From the Trenches...

Is it Fair to Rank U.S. Students Against Those In Other Countries? Part I

In the News

  I sometimes feel inundated with reports about how American students fall so far behind students in other countries. I am getting quite irritated at this pattern! It truly makes me sick to my stomach and I have found myself actually yelling at the television when I hear these stories.

This is Just Part I

  I am not trying to say that American students are smarter than all others. Not even close! I just think it is absurd to compare a set of scores and draw a conclusion that one educational system is superior to another. Those are single glimpses into entire societies. When you hear those comparisons, do you ever hear the influencing factors to those scores? Are you certain every country tests all of their students? Are any students "weeded out" before they are required to take the test? How are the families structured? All of those points are interesting...but for another entry. I would like to make a different comparison today.

The Study and The Mystery

  A "prominent" 2003 study, the "Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study," shows a steady decline in American math and science scores from 4th grade through 12th grade when comparing them to peers in other countries. The study showed the following as the top three scorers (I'll tell you what the numbers in parenthesis are in a minute):

1. South Korea (1)
2. Japan (4)
3. Singapore (35)

  Also ranking above the United States were (in no particular order):

• The Netherlands (36)
• Austria (17)
• Hungary (6)
• Finland (11)
• Australia (41)
• Belgium (12)

Drum-roll Please...

  You would think by looking at this that the United States was certainly not the place to educate your children with all these countries available. There is more to the story, however! I looked at the website for the World Health Organization and, after I did some digging on a few countries, found some interesting information to analyze. The numbers in parenthesis above are where those respective countries rank when it comes to suicide rate among females (I just chose that piece of data just to have something to compare). Do you see anything interesting in the top two? Hmmmmm....I wonder where the United States ranks? Using the same measure, the United States ranks 50th. Canada is also frequently mentioned as having superior and they ranked 42 on the suicide list.

  I am certainly not saying there is a direct connection between suicide and scoring well on a math test. I am contending, however, that there are evidently pressures in many countries that we have to a much lesser degree here in the United States. It is ridiculous to compare single hairs on two heads and think you learn anything useful. Why do you think we don't hear more about this? There are certainly many factors that contribute to such a data set, but I think it is worth including in the story. I think many media outlets as well as government institutions have a vested interest in making American educational institutions look lackluster. Just look at any organization that stands to make money from such a perception. I know our school system can learn many things both internally and externally, but I don't think comparing scores to other countries is productive.

  Again, we will delve into the topics of family structure, who is testing and much more in future posts.

Agree or disagree with any of this? I look forward to your comments!

Thank you for your time and support,

 

http://www.edapple.com 

Sorry Teachers, Money In Your Pocket Is Not The Answer

Thank you, first of all, for the many emails from the previous post! In the future, also feel free to place a "comment" by clicking on the appropriate link at the end of the post so everyone can benefit from your point of view.

Origin of the Thought...

Let me be clear that this blog will not take a stance on politics. I will, however, take stances (sometimes quite bold and unconventional ones) on policy. This post takes such a stance. The impetus for this post came over the weekend when I listened to a speech from a Presidential candidate. Once again, this post is NOT about the candidate, just a component of the speech. Here is an excerpt as it appears in my notes from the speech:

We need to stop giving lip service to how great our teachers are, and start rewarding them for their greatness, with better pay...

I know there must be a major plan behind this statement and I assume there are many details worked out with regards to implementation. This statement by itself, however, can feed a lot of discussion.

On the surface, I have two major issues with this statement.

1. Where does the money come from? Can we afford it?
2. Would raising pay really make a difference?

To me, the answer to question 1 is obvious...of course we can't afford it. I won't, however, discuss funding options in this post. The second question really made me think...

Let's Raise the Question

Let me be clear that I am not talking about school funding for textbooks, technology, etc...This statement seems to be about teacher salaries exclusively. To see if students would benefit from a raise in teacher salaries, let me pose this exaggerated question:

If you get paid twice as much starting tomorrow, what would you do differently for students?

Answers Anyone?

There are two groups of responses to this question:

1. I would do everything the same, or
2. I can specifically list changes I would make in my teaching.

I would like to address these two groups separately. For those who would do everything the same...what's the point of getting a raise? Who benefits? The teacher would certainly benefit, but the benefits stop there. There is an argument to be made that teachers deserve more money based on the number of hours they actually work...which is obviously many more (in most cases) that is written into a  teaching contract. Let's also be honest with each other. The salary of a teacher was not a surprise when you signed on for the job. You did not reel back with your mouth agape upon receiving your first paycheck thinking, "That's it? They promised me more!" I would contend that, since you knew what you were getting into, you don't deserve more money if you are not going to do anything differently once you get it. Nobody can expect a raise if they are not taking on more responsibility, becoming more efficient, or increasing student achievement. People in this group are likely to be stodgy teachers who should probably move on to another profession, anyway. Most people would, I hope (for my own child's sake), fit into the second group.

I would guess that there are many of you in the second group. Think about what you would change more deeply for a moment. Actually write them down...make a list. Separate the list into two categories:

1. Things that cost money, and
2. Things that don't cost money.

Many of the things people feel "motivated" to do differently do not cost money at all. I have questioned several teachers this morning, trying to get at the heart of this issue. It sometimes is a matter of feeling appreciated, valued, and respected. Folks, if you are looking for money to do that, you are in deep trouble. I certainly understand the urge (I have it myself from time to time). We need to look, however, around the money and into the eyes of children that we affect. That is where the motivation comes from to do the things we know are right and are without cost.

If you listed things that you would do differently that DO cost money, please enter a comment at the end of this article! Some teachers say they would use their own money to purchase more materials (the average teacher already spends in excess of $300 of personal funds on school supplies), upgrade technology, or maybe acquire appropriate subscription services on the internet to benefit students. I think most of these teachers do this sort of thing anyway. I know my wife, for instance, spends more than double the national average when it comes to personally funding her public school. Herein lies the rub: These teachers will never be satisfied with what they are able to do in the classroom. As soon as they have access to more money, they would discover more things that could benefit their classroom! I don't believe the answer, then, is to give individual teachers money directly into their pocket. Meaning, I don't think this will directly correlate to increased student achievement. I do not agree with those who say schools should, as a whole, be run like business. I do agree, however, that there is definitely a business component to running schools as it relates to finances. I would like to hear from any district level administrator who disagrees with that statement.

Proposed Solution

There needs to be a way to keep this last group of educators thinking, "What else can I do to benefit my students?" If our nation suddenly has the funds to raise teacher salaries, I propose that we use the money in a different way. Give smaller chunks of this money directly to the schools specifically dedicated for teacher use. The rest of the money can go for other necessary educational programs. Motivated teachers can fill out a small, one page, application for the funds describing how they will use the money to benefit students...a sort of grant. Once per month, a school level group looks through the applications, with the names removed, to decide which projects aid students the most. These can be quick decisions and they will benefit the teachers who would like to go to a conference, purchase project supplies, etc...

I'm sorry, I just don't think an across the board raise will benefit students. Even if the raise is only for "good" teachers, I don't know of a way to measure that! It is something that can be obvious when you see it but hard to define. We certainly can't use things like test scores, discipline reports or observations as a measure. These things all have too many factors to be fair. There is too much room for scandal and corruption.

I look forward to hearing what you think...

Regards,