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Sunday, October 28
Mixed Grades In a New Education Report
Mixed Grades in a New Education Report
The education secretary says stats show No Child Left Behind is working.
By Peg Tyre
Newsweek Web Exclusive
Updated: 3:54 PM ET Sep 27, 2007
The 2007 National Assessment of Education Progress, known as the Nation's Report Card, was released today for reading and math in fourth and eighth grade—and what it tells us about our children's abilities in mathematics and reading is bound to add fuel to the already contentious debate about No Child Left Behind.
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You may read the whole article at http://www.newsweek.com/id/41312/output/print
What kind of changes does the high school you graduated from need to implement?
URL: http://www.newsweek.com/id/41312
© 2007 Newsweek.com
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55 comments:
First of all, I understand the poitn behind the "No child left behind" laws. However, I think law makers who are not in the classroom are missing the boat. Yes, more emphasis needs to be put on reading skills and mathematics. However, I do not believe that the kids need to be taken out of other classes in order to be placed in an intensive reading class. Teachers on other subject areas are trained to teach and incorporate reading in their classes. But why take kids out of classes that actually help motivate them. For instance, their elective classes. Once they start doing that, the kids are missing out on life skills as well as reading and math. For instance, agriculture classes. Not only is it necessary for the students to be able to read AND comprehend. But math is a vital part as well, and it is taught in a hands on fashion and in a way that they can apply it in real life. Examples would be calculating doses of medication for the animals, or figuring out dimensions for fencing. They come to understand that there can be major consequences when calculations are wrong. But with a teacher working with the kids, they can see whether there is a problem or not. Another example is art. Art is very important not only to give children a release from stress, but a way to express themselves and it is also known to help stimulate the brain and the brain functions. Another class that they are now taking students out of for intensive reading is p.e. Now people may think that is ok, but this action is backfiring. One consequence of this is that the childrens behavior in the classroom is getting worse. They are losing their outlet for releasing all their energy. Also, this class is used for teaching children the importance of good nutrition and excercising. People complain about how America is becoming a "fat nation". Well, taking away these interactive classes is part of the reason. Another factor that people are missing is that when education becomes individualized, students are missing the opportunity to be able to work with other students. Therefore they are missing skills such as teamwork which is necessary when they get older to be able to be a viable part of the workforce and society. I do think that they are on the right path for making sure that there is more emphasis on teaching the kids how to read. But when you teach them in a way they can comprehend ie: life circumstances, they will understand and retain better. I just think that law makers are trying to fix a problem and they haven't been in the classroom too be able to see how kids function and they are going about it all wrong. Yes, teachers need to be held accountable, but the students need to be as well. There is also another factor that some people may not think it has anything to do with education, but it does. If parents would take a more active role in their childs life it would help emensely. One thing that I have noticed by helping out in schools is that the parents that care how their kids are doing, are the parents of the good kids. The kids with bad behavior, you can't get their parents to come in for conferences or anything. They also don't make their kids take responsibility for their actions. The reason this is a problem is because the misconduct enters into the classroom. Then teachers have to worry about discipline as well as teaching. There are so many factors that people don't think about and if law makers would step into the schools and see how everything works, maybe they could get a better grasp on how to make the laws. But not only do these laws affect the students, they affect the teachers as well. It is starting to become a matter of whether elective teachers will have jobs or not. Those are just some thoughts about how things really are in the school system. The only difference that could be made in the high schools is that the teachers could better incorporate reading and math into ALL the classes. But here is another problem about the testing that is done. Alot of children know the material and can do it in everyday life. However, so much emphasis is put on the one test that the kids stress about it and don't do as well as they could. I know I am a student who has test anxiety and people don't realize the affect of putting that much emphasis on a test such as the FCAT. Figure out a different way of testing the kids. But I question the actual reasons behind the FCAT. Is it to be able to test the kids or is it a way for people to make money. There are way too many conflicts on interest for me to be able to say 100% without a doubt that is for the kids.
scarpenter
Quite a response. When kids are being taken out of a class is because the teacher performs better when the average student capabilities converge. However, you put these kids in a special class and the average immediately drops. And then you have the self fullfilling prophecy.
Many educators believe that special classes in high schools do more harm than good. In colleges we have remedial classes, I do not see why high schools can't adopt those as well. (I understand some have... but they have run into all sort of bureaucratic obstacles)
Anyway, I was just reading 1 in 10 schools are 'dropout factories'
It looks like we have a hell of a problem.
I graduated a while ago actually ten years ago next year. Where I graduated was a diffrent area as well. I graduated from Colorado Srpings Colorado. There was not much to do thereso all the kids study and if you ever wanted to leave you played football or you got a really good scholarship. To do this you had to study and do well in all areas of studies. My school also made research papers part of a portfolio requirement for graduation. I do not believe that this is a requirement here in Florida. My brother graduated from here with a low gradepoint average and he never did a research paper. This does not force a student to read or work at math problems. In the portfolio that I had to do for my school require items that were the final test for each subject. Research paper for a final for History-resume and references for English- science project reprt for Science and etc. This would help the highschool bring students up to the right levels.
I agree with Scarpenter comment focusing on one subject is not the answer. A balance needs to be created to work on all subjects. All subjects are needed if not then only one subject would be taught in the school. By focusing on sometype of portfolio type assign due at the end of the school semester then the students would have time to focus on all subjects with their own time limit and also have articles to show colleges. I also believe if a student needs more help and time then diffrent classes and special teachers should be assigned for this just as it is in college. This also helps build the prepareness needed for life and for college.
I think that there should be a bit of a revolution in the adademic departments throughout our nation. 100 years ago childern had IQ's that were equivalent to that of someone that was closer to being clinically mentally retarded. 100 years later, we've put so much emphasis on childhood education that we've raised the childhood IQ level somewhere up to almost 20-30 points. You would look at that and think that people have evolved into smarter beings since the last turn of the century, but the thing that really slaps us in the face is that high school and young adult student IQ level's have only risen about 7 points. We've put so much emphasis on the childhood learning experience that we've somewhat left the higher learning curriculum alone. People are not carrying this learning nature throughout their lives. I don't know if it is a personal laziness or what but it is something that should be addressed. I feel that if we were to raise the overall bar of education throughout all years, that within another 100 years we would be able to raise our intelect to help further our human existance through technological improvments along with the economy.
Actually the scores in math and reading are very low when compared to international students as you can see here
However, how is it possible that ten years after graduating from college, the average American student does so much better in life than the average Korean let's say?
Any ideas?
I don't have a problem with the testing of children in order to improve their math and reading skills. I am however worried about that these schools are cutting out science and history. To me these are very important subjects. Personally I live for science. There should be more emphasis on reading and math skills because they do intertwine heavily with science. At the very least maybe they should allow parents and children to decide whether they want to take science and history. As far as my high school is concerned I don't think too many changes really need to be made. I went to Riverview high school in Sarasota Florida. I helped to set up a program there that allows students to a local technical college half of the day so that they can have a practical career in a trade of their choice if they did not wish to pursue college. I also participated in this program and absolutely loved. To me the biggest change was the fact that I felt I had a lot more freedom and more responsibility. I felt that I was finally getting to taste what it was like to be on your own and take care of yourself. I feel that most schools tend to baby kids and do not allow them to mature into adults. Giving students more freedom to choose what they want to learn allows them to build more responsibility and prepares them for the real world. It will also help them to decide what they want to in their life. Another concept I would like to see is elective courses that show students many different career fields. This way they will be able to figure what career they might want to pursue in college. The biggest question I remember while growing was what do you want do for a living.
I agree with you Monica more papers in high school will help many students, especially if they choose to go to college. It was difficult for me to start writing research papers at first because
I had only written one in high school. Most of my english classes only focussed on grammar and vocabulary. If high schools in Florida had a graduation requirement such as a portfolio and tests in each subject, students would probably get higher grades in their classes. They would understand that if they did not pay good attention in class then they would not have the knowledge required to graduate.
I plan on being a teacher, so this is a topic i really gotta start worrying about eventually. I've been doing interning at several high schools, so i see first hand what is happening to our youth. I for one think that its because of our lack of support for our teachers. That and the whole mentality that the majority of america has grasped onto: a wide, shallows pond as opposed to a deep small pond. Others countries stress learning of the basics. If you have a fundamental control of them, then other concepts come easier to you because you have a strong base to stand on, as opposed to how we do it here: shoveling truck loads of information so that our youth are packed so full of knowledge that some spills out into the unknown that is forgetfullness. We throw so much information at them that is impossible for them to grab ahold of all the concepts. Also, in our quest to better our scores at reading and math, we truly are leaving many other subljects in the dust. Many wonder who the scientists of the future will be, and where they will come from, seeing as te majority of schools nowadays choose not to stress knowledge in science anymore. Many kids these days choose to do the minimum amount of science classes in high school, and opt to focus more on the reading and math. Especially here in Florida, where the FCAT rules all and dictates just how good a student you are, though the test itself is a humungous hindrance on creativity and free thought. We should support our teachers more, and we should make new training programs to make sure that our youth will truly be in good hands. These people are shaping our future generations, you'd think that we would care more about what they are learning.
Indeed the FCAT is a hindrance to creativity and we are becoming so test oriented that we are starting to lose on creativity.
I have never met a high school teacher who has anything positive to say about it.
I have been out of high school for over 30 something years. Also, I went to school in another area of the United States. One of the high schools I attended does not even exist anymore. So I am writing on schools in general. I was in high school in a completely different time. When I was young most students worked at doing their best. There were a couple of kids that did not apply them selves in every class, but they were not the norm. If you did bad or got in trouble at school you knew you were in for it when you got home too. It seems to be different now. There are still good students but, there are larger numbers of students who are satisfied at just getting by. They put in as little work as possible to keep from failing and, sometimes don't even do that. I was really shocked when I started college a few semesters ago and realized how many students right out of high school had to enter prep classes. I can understand a few having to take these classes, but I do not understand why the numbers are as high as they are. Somewhere along the line these students have slipped through the cracks. A student's lack of ability in certain subjects should be caught way before high school graduation and dealt with before they are able to graduate. This is a growing trend that needs to be addressed by high schools or even middle schools. Somewhere in the school system there needs to be more emphasis of making sure the students are learning basic skills such as reading, writing , and math instead of just making sure they can pass some test so the schools get better ratings. Without these basic skills students can not do well in any of their subjects.
The high school I attended covered all the subjects very well. But the reading was the least of their worries, or so it seemed. We would get reading assignments but there was no way to actually tell if we read the book or not, asides from the tests on the books, but most of us got the Cleft notes off the internet and read the detailed summaries. Passed the tests and moved on to the next assignment. My younger sisters are in Middle School and for their reading assignments, well its not optional, but it seems that teachers are very lenient with what they are doing. I know for a fact that one of my sisters does not read the books assigned, but all the teacher asks for so called "prove" of the student reading the books is for someone to initial that the child read so many pages in a week. My own sister to sign anyones initials and it would count! Even their middle school still focuses equally on all subjects.
I agree with mattsarnowski. Child-hood academics seems to be more important to the communities and the higher education levels are just seeming to stay at a steady level of achievment. I know that when I was finishing high school, I looked back and though how easy that was and how it was easier to pursuade the teachers to give me the grade I wanted by doing extra credit then the teacher just giving out challenging work. When I began college it was a real eye-opener because the high schools do not teach you what it is like in college. They say they are, but really, college is a whole new world. If the government and education board focused a little bit more attention on the higher levels then maybe a better "overall national report card" would raise to a satisfying number.
Monica, It is funny that you bring up the portfolio aspect. It is a great idea and many people may not know, but that idea is already being heavily discussed for Florida Education. The reason I know this is because my mother is an agriculture teacher, is National Board certified and right now she is taking what they call reading endorsement classes so that she can actually keep more students in her classes. But while she has been taking these classes she has learned that they are discussing making each student have 2 kinds of portfolios. One short term and one long term and these would be for each type of class they are in. That way they have samples of the kids work and instead of refering to a multiple choice test, they can review the kids work to see if they are actually grasping the concepts. This is probably a better way to evaluate the students. And I just recently saw on the today show that there are some school districts around the country that are discussing doing report cards for parents and see where the school can step in and help where the parents are lacking. I heard arguments for and against it. I'm not quite sure what I think about it yet, but I think it is worth a shot to try and see how it works. If it helps great. If not, then take it away.
For those several people who have touched on how many students have to take remedial classes in college and how it is so different from high school, you are right. But from my own experience, yes I need remedial math, but I did not need remedial reading and they put me in it anyway. I'm not completely sure why because I passed my SAT's in that area. And to be quite honest I didn't really learn anything new in that class. I don't know if this is one of those things that should be spoken or not, but I don't think that everyone who is put in those classes actually need them. They are helpful though, so I don't regret it.
I graduated High School 14 years ago, and I also went to school in NYC. What I have summized from talking to students who went to school in Florida, it appears that the primary focus is to pass the FCAT's. I recall one of my professors stating that the average HS graduate in Florida graduates with an education level of an 8th grader because of this, and as a result, they struggle in college, because they are technically "behind" in comparison with other students.
I agree w/scarpenter as far as having exposure to all subjects.
When I was in school there wasn't a focus on any particular subject, they were all of equal importance, even physical education, not only were you excersing your body, but the value of teamwork is learned in such settings. In High School I wasn't in a "Reading" class, but English - we read plenty of books & had to write papers on all of them. Math consisted of general mathematics, algebra & geometry. Social Studies included goverment & economics, criminolgy, sociology, and world culture. I went to art classes, including painting, computer graphics, and media classes. We even had to take typing classes. Our class trips consisted of museums, art galleries, ballets & plays.
I believe in the "liberal arts"; we need to well rounded and educated in all aspects of education, not just one area.
I believe testing students is a must. I graduated in 2005 and a before FCAT was a must to complete high school many kids just breezed by. I mean cheating was necessary because no one knew the information. But by putting children in intensive reading programs it can damage their self esteem and many tend to drop out because they are ashamed of being in a special class. They need to go about it a different way.
The prep classes seem to be working very well. Whenever we have prep classes, the retention rates are going up.
However, we need to realize that many countries are facing the "high school" crisis, mainly because teenagers do not study.
Why? Long story...
In the end of the day, I think, and do correct me if I am wrong, the school will adjust to the level of the students. If it doesn't it will be hit with the "failure" stigma and the funds will decrease.
I know I am passing the buck... but....
I dont see anything wrong with focusing on math and reading because they are essential for life. But where i graduated from it wasnt equally enforced which i dont agree with. FOr instance you have football players that are just getting passing grades so they can keep playing while im over here working extremely had to get a good grade. I think if we are focusing and trying to improve scores than each student should be tested the same and given equal opportunity. They shouldnt be excused from class just because they play a sport and then get a passing grade.
I agree with scarpenter we should not be taking kids out of other classes. Social studies and science still focus on math and reading just in a different way. In social studies you are reading about the history or you are look at graphs about the nation. How would that NOT be helping them. I think they are extremely important to have in the curriculum because it teaches them how impotant is is that you know how to read and do mathematics because you need it everyday of you life.
"I don't have a problem with the testing of children in order to improve their math and reading skills. I am however worried about that these schools are cutting out science and history. To me these are very important subjects. Personally I live for science. There should be more emphasis on reading and math skills because they do intertwine heavily with science. At the very least maybe they should allow parents and children to decide whether they want to take science and history. As far as my high school is concerned I don't think too many changes really need to be made. I went to Riverview high school in Sarasota Florida. I helped to set up a program there that allows students to a local technical college half of the day so that they can have a practical career in a trade of their choice if they did not wish to pursue college. I also participated in this program and absolutely loved. To me the biggest change was the fact that I felt I had a lot more freedom and more responsibility. I felt that I was finally getting to taste what it was like to be on your own and take care of yourself. I feel that most schools tend to baby kids and do not allow them to mature into adults. Giving students more freedom to choose what they want to learn allows them to build more responsibility and prepares them for the real world. It will also help them to decide what they want to in their life. Another concept I would like to see is elective courses that show students many different career fields. This way they will be able to figure what career they might want to pursue in college. The biggest question I remember while growing was what do you want do for a living."
I agree with chronos's first statement. I think it is absurd that schools cut out all the other subjects just for math and english, because despite the low FCAT scores, there are other subjects besides math and english that are important too, like say if you are in a technical school and you want to major in business, you need to take business classes in order to learn more about what you want to be doing in the future, but you cant take those classes because your school is doing only english and math, so in that case it would be unfair.
I graduated from Tampa Bay Tech. which is a magnet school. It was not my assigned school, but a school that I wanted to attend for its business program. I had to maintain good attendance as well as a good grade average in order to stay in this school. I took the core classes like other high school students along with business shop classes in all my four years of high school. I graduated with a high school diploma along with a business certificate which would enable me to be employed into the business field upon graduation. So actually instead of finding fault I would really like to recommend this type of high school as it gives you skills and teaches you to be proficient in a particular field. You have to work hard and want to attend this type of school. I would recommend implementing more of these types of schools around the country.
The high school I went to focused quite a bit on reading and math, but the english teachers didn't focus as much on writing. When a student takes their first English class in college and they haven't had a lot of instruction in writing their performance will not be at the college level. Some of the math teachers didn't give the students real life examples so it felt like we were just taking another class that we would never use once we graduated. When students asked those teachers if the material would be useful the teachers would always say "yes" and move on not explain how it would be useful.
I agree with scarpenter, if teachers in every subject included math and reading the students would be able to retain more information. When I was in high school I skipped half of my senior year, if the school system had taken away my electives I would have skipped more, those classes give students a break from the academic classes, but electives can be a learning environment.
I dont think that schools should discriminate kids because they dont have a good test scores personally i have known many brilliant students that dont get accepted into prestige colleges because their test scores are not into their level. I believe that they need to look into their potential to be a great student and not at their test scores.
Many educators believe that special classes in high schools do more harm than good(by athena) I really do agre with this because when a kid is put into this class they start to believe that this is as great as the will get so the are submitted to this so the learn to accept. I think that when they are put into these classes their mentality about erducation changes completly and theur pontential to be great later on drop dramatically.
I started off as an education major and I switched majors because I couldn't handle all the politics. I don't think any program is perfect but tests are the only way to ensure progress. I came into the public school system for tenth grade after having been in private school for 8 years. I had to take several bench mark tests to prove my academics even though I came in with all A's. It was just an incovenience not a stress factor. I remember the AP telling me that I was probably going to be behind since I was coming from private school. My senior year we had developed a closer relationship and I reminded him what he first told me. I graduated in the National Honor Society with a full scholarship. There is a huge differnece in the level of difficulty of work between the two schools. I don't think high school is hard enough to prepare you for college. I graduated from an A high school that had only been open 3 years. I don't think my school could have changed anything, granted newer schools typically do better. High school is too late down the road to make significant changes.
I agree with crimsonzero. I went to Riverview and I graduated in the same program. Instead of taking fun electives I chose business focused electives that would help me later on in life. These schools with special programs are great. I started off as an Education major wanting to teach those same classes in high school but unfortunately there is not a market for that type of teacher.
I went to a private school all through elementary and middle school. The teachers didn't let you fail, if you didn't turned in your homework you got dimerits which led to different consequences after so many and so on.. When highschool came, I went to a public school which was a whole different ballgame. If kids didn't do their homework, it was no big deal. There were no consequences, the teacher didn't say anything about it..they didn't care they would just fail you. (I guess it didn't help that half of them had no clue of the subject they were teaching). Anyway, I don't think that focusing in on two subjects is the answer..if kids are stuck with only two subjects they are going to grow up hating school because there are no other 'special interest' classes to motivate them and more than likely they will only go until they have to and either drop out or just forget about college. I do think more emphasis should be put on reading and math but they shouldn't take away all of the somewhat "fun" subjects kids have in school to achieve that.
I agree with Monica and Chronos..I think more papers should be demanded in high school. I think in high school I only had to do 3 (and there are 4 years of english) most of my english teachers in high school focused on the FCAT and had the class doing worksheets on analogies and things. I think more papers in high school would definitley help college bound students succeed in college and not have to struggle through english I.
I AGREE ON THE NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND LAW. I THINK THIS WILL HELP ON TWO OF THE MOST IMPORTANT SUBJECTS IN EDUCATION.AS FAR AS PEOPLE SAYING THAT IT TAKES AWAY FROM OTHER SUBJECTS IN SCHOOL,I CAN SEE WHY THERE MIGHT BE A PROBLEM BECAUSE SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES ARE BOTH IMPORTANT. HOWEVER PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND RECESS ARE NOT SUBJECTS THAT KIDS WILL BENEFIT FROM LATER IN LIFE.I THINK PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND RECESS CAN BE REPLACE WITH OTHER SUBJECTS. I PERSONALLY NEVER LIKED EATHER ONE AND NEVER UNDERSTOOD THE POINT. AS FAR AS THE ACHIEVEMENT NOT BEING SUSTAND AS KIDS AGE, THIS CAN BE FIXED BY JUST MAKING THINGS HARDER FOR THEM AS THEY GET OLDER. I MEAN I DONT SEE WHY IT IS SUCH A PROBLEM THERE ARE MANY WAYS OF INCREASING THE READING FOR EXAMPLE INCREASING THE READING LEVEL AND THEY CAN EVEN TEACH THE READING CLASS THAT ARE BEING TAUGHT IN COLLEGES.
I agree with scarpenter the people that legislate the "No child left behind" laws does need to manage time better. Because the extensive focus on an area that a child is not doing so well in does take away from other things they might enjoy, and learn from in school. In life you wont very often have a math problem set down in front of your only task is to solve it, most of the time it's in a real life situation, and elective classes give that to children.
By: dfrank2
Class: syg. 2000
I think the only change the high school I graduated from needs to make is to not focus soo much on the FCAT in the earlier years, and just teach. The whole thinking is on the FCAT and it affects what is taught and in turn what is learned.
I further agree with the comment bdraper made in responce to my first comment. A ton of people get to college thinking and acting like it is going to be like high school was. I'm sure everyone has had a class where their was a couple of students that just didn't really have the respect that they needed to be having for the surrounding that they were in, which don't get me wrong I like to have fun, but you need to take a certain seriousness that is going to be what is needed in a high school enviroment. This is why the freshman dropout rate is so freaking high. People get into this new enviroment and they are not really prepared. You hear a LOT of seniors in high school saying that it is their easiest year yet, while this may be earned and justified from their hard work, most of them still don't understand the difficulties to come in a higher learning enviroment.
sierrablue had a really good point with saying that she was suprised at how many student come straight out of high school and are needing to be placed straight into a prep class. I understand that a few exceptional students may need to have this and if a student has been out of schooling for a number of years, but for the majority it is completely unacceptable that kids are having to take such rudamentary classes. Mabye as time progresses and technology creates more demanding and educated types of personnel, mabye then people will start to have a motivated outlook on what they need to do to succeed and get a good job. During high school I wasn't exactly the most motivated student, but now I am more thristy for knowledge than I have ever been in my whole life. I didn't make straight A's in high school, but I have retained a 4.0 with my time at HCC and I plan to keep that all they way through the rest of my schooling.
I graduated from high school in 1990. I was fortunate enough to go to a private catholic high school. It was a great experience for me. The teachers were great. My highschool teachers really cared and if they noticed that you needed additional help they would pull you aside and talk to you. They provided tutoring after school and always made themselves readily available. My problem with schools in general today is the large amount of students per class. Our schools are very overcrowded specially in the inner city. Many students fall through the cracks because of over crowding. I dont like the idea that all the emphasis is put on math and reading. Everyone needs a well rounded education. Teachers need better salaries and more schools need to be built. Kids need more one on one attention, specially those who are struggling.
I agree with Monica term papers and research papers should be part of the curriculum. While i was in highschool we were asked to right term papers and research papers. It was mandatory that everyone passed the regents exams otherewise you were unable to graduate from my highschool. Everyone in school was required to take a certain number of classes from each subject. This doesnt happen much anymore. Highschool students are left to make a decision on what classes they want to take as oppose to what they need.
peachykeach said "High school is too late down the road to make significant changes."
I totally agree with her on this. Reading and math skills should be stressed more in the lower grades so when these students get to high school they will be able use these skills to do the work required at the higher level. Students should not get out of elementary grades with out mastering reading and math skills.
Another thing I would like to address is chris martinez said,"PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND RECESS ARE NOT SUBJECTS THAT KIDS WILL BENEFIT FROM LATER IN LIFE.I THINK PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND RECESS CAN BE REPLACE WITH OTHER SUBJECTS.." I disagree with this. Obesity is running rampant in this nation. According to the US Surgeon General, in the US the number of overweight children has doubled and the number of overweight adolescents has tripled since 1980. According to pediatricians one of the contributors is the fact that students are not made to take PE and younger students do not play active games anymore, they prefer more passive leisure activities at recess. Getting students back into physical actives can help them stay healthy which in turn may help them perform better in school. Keeping their weight in check while they are young usually leads to a healthier adult. So overall PE and recess does benefit students later in life.
Scarpenter I could not agree more, and everyday I am glade that I went thought school when it was about education. Therefore, that one day I can pass on to my children that life is about more than passing test.
Life is about so much more than test taking and one of the worse things about standardize testing is that children no longer understand why things are the way they are. They just accept and memorize the answer given without anything thought on whether what there saying is right or wrong. What’s to say that in the future are children will be so programmed into just accepting the right answer on a test that one day 2 + 2 will really equal 5?
The changes that my old high school needs to implement is getting teachers who can teach the kids and not just give them work to teach themselves. That would achieve the greatest change in students behavior towards education.
Another way is for parents to actually give a rats butt about their child's education. Kids need to know that their parents wants what's best for them. Paying attention is the best way to limit the drop out rate.
First off the FCAT sucks because I basically slept through the whole thing and still got into the top 5 percentile. I understand that testing is a way to actually gauge what the competency is, but as much emphasis is put on it; kids aren't being taught anymore. They are suffering a governmental way to put a limit on what they give teachers and schools. We need to open up the governments hands, and MAKE them dish out money for the schools and to quit being so stingy!
I think by putting more remidial class rooms in our high schools would help children individually and help them by putting confidence in them.
Our schools are faced with a problem that the only can be blamed on minorities. Once the school board comes to understand that there is another problem lurking then we can beter these kids future.
I totally agree with monica, If i had more knowlede on reserch papers before i was brought into college then i wouldnt of had such a "culture shock" when i had to right 2 or 3 papers a semester.
Instead of high school focusing compare and contrast essay's over and over again, maybe they should be focusing on how college academics will be, and doing so would also help the knowledge of kids not going to college.
I graduated from a New York High School and things are A LOT different up there. For example, I took a regents exam for most of my High School classes. To graduate with a Regents diploma (which you HAVE to) you have to pass all the regents exams. In new york state, the same cariculum is taught throughout the state. Some rich schools that can afford to put programs in the schools to specifically help someone in a certain area. some schools can hardly afford any help. then when the grades come out, they are curved to serve the different levels of students dispite the fact we are all learning the same material.
I agree with Athena, prep classes do work. in high school i had to take 2 prep classes for the SAT's and it really did help a LOT of the students. But the truth is kids dont study as much as they should. to be honest, half the classes we have to take in high school dont get us anywhere after we graduate. that art class i HAD to take is not going to effect my future. I do agree with the fact that the school will adjust to the level of the students. Thats why there are extra-help classes and such.
peachykeach said "High school is too late down the road to make significant changes."
Very true. Can't agree with this anymore. This ties right into what I and most of the other people really have been trying to say. Someone else also commented that physical education (P.E.) wasn't a beneficial class, but I disagree. I think they should take all junk food out of schools and put a focus on health, caridovascular activity, and proper nutrition.
ARE THE TEXT ALSO INCLUDING KIDS WITH Disabilities
I agree with to make new training programs to make sure that our youth will truly be at their best in the future. I really don’t agree with the law of taking away social studies, science and especially physical education. I mean people now don’t read that much, now they just use technology and computer to do everything. I think students need better teachers and better programs to help them learn more rather than spending more time reading and doing math. This will help students to be more prepared for what is expected in high school, college and life.
I graduated from was East Bay and one of the big chances they needed was good teacher. I believe that education should be stricter at a younger age. There are teachers that just simply don’t know how to teach the material. Even at HCC students have problem with their teacher especially in math. Especially on the FCAT, I see teachers spending their time more on the FCAT rather than teaching the class, which pretty much is the basic of passing the FCAT. I think we need better teachers that could actually teach the material better.
I think education is our schools need to be reformed and updated. I did alot of things in high school that i neva used and was totally un usedul in the real world. Also i think that high schools should REALLY PREPARE STUDENTS FOR COLLEGE. i mean high school is a joke compared to college all it does is prepare you for the fcat. we definately need a change.
I agree with what michaelrose has to say about school looking to far into subjects now-a-days! Its crazy to have a student now memorize 15 steps from what it seems like just to come up with 1 whole number for a problem.
My comment about how i feel is similar to jeneice g's comment in a sense that high school should definately make a change in the way its taught. It is so self centered around FCAT, SAT, or ACT when in reality life isnt about bein able to pass one stupid test that determines your passing to the next level. I remember feeling in math class, "Are you seriously teaching this and when am i ever going to use this particular formula in my future job unless i am majoring in education to teach math." For example, What happens to a student that may have a 3.5 GPA but bombs the SAT therefore just because of the SAT he cannot make it into the college he wanted to go to even though his GPA met the minimum requirement.
first off i graduated from Mountain View High School in Arizona so our their education system may be different than floridas. but there they had all sorts of resources to get through high school and graduate, they had allsorts of scholorships and all sorts of classes a person could take for homework help or even get tutoring if need be.
i agree with jeje21 we do need better teachers in the high school system. because most high schools are a joke compared to what really happens in college life. my high school ibn arizona would never have slacked on college prep.
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