Summing up the Harford Education Leadership Conference held in April, co-host Harford Business Roundtable for Education outlines what it calls “reasonable expectations” for the future of Harford County Public Schools. Among these expectations, that all students are challenged to meet their potential and that mainstream education is treated as a privilege; curricula and educational programs must be demonstrably effective, and educators must be removed when they do not meet measurable performance standards.
This is the last in a series of reports on the 2010 Harford Education Leadership Conference published by The Dagger.
HBRT Focus Areas
After a great deal of reflection and analysis of the work group feedback, the HBRT Executive Committee believes that the stakeholders as well as our elected/appointed leadership communicated a “consensus” on certain positions they felt strongly about for the future of our education system. They are:
Every student should be challenged to meet his or her potential: While there should be equality in access and opportunity to an education, it is the education systems responsibility to identify the capability of each child and to help them fully realize their own, individual potential.
Mainstream education is a privilege: Every student and every student’s family must be invested in his or her own education and conform to the norms of the school community in order to remain a part of that community. Respecting “individuality” must be tempered with the education system’s duty to a) ensure that no student interferes with another’s learning and b) develop good citizens.
Schools are part of our overall society: While the Board of Education, County Council and County Executive each have separate and distinct authority and responsibilities for public education, these functions cannot be acted on independently. School successes and failures are shared by all. Collaboration between the school system, the various government agencies and all stakeholders in the community is essential. This collaboration needs to be constant and not driven only by budget or election cycles.
Curricula and educational programs should be proven effective: The education system must be able to ensure that the programs it implements are effective and be able to objectively demonstrate that effectiveness. Curricula also need to be developed efficiently. HCPS should explore what works in other systems and rely less on internally developed programs.
Technology is only a tool: Virtually every career choice requires that employees have a mastery of various technologies. Moreover, technology can be used to increase the effectiveness of school operations and the management of educational programs. Technology is also expensive and prone to early obsolescence. Administrators must be prudent in making decisions on which technologies to introduce and invest in only those that can be sustained over time.
Teachers and administrators must have accountability: The community recognizes the value of professional educators. The education system must support good teachers and administrators with appropriate compensation and effective professional development programs. Effective teachers should be treated with the respect due every professional. They are also entitled to objective and comprehensive feedback on their performance. But in the end, accountability tools must be introduced and educators who cannot, or will not, meet measurable performance standards must be removed.
The HBRT Executive Committee believes these are reasonable expectations and is committed to working with all of those in leadership positions to advance these as a means to improving student achievement.
Your article on “Education Leadership Conference Outlines Focus Areas for Harford Schools: Meeting Students’ Needs, Offering Effective Programs, Accountability from Educators” has at its last point that “…accountability tools must be introduced and educators who cannot, or will not, meet measurable performance standards must be removed.”
This concept is based on the premise that students will improve their test scores if only the teacher tried a little bit harder. It fails because it makes teachers accountable for student behavior without real authority to change it. Only parents have this authority and many of them refuse to participate in the educational process of their children. Student improvement would be more effective if parents were evaluated instead. Perhaps then the television would be turned off, computer games locked up, meals put on the table and student attendance assured.
An old folk saying is one can “…lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.” Education is a labor intensive process that requires hours of rigorous and intensive work ON THE PART OF THE STUDENT. One cannot pour knowledge into someone’s head. Only the student can learn knowledge and skills through his own efforts. Holding teachers solely accountable for the effort students must make to learn is pushing a string uphill. No amount of effort, materials or technique will be effective.
Certainly educators can improve this process with appropriate materials and resources; I have worked forty years in schools without enough textbooks, teachers, library materials or technology to know what role these resources play in education. But Americans believe all goals must come easily. We have spent so much effort in making education “interesting” “fun” or “relevant” and boosting “self confidence” that we have lost sight of the fact that learning is work. In the end, only a student can decide for himself that education is something to value and work for.
And that student who decides for himself that education is something to value and work for deserves a competent teacher. Nowhere in your post did you mention the possibility of a inadequate, ineffective, or apathetic teacher and what should be done about it.
The reality is that the teaching profession is made up of a cross section of society. And just like in other professions most are average, some good, and some not so good. The vast majority are competent. Since 50% of new teachers leave the profession within the first five years many of the not so good self select to separate from teaching because they discover they are not that good at it. Likewise many good and promising teachers leave the profession for many of the reasons espoused by Gary. Exit interviews from teachers leaving the profession frequently cite student apathy, lack of parental support, indifferent school administrations regarding student misconduct, and inadequate pay. Large numbers of teachers feel that while they must have white collar credentials (with all the associated costs of earning a Masters degree) they are treated like blue collar assembly line workers. The cost/benefit does not add up when you consider that many public sector jobs like law enforcement and fire fighters make just as much or more then teachers with no college requirement.
That was not mentioned because every teacher is observed and evaluated each year as part of their contract. I see many laymen who do not understand the educational process make this mistake. All they ask is that the process if fair.
Wow, when is all this individual educational potential supposed to begin? My kids have been waiting for over a decade. When is Everyday Math going to be retired from service, like so many other districts have done? it certainly doesn’t meet a proven, effective curriculum.
Gary is absolutely correct. As a metaphor, you cannot hold a Doctor responsible if his patient does not follow the medical path prescribed. The same with teachers. If a good teacher has a class with undisciplined, unmotivated students he should not be compared to a teacher with AP students whose parents are highly invested. A highly motivated student with parental support and controls at home can even overcome a bad teacher, a good teacher can take the student to an even higher level. But, major problems at home the schools powerless to do anything but sbort term detentions and suspensions, missed days and lateness add up to poor student achievement and that is not the fault of the teacher. Teacher accountability tools must take into account the types of students a teacher is given.
When they come out with these new teacher evaluation criteria there should also be a place for teachers to grade parents. The correlation between parent involvement and student success is undeniable. So if a student is failing in school the greatest likelihood is that the parent is failing at their responsibilities as well. Teachers and school systems should not have to be parents as well, they already have enough to do.
Every jurisdiction in maryland has a way to deal with incompetent teachers. All that teachers ask is that due process be followed.
I think in all the finger pointing and accountability we are missing the big point. Schools are about communities and investing in our future. We need programs to help students who may not enter school with the skills or family support necessary for success to be successful. We all need to work cooperatively to ensure that we promote an egalitarian educational system.
Please pardon my double post but I forgot to mention something. Equal access to free public education is not a privilege. It is a right.