Citizen Concerns from Social Studies Folks

Area educators unhappy with state


Dr. Tony Bennett and the Indiana Department of Education have failed social studies. In the rush to reform K-12 social studies education, the IDOE is harming students and teachers. The proposed changes to the way Indiana social studies teachers receive and renew their licenses will mean that excellent secondary social studies teachers will lose their jobs. This is not the way to reform K-12 education.

Currently, statistics show a 50 percent turnover rate for first-year teachers within the first five years in public schools. The proposed changes will only continue to increase the numbers of highly qualified educators leaving the profession.

In addition to changes in licensure, the IDOE implemented an inferior ISTEP+ social studies test this past spring and published the results without consideration of the test as a first-year pilot program that may have contained flaws imbedded in the questions. Because of the poor quality of the test, we do not know if 40 percent of the students failed the test or if the test failed 100 percent of our students. The test is harming the very students the reform efforts are supposed to be helping.
Finally, the IDOE refuses to communicate with schools about the changes in testing and licensure. This failure to communicate is demoralizing public education. Is the goal of K-12 educational reform to improve public education or destroy it?

We must hold Dr. Bennett and the IDOE accountable for the damage being done to our schools.

— Chris McGrew, president, Indiana Council for the Social Studies, Fort Wayne; and Todd M. Read, board member,Indiana Council for the Social Studies Teacher, Clarksville Community School Corp.

Reflecting the Complete Picture

Teacher education rules must reflect complete picture

"FOR the past two months, I have been immersed in the new proposed rules for teacher education and licensing from the Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett.

The Rules for Educator Preparation and Accountability represent significant changes to teacher preparation and the licensing of teachers and administrators.

Bennett has said teachers need to know more content. He further implies that if teachers know more content and/or know it better, then students will perform better in school, at least on standardized tests.


Here are a few of my reflections on that premise:

• First, there is no question that teachers must know and understand content well. They must be able to explain concepts and issues to students from a variety of perspectives and must be able to assist each, individual student with her/his understanding.
  
  
• Yet, I remind myself about the rapidity with which content/knowledge is changing. It will not be enough for any teacher to know only his/ her content well. It will be equally important that each teacher knows how to learn, where to find new information and how to analyze critically new information, in a way to share it with students, and be able to instill those skills in students.

• Also, it is vital that each teacher knows how individual kids learn, what gets them excited about learning and how to channel their energy and excitement productively into understanding and being able to use new information.

• A final point is that each teacher needs to have the skills to work with students in our rapidly changing classrooms.
  

As a teacher-educator and school board member, I worry that the new proposals swing the pendulum too far in one direction without considering the more complete picture about “content,” the importance of teachers’ understanding kids and how they learn and the reality that our classrooms are changing at a great rate."

Jill Shedd is president of Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. Board. Comment on REPA  Read this commentary in its entirety here.

Fairy Tales, Lies, and Myths - Shame on you Indy Star

I read with interest Andy Gammill's article in the Indy Star Sunday (click here to read it) and have a few questions that I would like to ask him. In the first paragraph, where did Stephanie Parido learn to push her 12 year olds to make complex analyses?

Further down in the sixth paragraph, it asks, "Is it a good thing that more of Indiana's children are being taught by educators who have not undergone traditional training? Generally, education leaders think it is." Who exactly are these leaders that Mr. Gammill aludes to? He goes onto say that the non-traditional teacher "offers a boost of enthusiasm". I had the opportunity to speak to a graduating senior from an education program after her first day of student teaching this week. The sparkle in her eyes, the enthusiasm in her voice, the glow in her cheeks was unbelievable. She was walking on air with excitement and passion.

Mr. Gammill goes on to state, "Some research..." without citing any sources, which I find a bit troubling for an educational article . Later, he comments, "Other educators..." which is again problematic for credibility's sake.


"What is clear is that political support for these programs has never been stronger. Both Gov. Mitch Daniels, a Republican, and President Barack Obama, a Democrat are pushing for more opportunities for those without education degrees to become educators." This is emphatically false. Yes, Mitch Daniels is. No, President Obama is not. I ran a search for all of the educational comments by President Obama and not one even suggests this supposed point of view.

"The studies do give some weight to the idea that alternatively certified teachers can do more harm than good in reading, but the programs think they can fix that," is also stated in Mr. Gammill's article. Wow! I thought the whole point of education was to have a literate society that can make decisions based on democratic principles. Pretty difficult without the ability to read... As to "fix that", wouldn't one assume that this had been already addressed when sending out non-traditionally certified teachers by the hundreds of thousands?

There is much more that is troubling in this article, but I will stop now due to the amount I have already shared. The rest of the article is more of the same, half-truths, mythical thinking, and fairy tales.

A Teacher Speaks Out

I cannot help but to think of the latest Ken Burn’s documentary about our National Parks when I reflect upon the current changes to teacher certification proposed by the Indiana Department of Education.  The documentary focuses on the heroic efforts of John Muir as he tried desperately to conserve America’s frontier from the dangers of industrialization and greed.  While I in no way equate myself to Muir, I do see the struggle facing Indiana Education today on par with the one in which Muir engaged.  Make no mistake that the changes proposed would have lasting effects, changing the landscape of Indiana education for generations to come.  I wonder if those who have proposed these changes truly have the foresight to see how dangerous they are.  The cynic in me says that they have, but they simply do not care.  Their motivations cannot be about helping all students succeed and therefore must be driven by politics and ideology.  While this is pure speculation on my part, what is true is that the changes they propose are not motivated by facts and research for the reasons they give are unfounded and weak.  Just as Muir feared for all that he held sacred, I fear for the children of Indiana.

            My own experience speaks very well to the changes being put forth.  I was a person who came to teaching later in life.  I received my Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Theatre and when I graduated, teaching high school was the furthest thing from my mind.  However, in the often-bent path that life can sometimes take, I found myself wanting to teach.  In order to do so I had to go back to school to receive my teaching license.  The process would take two years because there were not any expedited programs in the field of my choice, theatre.  In the beginning, I questioned the validity of such an undertaking.  I felt that I had all the knowledge I needed to teach.  As my graduate level education classes started, I soon learned that I was ignorant of so much.  Classes ranged from the extremely practical, such as a technology course on how to use it effectively in the classroom, to those who’s practicality was not apparent at first, but who’s worth was found as I started teaching.  Those classes have stayed with me to this day.  My Secondary Curriculum professor had a profound influence on how I saw and continue to see education.  Through his class I was able to see teaching past the context of the content of my major and through a larger lens.  It was here that I first realized I was teaching students about so much more than theatre; I was preparing them for the rest of their lives. 

            My first day of teaching was eye opening to say the least.  Because I was eager to start and because the school that hired me was desperate to fill their need, I started midway through the year without any formal student teaching experience.  My first day of class was my first day of student teaching.  After two days I was openly questioning whether or not I had made a good choice.  In those first weeks I leaned heavily on my content knowledge and it was failing me.  My students didn’t seem to care about my extensive education within theatre.  It was then that I reached out to Kipchoge Kirkland, my Secondary Curriculum professor.  He came to my classes, and with his help I was able to effectively use those things I had learned in my education classes but had abandoned.  I found my passion to teach.  That passion sustained me for five more years and fueled my desire to pursue a higher degree in education so that I might instill that same passion in others.

            The passion that I found in those education classes will die under these new proposals.  Why would we want passionless teachers?  Why would we want ineffectual teachers?  I am not here to say that teacher certification in the state of Indiana should not be evaluated and changed but not in the way that others are proposing.  I am past the point of being equitable in my critique of these changes.  I am past the point of trying to show them real data that clearly refutes their ideas.  They are not listening.  These people are wrong.  Superintendent Bennett is wrong.  Governor Daniels is wrong.  They are wrong, and the changes they propose will devastate the future of this state.  Imagine a place where there aren’t any places of higher learning dedicated to improve teaching and education.  A place where teachers are ill-equipped to face the challenges that students with disabilities and students from low income families present.  Imagine a place where teachers teach the same for each student without regard to their needs or abilities.  A place where teachers are not life long learners themselves thereby losing out on the newest techniques and innovations that educational research has to offer.  A place where teachers become frustrated because they do not have the tools to reach their students effectively and they leave the profession at a higher rate than they do now.  Imagine an education system so broken that it is beyond repair.  When we find ourselves in that place, we will wonder why we didn’t do more to stop these proposed changes. 

It is a reoccurring nightmare for me.  It is one that I fear, not only for all children of Indiana, but my own daughter.  Will she have the teachers she deserves?  Will they be teachers with strong content knowledge AND an extensive background in how to teach?  Will they be properly equipped to inspire her?  Will they be able to tailor their teaching to her needs? Or will my daughter find herself in the broken education system I fear?   As John Muir feared what men might do to his beloved trees, I fear what these men will do to the future of our children.                         

The Business of Teacher Training

Finally, some decent reporting on the DOE's proposal for changing teacher qualifications--why the Indy Star can't see beyond the political BS & double-talk is beyond me.....
Key Points:

• Bennett's proposal markedly lowers standards in content for teachers (regardless of what he says);
• Bennett's proposal would hurt all of the teacher preparation programs in Indiana (even private programs like Butler and Marion);
• Bennett's proposal would allow taking a test to substitute for license renewal & becoming an administrator (so much for professionalism and life-long learners, eh?);
• Bennett hates Schools of Education.....what's he afraid of??  Folks that have dedicated their lives to studying what works in education?  or is he just afraid of real data?
• Bennett's proposal is gambling with Indiana's children as there is no data that suggests these programs will work (the story here is about one teacher....how many don't make it a year?)
• and finally, you might not read about in the Star but there's been a lot of improvement in Indiana, why such radical reform?  It makes you wonder that this about something else.... passing the costs on to someone else?  deregulation? privatization? Sounds like Mitch, hmm?

Overhaul of teacher training threatens college budgets

J.K. Wall

October 3, 2009

KEYWORDS

EDUCATION & WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, GOVERNMENT & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, K-12, STATE GOVERNMENT, TEACHERS

...A survey by the Indiana Association of Colleges for Teacher Education found that secondary education majors take as many or more courses in English, biology, chemistry, U.S. history and Spanish than their peers majoring in those subjects.  “This isn’t a race to the top in these rules; it’s a race to the bottom,” said Ena Shelley, dean of Butler’s College of Education.

Education deans also fault Bennett’s rules for moving back to an old model of strict credit-hour requirements, undercutting 10 years of efforts to tie teacher-training to specific standards, measured by tests taken by teachers and by students.  That was the goal of the current rule system for teacher licensing, called Rules 2002. And some credit the system with the general improvement in Indiana students’ scores on the ISTEP and SAT tests.

“Indiana has gotten better, not worse, since 2002,” said John Jacobson, dean of the Ball State University Teachers College. “That’s an indicator that maybe the standards-based system is working.” ....

Read More: http://www.ibj.com/educators-divided/PARAMS/article/7378

Public Hearings Set on Lowering Teacher Standards

Posted in the Indy Star today.....we now have less than 30 days to post Public Comment on a disastrous policy for Indiana's children.  I honestly believe that the powers that be are counting on our silence as they move to dismantle public education.  Remember that Dr. Bennett specifically denied requests for the hearings to be in the evening so that working parents, teachers, and administrators could attend--so much for democracy.

 Indiana Citizens is worried.....are you?

Public hearings set on plans for teacher licensing

Posted: October 3, 2009

The state Department of Education has scheduled three public hearings on a contentious proposal to revamp Indiana's teacher licensing requirements.

The meetings are a chance for teachers and others to voice opinions about the changes being considered by the Indiana Professional Standards Board.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett wants to eliminate some requirements, saying teachers spend too much time learning teaching methods and not enough time on subject matter. Opponents worry that the changes would weaken standards without improving teacher quality.

The hearings are scheduled for Oct. 27 in Rochester, Oct. 29 in Scottsburg and Nov. 2 in Indianapolis.

Comments also may be submitted online at www.doe.in.gov/ repacomment until Oct. 30.

Public Comment on Teacher Standards

Here is the  link for submission of written testimony re: REPA, Rules for Educator Preparation and Accountability http://mustang.doe.state.in.us/dg/repa/welcome.cfm
The site will be available through October 30 and the Board is required to take these comments into consideration.

Individuals are encouraged to provide comments/concerns/questions about REPA.  PLEASE be sure that comments are made to the most recent version of REPA, available at http://www.doe.in.gov/news/2009/07-July/09-481_Proposed_Rule.pdf. 


We really do need comments, questions, and concerns here as (in our view), the powers that be are counting on the apathy of Indiana citizens--let's prove them wrong!