POSTED ON BEHALF OF DOUG

Slightly off topic but I will bring it back. The demographics of California have been shifting away from Republicans as the Latino population grows. The Latinos are very aware that the GOP wanted to keep them out and wants to keep their relatives out. Gov Gerry Brown is not just a Democrat but a fairly left Dem as well.

The idiotic policy of Donnelly is not just counter productive “every single teacher reads that policy as this guy hates us” but the electorate will see through it in one second,  scapegoat gimmic. Risible if not dangerous policy.

My first thoughts - a good idea for all the bad politicians. Of course, reading the comments - a lot of folks think it should be used on politicians and not on the teachers. To which it is a pretty stupid idea that politician has in mind. I would want to have his IQ assess and a measure of his ability to see the big picture - all facets. Politicians these days seem to be lacking the big picture abilities. They all appear to be running deficits in the big picture abilities, and only have the ability to look at one small piece of the larger puzzle. The only trouble is with that kind of thinking, the solutions don’t work and often defies logic and the realities on the ground.

The question goes begging - isn’t there any decent politicians left in the world?  No,  but that can’t be said about teachers who for the vast majority are decent teachers who need like other employees, decent training for the 21st century classroom, so the students can go out and slain   the dragon of bad politicians with stupid solutions.

School To Prison Pipeline, Unemployment, Hopelessness . . .

Here is an inspiring video of a Teach For America teacher talking to new TFA recruits:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/21/elijah-miles-teach-america_n_3792763.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

Yes, it’s American.  Yes, the maladies listed in the title refer to recent issues relating to American education.

But, I’m concerned about the illiteracy in Canada, which seems to remain a constant 40% over the last decade. 

More concerning is what’s coming out of High Schools.

Here is a quote from a 2012 report:

“43% of all students leaving Canada’s high schools have Level 1 or 2 skills. Some students obtain their grade 12 diploma but don’t have the skills that the level of education implies.” - Canada Literacy and Learning Network, 2012

CLLN is funded by the Government of Canada’s Office of Literacy and Essential Skills.

“Youth who do not succeed in school or who ‘fall through the cracks’ are less likely to set and achieve healthy goals. They are more likely to engage in behaviours that are antisocial, unhealthy, or illegal.”

“The survey conceptualizes literacy along a continuum of proficiency from Level 1 (low literacy skills) to Level 5 (strong literacy skills), with Level 3 being the skill level needed for most literacy tasks in our society.”

http://www.literacy.ca/content/uploads/2012/12/State-of-the-Field-2012.pdf

I think that Canada could very well adopt a program such as TFA, specializing in teaching reading and comprehension, to reach those populations not reading at Level 3.  That would be for the adult population.

Of course, it’s a shame that our teachers in the schools of Canada still produce 43% graduates with such low skill levels.  Why isn’t there early identification at the Grade 3, Grade 4 level so that early intervention can take place before the whole slippery slope starts happening (Matthew Effect). 

This, to me, says we have bad teaching in Canada, and don’t twist it around to say: “It’s not a failure of teaching, it’s a failure to learn.”  That’s a terrible cop-out!  We know enough from the smorgasbord of strategies and approaches to help most students.  Again, it’s that old ideological, political stubbornness that stands in the way of common sense and doing what’s right by the young people.  Shame. 

Where’s the GOOFY AWARD ?

Nancy,

nicely said.  Love the IQ bit given our family’s code - see below.

Malkin.

American madness on the blog again?  I know it is compelling.  It is human nature to gawk at a train wreck.  Periodically members of my own family indulge in bad Americana for the same reasons - we cannot believe how stupid it is yet we cannot look away.  Our television sometimes stops at Housewives of New Jersey, and even tries to keep up with the Kardashians .... and then someone in the room shakes us from the stupor by stating,  ‘quick change the channel I feel my IQ plummeting exponentially! 

best,  Mirka

POSTED ON BEHALF OF DOUG

To Tunya,

Funny for a Libertarian to site government sources that basically say we need more money. Those literacy figures are a joke. Point to a nation that puts a higher % of students in post secondary or has more post secondary graduates. you cannot because Canada is #1 on this planet.

You can blame teachers or pedagogy until the cows come home but they have precisious little to do with it. You can interchange the teachers from the highly successful schools with the weak schools and it makes zero difference. The OECD/PISA says poverty is the critical factor and the denial of this is risible.

You can change the teachers, change the admin, change the pedagogy, change the curriculum, you will not even make a dent in the issue until you move massive resources from the 1% towards the bottom 20%.

TFA is a joke and is under increasing pressure in the USA as it moves from a Peace Core operation to a scab organization and an incompetent source of chep labour for charter schools. They are one of the reasons for charter failure not charter success. KIPP relies heavily on TFA and increasingly ‘testing’ ironic isn’t it, is showing KIPP to be a failing proposition. KIPP grads who do make it to college drop out before getting a degree at much higher than average numbers. Thanks TFA.

(My blog page back up. good)

well said, Doug!

“You can change the teachers, change the admin, change the pedagogy, change the curriculum, you will not even make a dent in the issue until you move massive resources from the 1% towards the bottom 20%.”

Easily done, when the teachers’ faculties across the globe are training teachers according to the 19th century ‘knowledge’ matrix, using 21st century values. The education faculties no matter what part of the world it hails from, do love to trained teachers on the basis that intelligence is fixed, when it was proven years ago that intelligence is not fixed. After all, the public education system was designed for the expressed purpose of delivering education services and NOT receiving an education. All 19th century concepts that are still with us in the 21st century, where education in the 21st century means educating students by the 19th century ‘knowledge’ matrix of what was known in the learning and cognitive fields.

So easy back in the 19th century, to blame it on low income and other external variables. So easy to continue to blame it on the external variables in today’s schools, when the public education system are fighting tooth and nail to prevent the science from entering the education faculties, the school boards and the schools.

Hello group,

Nancy has said on many occasions just as above, ” education faculties no matter what part of the world .......education in the 21st century means education students by the 19th century knowledge matrix of what was know in the learning and cognitive fields” .

Nancy,

1. Prove it.  Just saying does not make it so.
2.  Please define your understanding of
      * KNOWLEDGE MATRIX
      * COGNITIVE FIELDS

very much appreciated.  Mirka