Finding a Balance

I saw a couple of pictures online that I wanted to share, to follow up on the Standard Core Curriculum post I wrote the other day.

 

All the assessments students are required to do, this must be how the students feel or at least how the teachers feel the students must be feeling. 

However, assessments are important part of decision making processes in education.

How to balance these two? 

When we have standards to keep, we need assessments, but tests after tests and just teaching to students to the tests are not the answer.  There is so much more to school than what can be tested.  As I went through high school and college here, I remember my mother commenting to me on how (compared to those in Japan) the people educated in the US tend to be more creative in their thinking and better able to think critically.  I think it's just a small example of what is positive about the US education.  Although we may want our students to have certain levels of academic knowledge, we need a balance so that we don't lose sight of those positive aspects of our current education system. 

What is college for?

As an advisor, I often get asked by students something like "what job can I get with this major"?  The Colleges of Arts and Sciences place a great value on its liberal arts education.  Our majors don't necessarily lead students straight into a career as the education major or nursing major, for example, may.  This can be a frustrating concept for some students, especially in this time and age when the jobs are harder to come by even for college graduates.  However, the Arts and Sciences curriculum provides students with much opportunity to gain the knowledge, perspectives, skills, and experiences that would be applicable not only to a variety of careers but also to students' lives in general. 

One day, I was asked by a student, a military veteran, "what is a college degree good for"?  I was going to give my "standard" answer about liberal arts education, but then I caught myself.  The "transferable" skills and knowledge that I talk about can be gained not only through college education/experiences but also through the military experiences as well.  Then I went on to explain that some jobs just require college degrees, which is true, but I felt silly as I was saying it.  The student even commented why that should be so and how he would probably be as good of a candidate for these jobs as those who just graduated from college.

This student was attending the university mostly because he receives VA benefits for college education, not necessarily because he had a purpose per se or an interest in a particular area of study.  This is NOT to say that all veteran students come with no interest (because many do!) and all non-military students come to college with much enthusiasm about a particular area of study.  I just think that there are students who are in college just because their parents want them to or because they just feel that a college degree is somehow needed to get a "good" job, etc. although they may best benefit from professional training or techincal schools, for example. 

What exactly do you think the employers are looking for in their candidates by requiring a four-year degree, especially when they do not necessarily require a certain set of field-specific skills (as in accounting or teaching, for examples)?  Do you think the 4-year requirement is warranted in all the jobs out there that are requiring such a degree? 

I just wanted to throw these questions out there for some food for thought. 

I strongly believe in the liberal arts education.  I am a product of it and currently work in a field that base its work on such education.  Although I may not have wanted to take some of the courses I had to take in college, I am glad I did because, as I got older, I very much appreciate the knowledge and perspectives I gained in those courses.  I really do think that my undergraduate education has given me so much that have benefited me in various facets of my life. 

Common Core State Standards

 

A fool with a tool is still a fool. A fool with a powerful tool is a dangerous fool.

~Michale Fullen (a renowned international authority on school reform)~

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/03/04/principal-i-was-naive-about-common-core/

 

This article is not necessarily about higher education, but it caught my eye and I wanted to share it with you because it has some issues that were brought up in class discussions. 

 

It may not be that the Common Core is not the bad guy in itself, however, how the standards are delivered in the schools and how the assessments are utilized seem to be some of the issues that are being questioned.  The author of the article, Carol Burris, mentions that she originally thought that "the Common Core would be a student-centered reform based on principles of equity".  It may be a good idea to have general standards for students/teachers, however, if that results only in assessments and teaching towards those assessments, the Common Core is not contributing to the education reform in a way that would help students develop the knowledge, skills, and personal characteristics/attributes to become contributing members of society.  According to Michael Fullen, a renowned international authority on school reform, "the Common Core standards will fall of their own weight because standards and assessments, rather than curriculum and instruction are driving the Common Core". 

 

Another issue that stood out to me was that there is a huge testing company not only making tests for a state but also making test prep materials.  Is education becoming all about monetary profits and politics?  (If you are interested, there is an additional article that I also found interesting: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alan-singer/cuomo-common-core-and-pearson_b_1293465.html). 

 

What do you all think about Common Core?  These students will be coming into the higher education systems in the future.  What do we think the Common Core will/may influence curricula in higher education?