After I attended the dismal Knoxville Workforce Summit in March, 2008, I was inspired to write to the Tennessee Board of Education regarding my concerns about curriculum changes.
I first wrote to Rachel Woods:
Ms. Woods,
Your name is listed as the contact for this announcement: http://www.tennesseeanytime.org/governor/viewArticleContent.do?id=1169
I have just had the opportunity to read this, and I am both shocked and gravely concerned.
It may interest you to know that, while participating today in a focus group made up of practicing middle school and high school teachers, counselors, and administrators from several systems, I was intrigued to learn that only one person knew of the impending curriculum changes. If the Tennessee Board of Education is redefining curriculum standards that affect these individuals, why are they unaware?
As a citizen and an educator, I wholeheartedly support the establishment of academic standards. I agree we need to do away with the existing, bifurcated system of college-prep and vocational tracks in high schools. However, I disagree strongly when more-stringent academic standards are touted as a way to prepare students for success in the future.
When “The Ready Core” was being developed “according to what 21st century students should know upon graduation to succeed in higher education and the workplace,” did anyone review existing federal and private-sector studies from the past 25 years that identify skills that will be required for workers of the future? SCANS and CSAW come immediately to mind. So does the research of academicians such as Drs. Frank Levy and Richard Murnane. Most of these studies overlap, which — to me — ratifies their findings.
Did anyone ask business and industry representatives what critical skills these workers need? I heard an educator from Blount County today say DENSO, one of the region’s top employers, indicated hands-down it needs workers who know life and work skills, such as the importance of being on-time, rather than workers who can conjugate verbs. Nationwide, employers have identified higher-order thinking skills (e.g., problem-solving, thinking about thinking, taking responsibility for one’s own learning) as indispensable. Where are those skills in “The Ready Core” model?
Did anyone review the workplace literacy standards of the U. S. Chamber of Commerce-initiated National Work Readiness Credential or ACT’s WorkKeys system? Both of these programs are geared toward ensuring America’s youth are ready to enter the workplace and be successful. Guess what: Neither program mentions additional credits in health, science, or math.
At UT in Knoxville you will find our state’s resources supporting Equipped for the Future, a national initiative that contains sixteen skill areas identified as requirements for success in life and work. See http://eff.cls.utk.edu/fundamentals/eff_roles.htm. EFF just held a two-day conference — right there in Nashville — that was described as “a skills-based course designed for implementation in organizations and agencies involved in preparing their clients and students for entry level work.”
In reviewing specifics of The Tennessee Diploma Project/”The Ready Core” at http://jc-schools.net/ProfDev/agendas/JCHS-Feb5.pdf, I discovered bits and pieces of EFF and other initiatives that indicate the Tennessee Board of Education had the right idea, but somehow the target was lost.
Rather than waiting for youth to exit secondary education in Tennessee, why don’t our state’s curriculum standards incorporate EFF and others’ recommendations? If the Tennessee Board of Education doesn’t think they are important, why is the Board of Regents providing EFF a home in our fine state?
Who decided “honors” granted to Tennessee high school graduates should be tied to nationalized norms (ACT and SAT)? While it may be acceptable to judge our Tennessee’s education system against national benchmarks, our students should be gauged according to the aggregate success or failure of their peers within our state. If Tennessee high schoolers advance, even incrementally, the overall system will improve.
What plan does “The Ready Core” make for students who can not meet these revised curriculum standards? We already have enough individuals who leave secondary education unprepared for life. It seems to me all “The Ready Core” will do is mark more youth as failures.
What a great way to send them into adulthood.
(Ms.) Billie R. McNamara
Knoxville, TN
B. S., Elementary Education
M. S. Candidate, Adult Education
Ms. Woods responded the next day:
Good Morning Ms. McNamara:
I cannot speak on behalf of the state board as they are our regulatory and oversight body for pre-K through 12 education in Tennessee. However, I did want to assure you that the department has planned and is launching a 15 month intensive professional development plan to prepare and educate teachers on all of the changes you referred to in your email. While the new standards have been adopted, the TCAP assessments and new End of Course exams will not come online until the 09/10 school year. We will be making every effort to provide districts and teachers with tools and information to make this transition.
Best Wishes,
Rachel
Rachel B. Woods
Director of Communications
Department of Education
Still disturbed, I wrote back to Ms. Woods:
Ms. Woods,
Thank you for your expeditious response.
Since you are not able to address the issues I raised, can you please tell me to whom I should direct my concerns?
Ms. Woods replied shortly afterward:
Absolutely. I would call Dr. Gary Nixon to discuss the new graduation requirements. 615/741-2966
If you would like to speak to someone on our staff about how we will implement and train teachers on the new standards, please let me know. I can also provide you with information on the TDP- the history of how Tennessee joined and the steps they took to gather information across the state last summer. Just give me a call.
Rachel
So, I wrote to Dr. Nixon:
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 2008 09:04:48 -0400
To: Gary.Nixon@state.tn.us
From: “(Ms.) Billie R. McNamara” <billie.mcnamara@maine.edu>
Subject: Grave concerns about the new HS curriculumDr. Nixon,
Upon learning about the new high school curriculum standards this week, I began to research them. I finally found this buried away on-line: http://www.state.tn.us/sbe/TDP%201-23-08.pdf
It’s just incredible to me that you asked 130+ business leaders what they wanted students to know upon leaving school in order to be prepared to enter the workforce, yet you summarily ignored them. Their answers are in the above-cited document. Five of the six points they identified are work-readiness skills: work ethic, critical thinking, etc.
Tennessee’s business needs are aligned with those identified nationwide. Employers have indicated a dire need for workers who know life and work skills, such as the importance of being on-time, rather than workers who can conjugate verbs. The rationale provided in the cited document talks about including work-readiness skill development in high school, but I don’t see it manifested. Can you tell me where to find specific references in the new curriculum?
As the document cited above reflects, Tennessee employers identified higher-order thinking skills (e.g., problem-solving, thinking about thinking, taking responsibility for one’s own learning) as indispensable. Where are those skills in “The Ready Core” model?
It seems the Board of Education wasted the time and resources of educators, policymakers, and members of the business community who participated in the roundtable discussions described in the document. It’s right there in black and white (with occasional red for emphasis): Despite the clear statements of what business wants, you focused strictly on the science and math recommendations of Achieve, Inc., when revising the curriculum.
As a Tennessee citizen and an educator, I wholeheartedly support the establishment of academic standards. I agree we need to do away with the existing, bifurcated system of college-prep and vocational tracks in high schools. However, I disagree strongly when more-stringent academic standards are touted as a way to prepare students for success in the future.
When “The Ready Core” was being developed “according to what 21st century students should know upon graduation to succeed in higher education and the workplace,” did anyone review existing federal and private-sector studies from the past 25 years that identify skills that will be required for workers of the future? SCANS and CSAW come immediately to mind. So does the research of academicians such as Drs. Frank Levy, Richard Murnane, and John Seely Brown. Most of these studies overlap, which — to me — ratifies their findings.
Did anyone review the workplace literacy standards of the U. S. Chamber of Commerce-initiated National Work Readiness Credential or ACT’s WorkKeys system? Both of these programs are geared toward ensuring America’s youth are ready to enter the workplace and be successful. Guess what: Neither program mentions additional credits in health, science, or math.
At UT in Knoxville you will find our state’s resources supporting Equipped for the Future, a national initiative that contains sixteen skill areas identified as requirements for success in life and work. See http://eff.cls.utk.edu/fundamentals/eff_roles.htm. EFF just held a two-day conference — right there in Nashville — that was described as “a skills-based course designed for implementation in organizations and agencies involved in preparing their clients and students for entry level work.” Did anyone from the state Board of Education attend that conference?
Rather than waiting for Tennessee’s youth to exit secondary education in need of work-readiness skills, why don’t our state’s curriculum standards incorporate SCANS, EFF, and others’ recommendations? If the Tennessee Board of Education doesn’t think they are important, why is the Board of Regents providing EFF a home in our fine state?
Who decided diplomas and “honors” granted to Tennessee high school students should be tied to nationalized norms (ACT and SAT)? While it may be acceptable to judge Tennessee’s education system against national benchmarks, our students should be gauged according to the aggregate success or failure of their peers within our state.
What plan does “The Ready Core” make for students who can not meet these revised curriculum standards? We already have enough individuals who leave secondary education unprepared for life. It seems to me all “The Ready Core” will do is mark more youth as failures.
What a great way to send them into adulthood.
(Ms.) Billie R. McNamara
Knoxville, TN
B. S., Elementary Education
M. S. Candidate, Adult Education
On April 26, I forwarded my message to Dr. Nixon to Ms. Woods, with the following introductory remarks:
Ms. Woods,
You probably won’t recall the specifics, but we had a brief correspondence in March about my concerns over the TN Diploma Project.
You recommended I write to Dr. Nixon. I did. It’s been 30 days, and neither he nor his staff has responded.
I guess they don’t care what the general public think.
As my mama loves to say, “We’ll see what comes of it.”
Post a Comment