My letter to the Editor of the local newspaper about education and workforce readiness got picked as an Op-Ed piece. I revised the original letter as shown.
“Raising the bar” for education will leave a knot on many students’ heads
I have just had the opportunity to read Governor Bredesen’s recent announcement of Tennessee’s newest education initiative, The Tennessee Diploma Project/The Ready Core (TDP), and I am gravely concerned.
While recently participating in a focus group made up of practicing middle and high school teachers, counselors, and administrators from local 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 our schools, why are our educators unaware?
Who decided diplomas and “honors” granted to Tennessee high school students should be tied to nationalized norms (ACT and SAT)? It may be acceptable to judge Tennessee’s education system against national benchmarks, but our students should be gauged according to the aggregate success or failure of their peers within our state.
As a citizen and an educator, I wholeheartedly support the establishment of academic standards. I agree with TDP’s plan to do away with the existing system of college-prep and vocational tracks in high schools. However, I disagree strongly when TDP’s more-stringent academic standards are touted as a way to prepare students for success in the future.
When TDP was being developed “according to what 21st century students should know upon graduation to succeed in higher education and the workplace,” did anyone review numerous federal and private-sector studies from the past 25 years that identify skills that will be required for workers of the future? Topping the lists are work-readiness skills, such as work ethic, teamwork, responsibility, time management, critical thinking, and problem-solving.
It’s just incredible the state Board of Education asked 130+ business leaders what they wanted students to know upon leaving school in order to be prepared to enter the workforce, yet TDP summarily ignored them. Tennessee business made its needs clear: Five of the six points they identified are work-readiness skills. Where are those skills in the TDP model?
According to an educator from Blount County, 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.
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.
Knoxville’s own Mike Edwards, President/CEO of the Knoxville Chamber Partnership, is on the U. S. Chamber’s Education Committee. Was he tapped as a resource when TDP curriculum changes were under consideration?
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 recently held a two-day conference 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.” The conference was held in Nashville, but I wonder if any state Board of Education members attended.
In promotional materials for TDP, I discovered bits and pieces of EFF and other initiatives that indicate the state Board of Education had the right idea, but somehow the target was lost. If the Board of Education doesn’t think they are important, why is the Board of Regents providing EFF a home in our fine state?
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 the recommendations of business leaders, EFF, and other experts?
What plan does TDP make for the students who cannot meet these revised curriculum standards? We already have enough individuals who leave secondary education unprepared for life. It seems to me all TDP 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
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