.
Now acknowledging these differences, as one must if one is intellectually honest, how would this effect public policy?
17
I also noticed that the average scores reported here differ by only 1-3 points out of a possible 500.
That seems to me a very small amount to be worried about, especially with a new test that no one was able to "teach to". Of course student scores will be higher on an older test; the teachers will "teach to" the questions that they see again and again.
That seems to me a very small amount to be worried about, especially with a new test that no one was able to "teach to". Of course student scores will be higher on an older test; the teachers will "teach to" the questions that they see again and again.
3
We have the same issue in Sweden. People wring their hands about our schools, but the change in test scores simply reflects the change in demographics. The students who traditionally do well continue to do well, but they are a smaller percentage of the population due to the massive influx of immigrants from countries that don't do pre-natal or early childhood care and nutrition well. Frankly, some cultures are more oriented towards the Western model of schooling than others, too.
3
Your point about demographics is exactly correct.
The fact that so few people understand the demographic impact is itself a testament not only to a lack of math skills, but also a lack of reading skills and perhaps intellectual honesty as well.
The fact that so few people understand the demographic impact is itself a testament not only to a lack of math skills, but also a lack of reading skills and perhaps intellectual honesty as well.
We can expect Common Core designers to suggest that the framework of NAEP--'the nation's report card'-is not a valid (content validity) measure of Common Core Standards. This is likely the first thing that should be investigated...What most educational researchers know is that mathematics scores are more sensitive to changes in related variables than are reading scores. What a delicious time to be a researcher in the field of education measurement.....I'm amazed by the number of educators (including university administrators) who state "I don't do math...I hire for that..."
4
Math requires thinking -- and especially 'thinking outside the box' -- to know what math 'tools' are needed to analyze a situation. Teaching to the test drills kids in the tools, but doesn't challenge them to know how to actually use tools. It's a bit like trying to teach a foreign language by drilling in grammar and having kids memorize pages of 'rules of grammar'. They may be able to spout back the rules, but they'll never learn to speak (or understand) that way.
Despite all the claims that "we" want kids to learn to be creative, to think, and to be ready for a world in which innovation is required, the truth seems to be that what folks really want is "little robots" who perform on demand and simply nod. Sad. America is preparing children to be obedient factory workers in a world where no one needs or wants obedient factory workers.
Despite all the claims that "we" want kids to learn to be creative, to think, and to be ready for a world in which innovation is required, the truth seems to be that what folks really want is "little robots" who perform on demand and simply nod. Sad. America is preparing children to be obedient factory workers in a world where no one needs or wants obedient factory workers.
27
Learning is a pyramid - the base of the pyramid are your basic skills such as language, math, history and science. Creative thinking is at the upper end of the pyramid. You cannot have creative thinking unless the base is sound. As in sports, you cannot teach players to perform a break-out in ice hockey unless they have the basic skills; i.e., skating, stick handling, and passing. In baseball, you cannot have a double play unless players know how to field a ball and throw a ball. Once basic skills are there, your players can then be creative and "think outside the box". First however, you need to know the parameters of the box.
6
The funny thing is that in higher mathematics, starting at about Modern Algebra or Advanced Calculus, everything become theorems and proofs, for which creativity and imagination become way more important than the kinds of skills learned through rote memorization.
Sure, understanding math rules are necessary for that kind of advanced subject matter, but more important is the appropriate application of rules to solve problems and even more importantly, when knowing when the rules can be broken.
Sure, understanding math rules are necessary for that kind of advanced subject matter, but more important is the appropriate application of rules to solve problems and even more importantly, when knowing when the rules can be broken.
1
It's hard to believe that the calculations necessary to create nuclear fission (1945), fusion (1952) and sending people to the Moon (1969, or 1955 if you count Ralph and Alice Kramden) were done with pencil, paper and slide-rules. No common-core math nonsense. Was the old way so bad that we really needed to substitute a fad for tried-and-true?
11
Mr. Hamilton,
You may know something about finance, but your knowledge of mathematics is abominable. It is not the tools that are used, it is ability to apply them which is in question. These men understood what they were doing and how to apply it. Today's students -- not so, and that makes all the difference.
You may know something about finance, but your knowledge of mathematics is abominable. It is not the tools that are used, it is ability to apply them which is in question. These men understood what they were doing and how to apply it. Today's students -- not so, and that makes all the difference.
Well, duh.
"some of the fourth-grade math questions on data analysis, statistics and geometry are not part of that grade’s guidelines under the Common Core and so might not have been covered in class"
In other words, they changed what was taught but did not bother to change what was tested.
Can someone correct this years' scores by leaving out the test questions that should not have been in the test? Can someone please update the tests for next year?
Thanks!
"some of the fourth-grade math questions on data analysis, statistics and geometry are not part of that grade’s guidelines under the Common Core and so might not have been covered in class"
In other words, they changed what was taught but did not bother to change what was tested.
Can someone correct this years' scores by leaving out the test questions that should not have been in the test? Can someone please update the tests for next year?
Thanks!
14
Yes- the publishing companies will be happy to sell all new materials to school districts next year...
1
These numbers are shocking. Stunning. A national crisis. I'm speechless.
"America’s schoolchildren are also increasingly poor. Students from poor families often arrive at school with smaller vocabularies than students from middle-class or more affluent households, and are faced with challenges like hunger, homelessness and parents working several jobs, all of which can interfere with their learning in school and the academic support they receive at home — and ultimately their test scores."
===========================================
This is advocacy not reporting. You are making conclusions about a reason without providing any evidence. Some of the best public schools in NYC or San Francisco serve the children of poor Asian immigrants. African refugees in Seattle outperform Black Americans. Both groups are poor.
My parents Ghanaian immigrants worked long hours and were low income. All of us kids graduated college and have great careers. Stop making excuses for the poor.
===========================================
This is advocacy not reporting. You are making conclusions about a reason without providing any evidence. Some of the best public schools in NYC or San Francisco serve the children of poor Asian immigrants. African refugees in Seattle outperform Black Americans. Both groups are poor.
My parents Ghanaian immigrants worked long hours and were low income. All of us kids graduated college and have great careers. Stop making excuses for the poor.
18
Math takes concentration, some memorization, and some practice. If kids are looking out the classroom window, or planning fun things to do after school instead of listening, or if they don't bother to try to remember some basic math facts, or if they don't practice equations when they get home, they will not do well in math. Period.
The same holds true of any subject, by the way. Hanging out on street corners, or hanging out in the gym, won't do much to help students' brains.
And now that New York City is planning to pay for all students to take the SATs (that's okay) and to give them during the school day instead of on Saturdays (not okay; if you can't get yourself to go on a Saturday to a neighborhood high school to take your SAT, maybe you don't belong in college), you'll see a precipitous drop in those scores too.
And then we'll just say, Okay, that's the average, and the lowest-common denominator will win out again: the work is too hard, the teachers are no good, the tests are culturally slanted . . . .
The same holds true of any subject, by the way. Hanging out on street corners, or hanging out in the gym, won't do much to help students' brains.
And now that New York City is planning to pay for all students to take the SATs (that's okay) and to give them during the school day instead of on Saturdays (not okay; if you can't get yourself to go on a Saturday to a neighborhood high school to take your SAT, maybe you don't belong in college), you'll see a precipitous drop in those scores too.
And then we'll just say, Okay, that's the average, and the lowest-common denominator will win out again: the work is too hard, the teachers are no good, the tests are culturally slanted . . . .
5
This article is simply not based on facts. Employers are demanding workers with even-stronger math skills? Let's do some reality math. 1) Very few jobs require strong math skills (skills far above those of an 8th grader), and even those jobs are heavily aided by software. 2) The global economy doesn't swing one way or the other based on math skills. Let's look at the last major swing: manufacturing jobs evaporating in advanced countries and moving to Third World countries. Nope, no math needed there. 3) From the time I first started voting, in 1976, I've heard politicians and experts lamenting our decaying education system and here we are, still the number one economy in the world, still unbeatable, and still the epicenter of great ideas.
Math and science will never be as important as creativity. Never. Stop writing articles based on false foundations.
Math and science will never be as important as creativity. Never. Stop writing articles based on false foundations.
7
Uh.... Where do you think that software comes from? The whole idea why math and science are so important for American kids is that now jobs that don't require those kind of skills can be easily transferred to an uneducated worker outside Beijing or Mumbai.
1
Put simply, when our "permissive" educational system is challenged by rigorous requirements, its failure is self-evident. Too much coddling, too much social promotion, and yes too little attention has led to these results. And, to preclude a rash of emotional negativism, I omit comments on teacher preparedness.
7
The New York Times (and others) should not use the word "minorities" when it means "non-Asian minorities." Asian-Americans (who are a very diverse group) score *better* than Whites and all other ethnic groups on NAEP tests, as well as IQ tests, the SAT, MCAT, GRE, and so on. I suspect that lumping all "minorities" together as a group is motivated by a desire to advance the liberal narrative -- which holds that any discrepancies seen between racial groups in America are the result of racism/White supremacy/privilege. Asian-Americans are dangerous to this narrative, because we face racism, but do better than Whites on just about every social measure you care to look at -- not only academically, but earnings, crime rates, divorce rates, life expectancy etc.
23
The federal government has started using Non-Asian minorities. As you say the narrative is falling apart. When they start comparing black immigrants and their children to black Americans, well look out below. The whole canard will simply crash.
My prediction is that we will continue to see a decline in performance scores in mathematics for these age groups as a result of the ever-increasing phenomenon of technology causing mental illness and exacerbating obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Now we have technologically created attention-deficit disorder.
Texting, email checking, and social network updating while on the go create in the individual a "phantom-relationship" with a device that appears to require a significant portion of the free attention we need to be able to engage at any level of concentrated problem-solving. Add to that the increased risk of even sitting in a classroom you have a developing scenario of distraction from the higher level of attention required to learn and perform in the areas of math and problem solving.
Youngsters age 10-14 are most vulnerable as they are grappling with coming of age in a culture fraught with technologically geared anxiety constantly whittling away at teachers, school budgets, and testing.
If we see results continue to decline, the scapegoats offered here will probably give way to the reality of our newly distracted techno-age. We ought to immediately address the effects now running wild in our techno-media frenzy. How DOES this effect our kids' learning and education potential?
Now we have technologically created attention-deficit disorder.
Texting, email checking, and social network updating while on the go create in the individual a "phantom-relationship" with a device that appears to require a significant portion of the free attention we need to be able to engage at any level of concentrated problem-solving. Add to that the increased risk of even sitting in a classroom you have a developing scenario of distraction from the higher level of attention required to learn and perform in the areas of math and problem solving.
Youngsters age 10-14 are most vulnerable as they are grappling with coming of age in a culture fraught with technologically geared anxiety constantly whittling away at teachers, school budgets, and testing.
If we see results continue to decline, the scapegoats offered here will probably give way to the reality of our newly distracted techno-age. We ought to immediately address the effects now running wild in our techno-media frenzy. How DOES this effect our kids' learning and education potential?
8
Another example how big gooberment knows best for you. Mandating how you will teach your children, school lunches they will eat (or not eat), Healthcare you need to buy, What your religion can't include.....etc.....etc....etc.
2
If you don't like how your children are being educated - home school them. If you want government funding for that, then you must meet certain standards. You can't come with your hand out for the federal dollar and not expect to meet certain standards. Religion does not belong in the public school system. Again, if you want to send your kids to a religious school, don't expect the taxpayer to pick up the tab if that school doesn't follow government standards.
I have a 2nd grader and a 5th grader. Both are learning math using Common Core (of course) and as parents, we are enjoying this new method of math . I think the way it is laid out in elementary school is excellent. I wish I had been taught this way when I was a child. Perhaps I would have had a more solid foundation for learning (solid B student myself in math).
However, we sent our kids to Montessori before moving them to public school in 1st grade. Montessori emphasizes 3D, sensory learning. I find my 2nd grader's teacher is the same. Teachers, the good ones, know student development. Let's ask them what is needed.
However, we sent our kids to Montessori before moving them to public school in 1st grade. Montessori emphasizes 3D, sensory learning. I find my 2nd grader's teacher is the same. Teachers, the good ones, know student development. Let's ask them what is needed.
3
We spend far more on education then any of our economic competitors and more then we spend on defense or social security. We are paying to educate millions of undocumented migrants and their children. Let's be honest for once. Our astronomically expensive public education system, it's politically connected unions are closely associated with and run by liberal Democrats and their ideology and education fads. The Times and others bemoaning educational achievement never mention it. Just as Chicago and our other most violent and deadly cities are and have been run by Democrats for generations but that is never mentioned in articles and editorials. Coincidence? I don't think so. Shouldn't a responsible media hold the feet of those responsible to the fire and name names? The media and establishment politicians always speak about these problems as if someone else is and has been in charge. Shameful.
10
So national test scores are low because teachers have unions? And unions vote Democratic? That makes no sense. Those teachers are just as smart as anyone else. What about southern states run largely by Republicans (like here in Texas)--did they score significantly higher?
1
The people responsible for the performance of students, through high school, are the parents of those students.
2
So let's elect Republicans who will cut education spending to the bone! Let's keep those darned immigrants dumb or better yet, deport them all. You tell 'em, Maxine
The results of "pop education" theories, self-esteem, "new ways to teach and enhance creativity" are coming home to roost. The issue s not why the scores fell (marginally) but why they are so low. A deeper issue is why these scores vary between racial groups (and dismissing this with the usual cant of racism doesn't work - Asians, Indian-Americans have all proved that) and cultural groups.
As long as we maintain the "politically correct" trajectory we are on without doing anything about the underlying issues, these scores and our competitiveness will get worse.
As long as we maintain the "politically correct" trajectory we are on without doing anything about the underlying issues, these scores and our competitiveness will get worse.
13
The forecasted education failures of Obama and Arnie Duncan are on full display.
9
I love reading the comments. Let's not forget how Arne Duncan touted Common Core as the reason scores took an uptick a few years ago. Now they went down. OWN IT!!!
15
I would not call 18 or 21 versus 46 percent an "achievement gap". It sounds rather like an underachievement gap.
A score of 240 compared to 242 out of 500 is a difference of less than half a percent, and cannot be meaningful. Instead of talking about a dip in abilities, let's just say that the dismal performance has not improved since 2013.
A score of 240 compared to 242 out of 500 is a difference of less than half a percent, and cannot be meaningful. Instead of talking about a dip in abilities, let's just say that the dismal performance has not improved since 2013.
3
Our schools are so dumbed down due to standards set for leveling the playing field that it's a wonder we have enough graduates to work at McDonalds.
The human brain needs better, healthier nutrition than the junk being eaten in poor households. I suppose you think that you can run a strong brain on white sugar, lunch meats, twinkies and the like? The issue of education needs to be looked at from the ground up. The crumbling family environment is part of the educational system too.
But it seems like anything you do to courageously face up to our problems must please so many different groups of people that it is just mush by the time any action is taken. It is getting worse too, not better.
The human brain needs better, healthier nutrition than the junk being eaten in poor households. I suppose you think that you can run a strong brain on white sugar, lunch meats, twinkies and the like? The issue of education needs to be looked at from the ground up. The crumbling family environment is part of the educational system too.
But it seems like anything you do to courageously face up to our problems must please so many different groups of people that it is just mush by the time any action is taken. It is getting worse too, not better.
1
Not everybody can do or needs to learn calculus. Maybe we should have students concentrate plain math skills and those who can do the more harder math problems put into special classes with the provision they help their own classmates an hour a day right after their special class is done.
I hardly think that 4th and 8th graders are being asked to do calculus.
@carlson74 -
That's the problem. There is no incentive to hold special classes for the achievers. The tests assess minimal proficiency, so districts look to maximize the number of children able to get over the lowest bar. To do this, they keep drilling on the same things year after year and even see it as disadvantageous for the brighter kids to get too far ahead of the pack.
After all, they are greatly rewarded for making sure that 100% of the kids can consistently test well on arithmetic, but have no incentive for getting 20% of the kids to understand calculus. So, instead of spending time on resources on calculus, they just make the achievers drill year after year on arithmetic.
That's the problem. There is no incentive to hold special classes for the achievers. The tests assess minimal proficiency, so districts look to maximize the number of children able to get over the lowest bar. To do this, they keep drilling on the same things year after year and even see it as disadvantageous for the brighter kids to get too far ahead of the pack.
After all, they are greatly rewarded for making sure that 100% of the kids can consistently test well on arithmetic, but have no incentive for getting 20% of the kids to understand calculus. So, instead of spending time on resources on calculus, they just make the achievers drill year after year on arithmetic.
1
Math takes time and effort.
Our kids, most of them, are spoiled and lazy, and distracted by other stuff that's more fun.
Our kids, most of them, are spoiled and lazy, and distracted by other stuff that's more fun.
7
Math does take effort, and the distraction factor is a big key. One of my daughter's friends was over this weekend (1st grader) and we played school while something we baked was cooling. For the life of her, she couldn't cognitively get 5+6. She kept arriving at 7. I had her use her fingers, objects, and she kept arriving at 7.
Her mother had expressed to me the same thing you said, but the added piece to her difficulty was definitely a huge cognitive block that I couldn't figure a way around.
Her mother had expressed to me the same thing you said, but the added piece to her difficulty was definitely a huge cognitive block that I couldn't figure a way around.
I have taken advanced calculus and I find common core techniques obtuse and illogical. It takes me 10 seconds to work a math problem traditionally and 30 minutes to try and understand the "logic" of common core mathematics.
Usually when something, like common core, is blatantly illogical and non-intuitive, it has to do with money. (Think US subprime mortgages and 'The Great Recession') It was obvious that there was a problem, but no one was saying anything. So with common core money is going to speaker fees, text book publishers, tutoring and testing, testing and more testing.
Usually when something, like common core, is blatantly illogical and non-intuitive, it has to do with money. (Think US subprime mortgages and 'The Great Recession') It was obvious that there was a problem, but no one was saying anything. So with common core money is going to speaker fees, text book publishers, tutoring and testing, testing and more testing.
8
Common Core makes mathematics even more abstract and than they already are, like everyone else said, if the parents can't help their kids anymore nobody should be surprised by the poor results.
7
In America, each state has its own education system. The Mid-Atlantic States do a good job of educating their populace. Southern states not so much. If we ever eliminate poverty and its effect on learning in children, we might be able to cite scores nationwide that are more alike than different.
I also think it would be appropriate for the NYTimes to solicit comments from real educators on education articles, not a political scientist, who runs a right leaning think tank.
I also think it would be appropriate for the NYTimes to solicit comments from real educators on education articles, not a political scientist, who runs a right leaning think tank.
5
There is an important difference between association and cause and effect. Better educated parents raise better educated children. Better educated parents have better jobs. People who have better jobs have less poverty.
This leads me to wonder how much time teachers waste on students who won't put away their cell phones. And, does anyone else see the connection?
8
In case you're interested in standard error and such, a quote from the NAEP web site:
NAEP reports results using widely accepted statistical standards; findings are reported based on a statistical significance level set at .05 with appropriate adjustments for multiple comparisons. Only those differences that are found to be statistically significant are referred to as higher or lower. When state/jurisdiction results are compared to the nation, appropriate adjustments are made for part-whole comparisons.
Comparisons over time of scores and percentages or between groups are based on statistical tests that consider both the size of the difference and the standard errors of the two statistics being compared. Standard errors are margins of error and estimates based on smaller groups are likely to have larger margins of error. For example, a 2-point change in the average score for the nation may be statistically significant, while a 2-point score change for a state is not, due to the size of the standard error. The size of the standard errors may also be influenced by other factors such as the degree to which the assessed students are representative of the entire population. Standard errors for the estimates presented in this report are available at http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/naepdata/.
NAEP reports results using widely accepted statistical standards; findings are reported based on a statistical significance level set at .05 with appropriate adjustments for multiple comparisons. Only those differences that are found to be statistically significant are referred to as higher or lower. When state/jurisdiction results are compared to the nation, appropriate adjustments are made for part-whole comparisons.
Comparisons over time of scores and percentages or between groups are based on statistical tests that consider both the size of the difference and the standard errors of the two statistics being compared. Standard errors are margins of error and estimates based on smaller groups are likely to have larger margins of error. For example, a 2-point change in the average score for the nation may be statistically significant, while a 2-point score change for a state is not, due to the size of the standard error. The size of the standard errors may also be influenced by other factors such as the degree to which the assessed students are representative of the entire population. Standard errors for the estimates presented in this report are available at http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/naepdata/.
5
What's your point? These were statistically significant changes (other than reading).
1
Just offering information.
Cheesh!!!!!
Cheesh!!!!!
The article points out that the "stagnating performance could also reflect . . . demographic changes." Did the scores of European- and Asian-American students also stagnate? Middle class as opposed to poor children? That could provide a clearer answer.
My sense is that we have yet to face up to some hard truths about IQ, third world cultural differences, and the fact that those least able to succeed in modern American society are having more children while the elite are having fewer. An article in yesterday's paper about West Siders who are unhappy that their children are to be redistricted into a poorly performing, largely black and Hispanic school classified by the state as dangerous is illustrative of the magnitude of these problems.
We have also to look at the issue of single parenthood, now shown to be particularly harmful to boys, and to remember that globalization and illegal immigration have robbed the American working class of solid employment. This has not just economic but socially corrosive effects, as a group's values reflect the opportunities it perceives for itself. And inner city schools need greater resources than suburban schools, not fewer.
But even with that, it is unlikely that those schools will change when the atmosphere is so toxic and the students struggle with non-English speakers, behavioral issues that schools are no longer permitted to address, and, according to the American Psychological Association, lower average intelligence scores.
My sense is that we have yet to face up to some hard truths about IQ, third world cultural differences, and the fact that those least able to succeed in modern American society are having more children while the elite are having fewer. An article in yesterday's paper about West Siders who are unhappy that their children are to be redistricted into a poorly performing, largely black and Hispanic school classified by the state as dangerous is illustrative of the magnitude of these problems.
We have also to look at the issue of single parenthood, now shown to be particularly harmful to boys, and to remember that globalization and illegal immigration have robbed the American working class of solid employment. This has not just economic but socially corrosive effects, as a group's values reflect the opportunities it perceives for itself. And inner city schools need greater resources than suburban schools, not fewer.
But even with that, it is unlikely that those schools will change when the atmosphere is so toxic and the students struggle with non-English speakers, behavioral issues that schools are no longer permitted to address, and, according to the American Psychological Association, lower average intelligence scores.
37
Josh:
For reading, 4th grade, scores for white and black kids stayed the same as 2013, Hispanic score was up 1, Asian was up 4.
For reading, 8th grade, white kids' scores were down 2 from 2013, black kids' scores were down 2, Hispanic kids' scores were down 3, and Asian kids' scores stayed the same.
For math, 4th grade, white kids' scores were down 2 from 2013, black kids' scores stayed the same, Hispanic kids' scores were down 1, and Asian kids' scores were down 1.
For math, 8th grade, white kids' scores were down 2, Black kids' scores were down 3, Hispanic kids' scores were down 2, and Asian kids' scores were the same as 2013.
You can use this link to see and compare the groups by tab:
http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_2015/#reading/groups?grade=8
For reading, 4th grade, scores for white and black kids stayed the same as 2013, Hispanic score was up 1, Asian was up 4.
For reading, 8th grade, white kids' scores were down 2 from 2013, black kids' scores were down 2, Hispanic kids' scores were down 3, and Asian kids' scores stayed the same.
For math, 4th grade, white kids' scores were down 2 from 2013, black kids' scores stayed the same, Hispanic kids' scores were down 1, and Asian kids' scores were down 1.
For math, 8th grade, white kids' scores were down 2, Black kids' scores were down 3, Hispanic kids' scores were down 2, and Asian kids' scores were the same as 2013.
You can use this link to see and compare the groups by tab:
http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_2015/#reading/groups?grade=8
5
Siobahn, thanks, that's very informative -- not to mention somewhat puzzling, in that the Asian kids scores didn't change as much as those of the other groups!
Ah yes, blame the inferior intelligence of ethnic groups other than your own. Poverty, lousy schools, none of those matter when racism is the view that clouds your judgement. IQ tests measure acquired as well as innate intelligence. There is no such thing as a test that separates acquired and innate intelligence. You would have fit in perfectly back in the 1920's when racism was enshrined in our immigration laws. The only thing is that the people considered inferior back then are all too often now the ones calling other people inferior.
1
Deep, deep in the article is buried the statistical basis for this alarmist headline:
"The average fourth-grade math score this year was 240 on a scale of 500, down from 242 in 2013, the last time the federal assessment results were released. The average eighth-grade math score was 282, down from 285 two years ago."
So the actual difference in scores is slight, so slight that some tweaking of how the questions were asked, or what questions were asked, could contribute to the supposed decline. But by all means, let's get in our usual tizzy over standardized test scores as the be-all and end-all of education.
"The average fourth-grade math score this year was 240 on a scale of 500, down from 242 in 2013, the last time the federal assessment results were released. The average eighth-grade math score was 282, down from 285 two years ago."
So the actual difference in scores is slight, so slight that some tweaking of how the questions were asked, or what questions were asked, could contribute to the supposed decline. But by all means, let's get in our usual tizzy over standardized test scores as the be-all and end-all of education.
62
Well put! These figures are almost meaningless in terms of change. What's more, the changes by mix effect, as hinted at but never disclosed, could even make this a story about improvement by racial/ethnic/economic class.
This is barely a blip and hardly worth a headline.
This is barely a blip and hardly worth a headline.
1
Exactly. Apparently the readers of this article failed to look at the actual numbers before pontificating about the dire state of American education. If a child has not been taught a particular topic in math, he or she generally won't have a clue how to answer the two or three questions on a multiple choice test that pertain to that topic. And if you read the article, some of the questions that 4th graders scored poorly on were "data analysis, statistics and geometry," which hadn't been covered using Common Core standards at the time the tests were given. Those three topics are particularly heavy on definitions and formulas so if you haven't been taught how to calculate the interior angles of a triangle, for example, there's no way you can make an educated guess. And if you haven't been taught the difference between mean, median, and mode...good luck guessing! (And yes, I did teach 4th grade and the only way I got my students to remember what those terms meant was to use word associations: "a median is in the middle of the road" and "mode sounds like most.") If you really want to understand what these standardized tests mean, get a copy of one (good luck, they are guarded for fear that teachers will use them to "teach to the test") and then you will understand that it's really just about measuring LONG-TERM trends, and even at that, the tests really don't tell us much about what kids are actually learning.
This is a story more about economics than education. Schools cannot, and should not be expected to, fix an array of problems stemming from outside the classroom. Until we decide that we want once again to be a middle-class society that offers real opportunity to its citizens across the board, schools will struggle with students who are not prepared to learn - due to poverty, hunger, stress, violence, chaotic lives, and hopelessness. We simply cannot have the large number of children living in poverty and high-performing schools too. We have a choice.
69
Completely agree with your opinion on rebuilding the middle class. No candidates from either party seem to grasp the enormous damage done to our society by the loss of over 30MM good paying jobs. It has harmed our society in more ways than just education. America needs to focus on jobs, good paying jobs, and rebuild our middle class. Education is one of many societal areas that have suffered as the middle class has disappeared.
1
Proves its own point: Sociological analysis of a (rather small) test score decline, rather than the important point: Are students anywhere near being prepared for jobs and life in the coming years?
Yes, we all know that poor and minority kids are, on average, doomed to get poor education, and lower prospects. Yes, we have a fuzzy idea that math (and science, and engineering) are more important than ever, and that, in a global economy, we're doing terribly, and that means economic and political decline.
However, we are still screwing around with minor, minor strategies and no effective large-scale (i.e. Federal) solutions. Bump up some test scores a few points, or ten points, or twenty, and we still fail our next generation.
Yes, we all know that poor and minority kids are, on average, doomed to get poor education, and lower prospects. Yes, we have a fuzzy idea that math (and science, and engineering) are more important than ever, and that, in a global economy, we're doing terribly, and that means economic and political decline.
However, we are still screwing around with minor, minor strategies and no effective large-scale (i.e. Federal) solutions. Bump up some test scores a few points, or ten points, or twenty, and we still fail our next generation.
7
This will come as no surprise to the parents and teachers who have been working closely with children. If TPTB had been listening, the alarms were going off that the way the math is being presented makes absolutely no sense at all.
The saddest thing is that there is no recognition that there are individuals with 'math brains'. They look at numbers in a way that is totally separate from the way they look at reading. Now that the math curriculum encompasses so much reading ability the natural instinct for numbers gifted children is stymied. Instead of learning the world of computation and direct rules regarding numbers, they are busy with word problems that in many instances make absolutely no sense.
If the USA wants to be competitive in STEM related fields in the future it had better do something about the math curriculum ASAP. The tragedy is that it may be too late for those children who have been taught in the last six or seven years using the Common Core guidelines.
The saddest thing is that there is no recognition that there are individuals with 'math brains'. They look at numbers in a way that is totally separate from the way they look at reading. Now that the math curriculum encompasses so much reading ability the natural instinct for numbers gifted children is stymied. Instead of learning the world of computation and direct rules regarding numbers, they are busy with word problems that in many instances make absolutely no sense.
If the USA wants to be competitive in STEM related fields in the future it had better do something about the math curriculum ASAP. The tragedy is that it may be too late for those children who have been taught in the last six or seven years using the Common Core guidelines.
46
Not sure I agree with this. As a "math person", with a "math brain", I can tell you that one of the challenges is to take something that one can verbally describe and transform it into a function or a series of functions for a computer program.
That said, if we are simply interested in higher scores from those of average ability, we do need to look at what China and India are doing. One thing that I'd suggest is exposing children to mathematical concepts at a very early age; i.e., preschool, before they have had a chance to develop a fear of it, with counseling for math-fearing parents (and, for that matter, teachers) not to instill that fear by making remarks disparaging their own mathematical literacy. In other words, let's give the "fake it 'til you make it" approach a chance. Americans are notorious for fearing something that should be as natural for us as our native language.
That said, if we are simply interested in higher scores from those of average ability, we do need to look at what China and India are doing. One thing that I'd suggest is exposing children to mathematical concepts at a very early age; i.e., preschool, before they have had a chance to develop a fear of it, with counseling for math-fearing parents (and, for that matter, teachers) not to instill that fear by making remarks disparaging their own mathematical literacy. In other words, let's give the "fake it 'til you make it" approach a chance. Americans are notorious for fearing something that should be as natural for us as our native language.
1
You have this exactly opposite. The new way of teaching math emphasizes "number sense" and developing an understanding of how numbers work, rather than the rote repetition of formulas. Memorizing a formula for "borrowing" or "carrying the one" is pointless if a child has no understanding of why the formula works -- later, when the math becomes more complicated, the child will be unable to translate the memorized formulas into an understanding of the more complex transactions. That is to say, the new standards and manner of teaching math is intended to ensure that children actually understand math, not that they can memorize formulas.
Moreover, with respect to being "competitive"-- the manner in which the common core recommends math be taught is FAR closer to the way it is taught in other countries where students' math scores and skills far exceed those in the United States. Academic studies that compare the common core standards to standards in high-performing countries like Singapore have found close congruence in the two.
Moreover, with respect to being "competitive"-- the manner in which the common core recommends math be taught is FAR closer to the way it is taught in other countries where students' math scores and skills far exceed those in the United States. Academic studies that compare the common core standards to standards in high-performing countries like Singapore have found close congruence in the two.
2
As a retired mechanical engineer I have to say that being able to transform a word problem into a math solution is hugely important. I never encountered a real world problem that presented itself as an equation that was solved by rote rules.
2
I find it exceedingly difficult to help my daughter with her 6th grade math. Part of the problem is parents are "out of the loop" with the new math teaching methods.
18
I blame Common Core. When a parent cannot help their children on 4th grade math because of the way common core is that is a major problem. The number of tutors who understand common core isn't what it should be so if you can't help your child its very hard to find someone who you are willing to pay to help them.
Yes, the eggheads who came up with this new method of learning and decided to roll it out on every grade level all at once must have been smoking something. Now that high schools are also using the common core their math scores have also fallen.
Nothing like experimenting on every child all at once with a new curriculum that many teachers, administrators and parents not only don't understand but don't like either.
The textbook companies, the testing companies and others who are the ones making huge amounts of money off of Common Core should be investigated.
I attended a workshop whose guest speaker was a designer of common core, is now a consultant with a big textbook/testing corporation and lectures on the subject. The audience was teachers, all state certified with master degrees plus credits. After his talk about what Common Core is and how to teach it the overwhelming majority of the teachers said they didn't understand what he was talking about! So if people who are in the profession with the educational background and the ability to implement teaching methods don't understand this "snake oil" new direction in education how are parents too?
Yes, the eggheads who came up with this new method of learning and decided to roll it out on every grade level all at once must have been smoking something. Now that high schools are also using the common core their math scores have also fallen.
Nothing like experimenting on every child all at once with a new curriculum that many teachers, administrators and parents not only don't understand but don't like either.
The textbook companies, the testing companies and others who are the ones making huge amounts of money off of Common Core should be investigated.
I attended a workshop whose guest speaker was a designer of common core, is now a consultant with a big textbook/testing corporation and lectures on the subject. The audience was teachers, all state certified with master degrees plus credits. After his talk about what Common Core is and how to teach it the overwhelming majority of the teachers said they didn't understand what he was talking about! So if people who are in the profession with the educational background and the ability to implement teaching methods don't understand this "snake oil" new direction in education how are parents too?
23
No matter what set of standards a state adopts, the textbook companies will write books that match those standards. Every state has adopted standards that mandate what teachers teach. Common Care is just one of those that many states have adopted.
1
Do not blame the message for the inability of the messenger. Teachers who teach 4th grade do not have to have math backgrounds. They simply do not understand because they never learned it, nor it seems, care to. Parents were not taught either and yes, this math has more of a theoretical base than simple rote execution. Do not assume just since you are all growed up that you know more than your children do, particularly in certain subjects.
To be fair, Common Core is not a curriculum; it is a set of standards to which curricula like Everyday Math is directed. If there is one culprit that most deserves disrepute in this whole crazy debacle, it would be the University of Chicago that foisted that monster on our children.
1
Common Core methods at their best. It is way past time to go back to the methods of the 50's and 60's. With that style of teaching we sent men to the moon and invented the internet.
45
Common Core is not a method, it is a set of standards. All states have adopted standards, which state what students should learn in different content areas for each grade or course. Common Core is a set of standards that many states have adopted.
1
I agree. But we also had manufacturing and other jobs for those with no intellectual inclination. Those who went on to college were, for the most part, our brightest and best. (We won't mention rich young men who earned a "gentleman's C.") And after World War II, we had a GI Bill that really did pay for college.
We also didn't have the high out-of-wedlock birthrate that we do now.
Single mothers have responsibly reared children after the death of their husbands, or divorce; or if, when they are in their thirties with good jobs, have decided to have or adopt children.
Dropping out of high school to have a baby and then proceeding to have several more while on welfare will, however, very rarely produce young people who will do well in school.
Birth control is the answer to our failing school system, at least in our inner cities.
In other parts of the country, many whites believe that education is an elitist thing, equated with atheism, feminism, and homosexuality.
Dumb and dumber. Look at our Congress.
We also didn't have the high out-of-wedlock birthrate that we do now.
Single mothers have responsibly reared children after the death of their husbands, or divorce; or if, when they are in their thirties with good jobs, have decided to have or adopt children.
Dropping out of high school to have a baby and then proceeding to have several more while on welfare will, however, very rarely produce young people who will do well in school.
Birth control is the answer to our failing school system, at least in our inner cities.
In other parts of the country, many whites believe that education is an elitist thing, equated with atheism, feminism, and homosexuality.
Dumb and dumber. Look at our Congress.
1
@Jim, great comment. I am a 56 year old BSEE. My good friend from high school, Scott is a BSCE. I attended a parochial school in those days of large families. First through fourth grade was half day classes of 55 to 60 children per class. Public high school was a bit better, with full day classes of 40 students each. My friend Scott makes regular trips to China conducting business in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals. A few colleugues from Korea and Taiwan and I were recently awarded two patents in emergency communications. These schools were for the working class. Two parent families, small homes but warm enough, living check to check with absolutely no extras. Oh yeah, as a family we took annual vacations in the station wagon - to Detroit to visit family. And I was no bookworm. We used books in those days. Before college I did four years enlisted in the marine corps.
2
250 and 380 out of 500 are mediocre math scores regardless of the circumstances.
20
NAEP mathematics assessments are scaled 0-500 not just of fourth grade, this same scale goes from fourth-grade----eighth grade----12th grade. Your point would be alarming if 12th grade students (national average scale scores) were at this fourth-grade or eighth-grade level. The NAEP Website --easily found via search engine---has complete, comprehensible information about these tests, scaling, and even sample questions. It's a rainy day....go take a look (note the sample questions are "released items" and are not on the current test......
How long has it been since the Common Core had its effect on curriculum and instruction? Would kids in the fourth grade be the first cadre to reflect its effects?
So they're asking questions about data analysis, statistics and geometry that might not have been covered in class? Why is there a disconnect between the questions and what's being taught? Could it be that the constant testing doesn't really evaluate student performance?
I object to citing differences between the performance of Hispanic and black students. It's very hard to define who's Hispanic and who's black. The terms have little meaning in the real world and it's hard to see how skin color or ethnic origin relates to school performance unless you accept that maybe those kids are just somehow defective. Nonsense!
So they're asking questions about data analysis, statistics and geometry that might not have been covered in class? Why is there a disconnect between the questions and what's being taught? Could it be that the constant testing doesn't really evaluate student performance?
I object to citing differences between the performance of Hispanic and black students. It's very hard to define who's Hispanic and who's black. The terms have little meaning in the real world and it's hard to see how skin color or ethnic origin relates to school performance unless you accept that maybe those kids are just somehow defective. Nonsense!
2
Chalk up common core as yet another policy failure for Obama, the smartest one in the room.
3
Chalk up another erroneous comment from another conservative. It was George W. Bush that introduced Common Core to our schools. You would know that if you listened to someone besides the right wing talking heads on television and radio.
2
Seems President Obama has already answered that question of low or flat line test scores, simply test less and the problem is solved...!
2
Could you pls provide data on Asian students' proficiency as well? And American Indians and multi-racial students? When these other populations are not included, it's as if they don't exist.
10
One casualty of these results is going to be Science and Social Studies/History instruction. There will be a continued overemphasis on Math and English to get these scores up, although the glaring facts that children are being tested on content they haven't been taught and that math instruction has changed so that often students aren't shown how to solve a problem but instead have to figure out how to solve a problem, can't be ignored.
The results and information gleaned from NAEP is incredibly data rich, and it's a shame that it has to compete with high-stakes testing because indeed it does provide a thorough snapshot of American students knowledge and background.
It should be pointed out that this test is no-stakes for the students, names are removed and scores aren't reported to schools but only aggregated by state and some urban districts. 8th and 12th grade students may also receive community service credit for their participation in the assessment. NAEP should be a reason to decrease, if not eliminate, state-wide, high stakes standardized tests.
The results and information gleaned from NAEP is incredibly data rich, and it's a shame that it has to compete with high-stakes testing because indeed it does provide a thorough snapshot of American students knowledge and background.
It should be pointed out that this test is no-stakes for the students, names are removed and scores aren't reported to schools but only aggregated by state and some urban districts. 8th and 12th grade students may also receive community service credit for their participation in the assessment. NAEP should be a reason to decrease, if not eliminate, state-wide, high stakes standardized tests.
6
What is sad and ironic is that schools are dropping important subjects like civics, history, music, and science to focus on math and English... and they can't even get those right.
2
This is a very complex issue and it's hard to know what the causes are.
Just an annecdote. My 2nd grade grandson brings back Common Core math homework teaches concepts so awkwardly that neither his parents nor I can comprehend why such odd concepts are taught. Really bizarre stuff - like separating items into groups of five, and then counting out each of the individual item, and not identifying them as groups...
27
It's called the dumbing down of American students. I have been told by teachers who assist Spanish speaking students that those students are at a disadvantage throughout their school years because of the language difference. If this is true, then the larger percentage of Hispanic students without adequate language preparation will of course bring down the results.
Many students for what ever reason are either not interested in learning or are unable to learn at the age level they are in. (Too hard, maybe).
Before trade agreements took all of our industrial jobs overseas, there were places for people that really do not qualify for college to find a job.
Now college is being recommended for all students. Go figure.
Many students for what ever reason are either not interested in learning or are unable to learn at the age level they are in. (Too hard, maybe).
Before trade agreements took all of our industrial jobs overseas, there were places for people that really do not qualify for college to find a job.
Now college is being recommended for all students. Go figure.
27
One of my best English composition students if a student from a poor African country and English is her second language. I have had less than a handful of Hispanic students in my classes. Most are working class or below and white. Some of all of them do well. Many of them struggle mightily. The average ACT score is probably 18, with students below that taking developmental English, with mixed results. Attrition is high. I am often startled by how far they can go, if they have the motivation. Others because of life circumstances seem sunk from the very beginning. I love what I do, and I am all for offering the opportunity, but I often wish we spent less on developmental education and more on early childhood interventions. But all this blaming the scores on Hispanics: it doesn't wash with me. I know different.
1
Gee, what could possibly be different now than twenty years ago? Until we pull our heads out of the sand and DEMAND higher standards and the integrity that goes with supporting them, it's just going to continue to degrade. Remember, the "teachers" are almost all products of this same system, so they are passing along the virus of ignorance and refusal to follow the rules and do the work. Also, we should require a vid camera in every classroom in America. I believe that would open more than a few eyes! Public education is in distress and going down for the third time.
6
Let teachers have the freedom to teach that they had 20 years ago, stop micromanaging, political boondoggles and "corporate learning module" junk and adding more burdens, and you'll get results. Doubt it? Come and teach for a while and see what you think.
1
I taught for 10 years in Florida public schools. There is little interest in or cultural emphasis on academic success in the Hispanic community. If the USA was serious about raising academic achievement the country would not permit the flood of legal and illegal Hispanic immigrants.
25
I haven't found that to be the case in my local school system. When I attended honors recognition ceremonies at my daughter's high school in 2015 and 2014, Hispanic surnames were represented disproportionately among honors students compared to the student body as a whole—to such a striking degree that I noticed, and then confirmed my impression at graduation when I saw the list of all seniors. I don't know what might account for that extra motivation among our local Latino community, but it was quantifiably discernible. Your fear of Hispanic immigrants "legal and illegal" diluting the quality of US culture is offensive.
In fact, the first intellectual flowering in the European cultural tradition in the so-called New World occurred among Hispanic colonists. (And of course Columbus sailed on behalf of Spain.) I find it ironic, hilariously or sadly, when the descendants of Northern Europeans complain about some imaginary Hispanic invasion—especially in Florida, which was a Spanish colony! And read up on Seminole history, or the more liberal social and legal standing of enslaved Africans or emancipated slaves under Spanish rule.
In fact, the first intellectual flowering in the European cultural tradition in the so-called New World occurred among Hispanic colonists. (And of course Columbus sailed on behalf of Spain.) I find it ironic, hilariously or sadly, when the descendants of Northern Europeans complain about some imaginary Hispanic invasion—especially in Florida, which was a Spanish colony! And read up on Seminole history, or the more liberal social and legal standing of enslaved Africans or emancipated slaves under Spanish rule.
12
Children from Mexico and Guatemala that I've known have parents pushing them to work hard and achieve. These are parents who work two and three jobs to make this possible. The prejudice on our side of the border comes mostly from ignorance on our part, not theirs.
It's also interesting to note that Texas and Florida -- two states with very large immigrant communities -- are doing just fine. See the headline the other day here in the Times:
"Surprise: Florida and Texas Excel in Math and Reading Scores"
It's also interesting to note that Texas and Florida -- two states with very large immigrant communities -- are doing just fine. See the headline the other day here in the Times:
"Surprise: Florida and Texas Excel in Math and Reading Scores"
I guess we have to tell all those poor Appalachian students to leave, too, don't we? Why, oh, why, do we have to worry about these poor kids at all? Life would be so much easier without them. I will say, with that attitude, I am kind of glad you aren't teaching in the public schools. You seem never to have witnessed any little miracles that any half-way conscientious teacher does: when, even with everything against them, a child falls in love with learning. But if you don't believe in it, it never happens. Thank goodness, this poor kid, first generation college, encountered teachers who didn't decide right from the start that I couldn't learn anything. It's okay not to be a teacher. It's okay to be good at other things. I'm not trying to insult you, but no, the public school classroom is not the place for you and good you recognized it. Too much of the missionary about it. Too much faith. Too much hope. Too much love of people who aren't just like us.
Kind of funny that an article about math test scores doesn't try to establish whether the score drop is statistically significant. Good job showing how no one can really account for it; how massively complex and multifactorial the causes are -- presuming this is even significant; and how quick everyone is to bend maybe-not-even-a-significant-event to their own political agendas.
A lot of this is to me concentrating on one leaf in the forest. Want to know how to raise all educational boats? Make sure every child in the US gets the same kind of education and socio-cultural-economic support as kids at Exeter.
Problem solved -- but that's far too radical a solution for most. Highlights, however, what various people's real agendas are. In my view, that's certainly at least an asymptote to approach.
Perhaps we can cancel that $80bn plane the Pentagon wants to pay for it, and as far as costs go -- exactly what else should we be spending money on if not to give our children the emotional, economic, social, nutritional, and cultural support they need?
It's the least we can do since we've already destroyed the environment, if trends continue.
A lot of this is to me concentrating on one leaf in the forest. Want to know how to raise all educational boats? Make sure every child in the US gets the same kind of education and socio-cultural-economic support as kids at Exeter.
Problem solved -- but that's far too radical a solution for most. Highlights, however, what various people's real agendas are. In my view, that's certainly at least an asymptote to approach.
Perhaps we can cancel that $80bn plane the Pentagon wants to pay for it, and as far as costs go -- exactly what else should we be spending money on if not to give our children the emotional, economic, social, nutritional, and cultural support they need?
It's the least we can do since we've already destroyed the environment, if trends continue.
25
Cue parents griping about Common Core.
Listen: if you sit down with your kids and make them memorize their addition, subtraction, multiplication and division tables, rather than buying them calculators and pressuring the schools to allow them, we would not need these bizarre and abstruse Common Core methods.
As for "different ways to come up with the same answer, rather than formulas," kids who memorize, especially their times tables, develop what is termed a math sense which allows them to find their own shortcuts and alternatives.
Memorizing has been denigrated in public education for most of my life. A proper study might find and acknowledge that it's actually critical to brain development.
Listen: if you sit down with your kids and make them memorize their addition, subtraction, multiplication and division tables, rather than buying them calculators and pressuring the schools to allow them, we would not need these bizarre and abstruse Common Core methods.
As for "different ways to come up with the same answer, rather than formulas," kids who memorize, especially their times tables, develop what is termed a math sense which allows them to find their own shortcuts and alternatives.
Memorizing has been denigrated in public education for most of my life. A proper study might find and acknowledge that it's actually critical to brain development.
43
You must not have a student being taught the "new math" under the common core. They no longer teach the "tables" - you are not even allowed to use the term "times" - EVER. My daughter in 4th grade has come home with at least four different division strategies - one of which involved drawing a series of at diagonal (?!) lines, another called the "7" approach, which basically means estimating in small groups, at least doubling the time involved. I wish and pray that they will actually allow her to memorize her tables, but that is anathema to the current math approach. THIS is why we parents are "griping" about the common core (it's actually the "new math" being conflated with the term, but that's another rant...
3
Amen. And memorize poems, too. No, this isn't the goal. It's a way to get to the goal. Analyzing a sentence or diagramming it is impossible if one doesn't know what a complete sentence sounds like. One of the math teachers at my college says that part of the problem students have with math is that they do not understand sentence structure and therefore have great difficulty figuring out what they are being asked to do. My students have difficulty figuring out the thesis statements in arguments. It's not that the tests aren't testing the right things: it's that we've decided that our job is to figure out how students intuitively learn and adapt to it (nearly impossible with 100-150 students in a typical high school or middle school day) rather than helping students to understand their own learning styles and adapt. Students have no idea how to be organized or systematic. If it isn't easy for them, they give up. And yes, wouldn't it be wonderful if there weren't homeless children, children with parents working day and night to keep body and soul together, and children whose parents could remember all the steps and help them? We have swapped self-esteem for well-earned self-respect. We need to help the parents get the kids to school, on time, every day, with the attitude that this is a free service and not a punishment and then let teachers do their thing.
Teachers and parents should teach the tables at home - teachers can sneak it in.
Perhaps all smart phones should be programmed with a series of grade appropriate math problems that must be solved each time they try to log into their brain numbing social media.
42
In short, Americans have gone from very bad to math (and logic) to pathetic. The consequences of a failed education system manifests itself through the voting public - particularly in rural areas.
2
There is one consistency about math - it does not change, yet we are constantly trying to reinvent the way in which math is taught. I learned math in elementary through drilling and it works. For those who don't believe, I submit video games are nothing more than drilling and kids seem to be very adept. In high school, a teacher would have us at the board 80% of the time solving problems. These old-school methods carried me through four semesters of Calculus in college preparing me for life which is typically a routine of thinking how to solve problems. As for testing, "What gets measured, gets improved." People need to get used to it because at work, "You are constantly being evaluated!"
48
Mark, you nailed it. And in order to get some jobs, you need to be tested first.
4
Very true. I grew up in Europe and we simply had to memorize. Which is why to this day, at age 41, anytime I have to multiply I need to translate it into my mother tongue of French, and then it comes to me. I can't tell you "six times eight" but I can tell you "six fois huit, quarante-huit", because it was drilled into me over and over as a child.
Right on!
Let's illustrate the story about the decline in mathematical skills of American children by a photo of a child of color who is also left-handed.
We can employ and foster three stereotypes in one picture:
1) African-Americans are inferior students.
2) Like women, people of color lack the mathematical abilities possessed by white males.
3) There is something inferior, even sinister, in being left-handed. That is why teachers and others have for centuries forced these individuals to use their right hands and even punished them for left-handedness.
As they say, one picture is worth a thousands. This is because pictures speak to our unconscious minds more powerfully than words. They set and fix our ideas and opinions, often without our realizing what is happening.
The editor who chose this picture for this story has helped reinforce stereotypes that are damaging to those portrayed.
I believe s/he is too insensitive to the nuances of photographs to be selecting illustrations the New York Times.
We can employ and foster three stereotypes in one picture:
1) African-Americans are inferior students.
2) Like women, people of color lack the mathematical abilities possessed by white males.
3) There is something inferior, even sinister, in being left-handed. That is why teachers and others have for centuries forced these individuals to use their right hands and even punished them for left-handedness.
As they say, one picture is worth a thousands. This is because pictures speak to our unconscious minds more powerfully than words. They set and fix our ideas and opinions, often without our realizing what is happening.
The editor who chose this picture for this story has helped reinforce stereotypes that are damaging to those portrayed.
I believe s/he is too insensitive to the nuances of photographs to be selecting illustrations the New York Times.
14
The bosses of education who have run it all top-down, heedless of the words of teachers and parents alike, are squarely responsible for the losses their policies and pleasing of corporate predators have and will entail. The education system under them is like a patient that has been so busy criticizing and condemning the doctors and taking his own temperature obsessively that he makes himself sicker every day.
15
If students are being tested on material they have not been introduced to, it is not surprising that scores are lower. Add to that the likely omission of question addressing material that they had considered and you get a distorted picture of student achievement. So who are the geniuses who think that the outcome of this round of testing sheds any light on what students know about mathematics? This is as if you gave a science test on chemistry and physics, but the students had studied chemistry and earth science.
2
Well, this says a bit about the direction of education in the US and where I live, NYC. After several years of the Common Core, we were again told there would be improvement if we just waited and were patient. Instead, we appear to be headed in the wrong direction in both Math and Reading. Yet another test and another report that will be used to blame teachers and students for our failing school system. Maybe it is the political leaders that need to be changed and this grand experiment called the Common Core that should be undone.
39
Just yesterday, I saw an article describing how a student was marked wrong on an exam because when asked to solve "5x3" using the additive method, the student wrote "5+5+5" instead of "3+3+3+3+3". I found myself to be confounded - how is the one option correct, but not the other? It wouldn't be too far a stretch of the imagination to think that I am not the only adult who felt that way when confronted with the methods prescribed by the common core.
A big problem here is that when states decided to adopt the common core standard, they left students in a bit of a precarious situation in that neither their teachers nor their parents fully understood this new teaching approach. Without having utilized the common core standard to establish their own fundamental basis in mathematics, some teachers are unable to educate students as effectively as they could in the past while some parents are unable to supplement their children's education at home. When combined, it's not a surprise that students may not necessarily be getting the best education that they could be.
The U.S. is currently in that awkward transition period between educational systems. Unfortunately, the only real victims here are the students having to go through this. Until both teachers and parents are able to clear their own hurdles in effectively communicating mathematics via the newly adopted standard, we won't be able to fully ascertain the efficacy of the common core.
A big problem here is that when states decided to adopt the common core standard, they left students in a bit of a precarious situation in that neither their teachers nor their parents fully understood this new teaching approach. Without having utilized the common core standard to establish their own fundamental basis in mathematics, some teachers are unable to educate students as effectively as they could in the past while some parents are unable to supplement their children's education at home. When combined, it's not a surprise that students may not necessarily be getting the best education that they could be.
The U.S. is currently in that awkward transition period between educational systems. Unfortunately, the only real victims here are the students having to go through this. Until both teachers and parents are able to clear their own hurdles in effectively communicating mathematics via the newly adopted standard, we won't be able to fully ascertain the efficacy of the common core.
65
What happened to the "Associative Property of Multiplication"? Would it not apply?
1
Whoever marked 5+5+5 as incorrect obviously knows nothing about math and should not be teaching it!
1
I know this is wonky, but it depends on the lesson. If you are teaching calculation, the associative property applies, because 5x3 and 3x5 both yield 15.
BUT - if you are in the beginning stages of math and teaching that math is a language that describes a reality, then the *sentence* 5x3 is not the same as the sentence 3x5.
A bowl with 5 each of apples, pears, peaches, makes a different fruit salad from a bowl with 3 each of bananas, mangos, apples, pears, peaches, even though both used 15 pieces of fruit.
Calculation/arithmetic vs. "math sentence."
The part of math that was never taught to me, once we got into the upper levels, what what reality the math was describing. I remember sitting in Astronomy in college, looking at retrograde motion, learning that Keppler used those 2 dimensional observations to prove a 3 dimensional model, and thinking: THAT'S why trig as invented! Just to be clear, I forgot everything I was taught in trig because I memorized the calculation, but never understood the concept.
BUT - if you are in the beginning stages of math and teaching that math is a language that describes a reality, then the *sentence* 5x3 is not the same as the sentence 3x5.
A bowl with 5 each of apples, pears, peaches, makes a different fruit salad from a bowl with 3 each of bananas, mangos, apples, pears, peaches, even though both used 15 pieces of fruit.
Calculation/arithmetic vs. "math sentence."
The part of math that was never taught to me, once we got into the upper levels, what what reality the math was describing. I remember sitting in Astronomy in college, looking at retrograde motion, learning that Keppler used those 2 dimensional observations to prove a 3 dimensional model, and thinking: THAT'S why trig as invented! Just to be clear, I forgot everything I was taught in trig because I memorized the calculation, but never understood the concept.
We continue to equate testing and learning - a mistake that perpetuates failure in our schools. Just as we think teaching automatically leads to learning, we believe a test must measure what students know. We have dug ourselves into a dark hole without knowing what's inside and how to get out. A clear mission that puts each child at the center, a spirit of selfless innovation, informed collaboration, renewed professionalism, and creative inspiration are just a few characteristics that need to infuse education -- not ossified testing and nationalized curriculum.
34
Edu-blogger Mitchell Robinson said it best:
"Public education policy is being written and administrated largely by persons who have not themselves attended public schools, have no degrees or certification in education, have never taught, and have spent little time in public schools."
These standards and curriculum are being foisted on teachers without any input from actual people in education. The children, whom the policy makers have little knowledge of how they think and develop, are frustrated by these tests and the paradigm shift to what I call short leash, scripted instruction which prevents teachers from establishing working relationships with their students. The teacher/student relationship are what helps students want to learn and do their best. The current education climate makes children hate school even more than they normally would.
It's a recipe for disaster.
"Public education policy is being written and administrated largely by persons who have not themselves attended public schools, have no degrees or certification in education, have never taught, and have spent little time in public schools."
These standards and curriculum are being foisted on teachers without any input from actual people in education. The children, whom the policy makers have little knowledge of how they think and develop, are frustrated by these tests and the paradigm shift to what I call short leash, scripted instruction which prevents teachers from establishing working relationships with their students. The teacher/student relationship are what helps students want to learn and do their best. The current education climate makes children hate school even more than they normally would.
It's a recipe for disaster.
85
Arne Duncan, the outgoing Secretary of Ed so aptly described by Mitchell Robinson in Maggilu's post is about to be replaced by John King Jr., who oversaw the spectacularly inept rollout of the Common Core Standards as New York's Commissioner of Ed.
King's reputation for arrogance and insensitivity is legendary in NY and led to a groundswell of calls for his resignation by parent groups and the Teachers Union.
Naming him as Duncan's pro tem replacement is equivalent to tasking the Canadian software team that botched the Health.gov launch with rewriting national security code.
Talk about a recipe for disaster.
King's reputation for arrogance and insensitivity is legendary in NY and led to a groundswell of calls for his resignation by parent groups and the Teachers Union.
Naming him as Duncan's pro tem replacement is equivalent to tasking the Canadian software team that botched the Health.gov launch with rewriting national security code.
Talk about a recipe for disaster.
4
There is also more than a little suspicion among teachers that at least some of those policy-makers *want* public schools to fail. The reason is that that will give those policy-makers an excuse to expand their friends' charter schools.
Why all this effort? Because public school teachers are the most unionized profession in the United States. If they succeed in making this shift from public schools to charter schools they can eliminate the teachers' unions, dropping teacher salaries from the not-exactly-generous $55K a year average to somewhere around $40K a year that charter school teachers currently make. This, in their minds, is called "efficiency", even though it's causing completely predictable shortages in the number of qualified teachers.
Why all this effort? Because public school teachers are the most unionized profession in the United States. If they succeed in making this shift from public schools to charter schools they can eliminate the teachers' unions, dropping teacher salaries from the not-exactly-generous $55K a year average to somewhere around $40K a year that charter school teachers currently make. This, in their minds, is called "efficiency", even though it's causing completely predictable shortages in the number of qualified teachers.
2
Your uninformed comments about the common core seem to echo those on the political right. Go online and Google common core state standards and look at the first pages of that document. Those educators who contributed to the common core project have spent decades in schools and other learning environments. To say that the common core was "foisted on teachers without any input from actual people in education" is as ridiculous as it is uninformed. And exactly where do you get the idea that the common core is " scripted instruction that prevents teachers from establishing working relationships with their students?" Once again, these kinds of unfounded remarks are "scripted" by those on the political right who have no experience in education nor have they even taken the time to read the standards and benchmarks of the common core. Why do you choose to speak from a position of ignorance in this comment section? Read the document. The problem of declining test scores in mathematics and reading comes more from pushback from unionized teachers who see the common core as a threat to their lackadaisical approach to classroom instruction and student achievement. American children have suffered too long from ill-prepared and unfocused teaching that results from incompetent teachers protected by their unions. The problem is not with the common core; it lies with those who are responsible for delivering it in the classroom.
1
In a world where knowledge is becoming increasingly important in every aspect of daily life, one would think that a solid educational foundation is essential. As the leading country in the free world with the world's largest economy, it is absolutely shocking that we would tolerate second rate performance in many, if not most, of our schools. And, yet we tolerate lack of fundamental knowledge every day without even blinking an eye. For example, how many people do not even know basic facts about our country's history, who their elected representatives are, basic scientific facts, such as the boiling point of water at sea level, etc.
A good education is not optional. It is essential. We need to refocus our values so that we not only understand that to be the case but we strive to make that the case, regardless of the cost, the politics, the teachers' unions, etc. This is not something we need to debate. This is something we need to do. And, like most things of value in life it requires hard work by parents, teachers, and, particularly, students.
A good education is not optional. It is essential. We need to refocus our values so that we not only understand that to be the case but we strive to make that the case, regardless of the cost, the politics, the teachers' unions, etc. This is not something we need to debate. This is something we need to do. And, like most things of value in life it requires hard work by parents, teachers, and, particularly, students.
22
I agree, but with states cutting school budgets and laying off teachers it is hard to see how we are going to succeed at raising standards. Additionally, the core program requires teachers who majored in the core subjects, at least at the high school level if not junior high, if the material is to be well taught.
"For example, some of the fourth-grade math questions on data analysis, statistics and geometry are not part of that grade’s guidelines under the Common Core and so might not have been covered in class. The largest score drops on the fourth-grade math exams were on questions related to those topics."
So wait...you mean kids did not do as well on a topic that used to be taught at that grade level, but no longer is? Of course they didn't! If this test has questions on skills not relevant to that specific grade level as determined by the common core, than this test is an illegitimate measure. If I taught a bunch of 9 year olds last year how to do basic stats, than tested them on it, I would expect them to do well. If had a new group of 9 year olds this year, did not teach them that topic, but then tested them on it anyhow, of course scores would drop! This is all bogus stats which anyone with a background in the field would laugh off.