I recently heard on KOMO 4 television news that Washington state high schools rank among the lowest in terms of requirements, and also have a high dropout rate.
Bill Gates proposed that Washington should mirror other state's requirements for graduation, including more math, foreign language, science and social studies. Gates also suggested more intervention with schools struggling to meet the standards, as well as giving teachers more compensation for their important work.
Not only are Washington schools struggling to perform, but schools around the nation don't make the cut compared to schools in other high performing countries in Asia and Europe. In efforts to keep up, the No Child Left Behind act was instituted and Washington now requires high school students to pass the WASL in order to graduate.
Many teachers now must work with students on different aspects that will be covered in the WASL. Students are being taught how to take the test, rather than simply being taught the basic and fundamental topics of any education.
A recent article in the New York Times ("As Math Scores Lag, a New Push for the Basics," by Tamar Lewin) also addresses the poor performance by students in the United States. Lewin states that parents are paying an increased amount of money for tutoring than in the past, implying their children are not being taught the basics in school by their teachers. Professionals admit that the math situation is in dire need of reform.
A recent article in The Seattle Times also discussed the poor math curriculum students are being taught. Parents want the math portion of the WASL to be reexamined, and for new curricula to be implemented in schools.
No wonder kids are bored in school. In order to continue moving up a grade and eventually graduate high school, learning time is mainly spent filling rote requirements and learning how to pass the WASL. Learning is not being stimulated, as it should be.
There are of course, exceptions, depending on the subject, the school's curriculum and the teacher. For most public schools in Washington, however, so-called "teaching to the test" is an issue. Students are not being prepared for higher grades or college by learning fundamentals and engaging in creative learning-at least not to the degree that they should.
Both Gates and Gov. Chistine Gregoire agree that students are not prepared for higher education once they graduate high school; Gregoire's task force has put together a plan (The Washington Learns 2006 report) to improve the state's education system.
Part of this plan involves more of an emphasis on math and science in schools; increasing high school graduation requirements; evaluating and limiting math curriculum to a few choices (rather than several); implementing more creative learning; and tailoring education to children's individuals skills and interests.
If standardized testing-such as the WASL-was abolished or simply not held to such a high premium, might teachers and students better be able to engage in active learning together? Education should be enriching, allowing students to explore possibilities and discover how the world works. Education should naturally stimulate and flow with a student's innate curiosity, rather than routinely forcing standards upon them. Learning happens most when one most wants to learn.
Strict requirements, standardized tests, starting kids earlier than kindergarten and encouraging more outside schoolwork does not necessarily make kids smarter, and it certainly does not inspire them to engage in learning.
Solutions to these problems do not come easy. Parental involvement in a child's learning process is essential. Keeping open lines of communication with teachers and administration, and getting involved with what is going on in the school district, is also important.
Perhaps if the focus moves-from pushing our students to be smarter than their peers in other countries, to focusing on where our students are right now in the learning process-we can give them the tools they need to be as successful as they can be.
Once the focus has been re-adjusted, youth might actually enjoy school again-so that when I ask the question, "How was school today?" they might respond, "It was interesting, we learned about..."
Ashley Marshall works as a teen mentor at the Magnolia Community Center.[[In-content Ad]]
