Checking for skills versus procedures

I assess often.  I have many reasons why, but that is for another time.  To help grade efficiency I have rules about writing on one side of paper and leaving space for problems.  I joke about helping an old man out with my students.

But what do we do when a student does not do it?  Should we take points off for not following directions or for being insubordinate?

I don't - I grade math and work with the students for the next assessment.  In the real world you often get chances to correct "format" things (and lets not kid ourselves school is not real world).  And I don't agree that this type of instructions is about responsibility.

I write messages - a :( with a drip of water for a tear on a paper, or a message from a character - like a superhero or singer or a even just from a tree, like this:



While it is tempting to punish, my job is to teach.

Testing burn out will lead to poor student effort.

Most teachers and educators (and politicians) were good students, did their best - wanted good grades, tried hard on standardized tests.  So as schools & states set up their testing it was often with little thought about how the student is going to react.  There was little thought of what a student finds reasonable.

We are entering a period of state mandated testing that borders on insanity in my opinion.  We are looking at many days of testing.  And I think about myself - I received good grades, but never was accused of being a great student.  The instance something did not affect my grade it became non-essential (part of my disdain of education due to my early struggles in reading - another post for another day).    So in High School, the Iowa Basic Skills Test became just a fill in the blank exercise - I just filled in B... and stated "I had a premonition that the answer was B."  Ironic that now I will be at least partially rated by student test results - where the students have nothing at stake.

Sometimes we need to remember that students are people and unreasonable things are met with the equivalent amount of effort.  Perhaps we should inform our lawmakers....

Students first or testing first?

So where is the line between data and over-testing?  Rigor and rote-drones?  Accountability and test craziness?

The new WKCE cut scores literally took schools in Wisconsin from approximately 75% passing to 45% passing.  In my district our 'math mission' is to have all my 12th grade graduates ready for "College & Career" readiness in math.  Meaning that if they go to college they can start with a college credit course.  Then the scores change and we went from feeling like we were accomplishing our mission to the feeling that the goal had changed and we are left wondering does the new test prove anything?

When you have really small class sizes word of mouth will get you the results you search for, I always ask my students after graduation for their math placement and results.  Nearly all reply about their placements; and while there is an epidemic with remedial college math, pushing 40% of students, we have been less than 10% the past 3 years.  Isn't  that the goal?  And the students who go to technical colleges are passing their placement test nearly 100% of the time (compass test). 

So as with most things we need to ask ourselves does the current high stakes testing lead to our desired results.  Are the standards and core creating the students we need to be successful in the world?  The Common core is 200+ standards, how many of those are really needed?  Does Cramer's rule really create a better student, or is the only place to show that is an Advanced math course (not Algebra II or lower)? 

Would just a little money in post high school surveying be more useful - I am not really sure but lets face it - teachers work for the students, we're customer service.  But we do NOT work for the current 16 year old, but the 27 year old student.  (I joke that the student's future self called and begged me to be tougher so they could become better problem solvers and get better jobs, thus more money.)  And the new standards and testing does seem to be making a better 27 year old.

Skills required.... Not quadratic formula....

So prior to teaching I was an engineer and manager for about a decade.  Then I started working on my masters in instruction to teach mathematics.  I was 33 years old when I started, was successful, and could no longer do the quadratic formula from memory, because .... wait for it.....   I did not need to.  But I could do algebra on demand, could find the quadratic formula on google to get roots, and could use the math I knew to dig in and solve problems.  The true reality of math required for being successful.

So as we start chasing the Common Core and its requirements we need to take pause and ask what is really needed.  Math has natural beauty, it ties together processes and our world - that is what students need to see.  They also need to be able to take large problems and rip through them looking for patterns and possibilities.  Meaning they need to be good at Algebra, graphing and problem solving.

Yet I fear these skills are going to be considered low level by teachers looking at the core (get them done in 9th grade -- know 'em, then never forget them, which we know doesn't work).  Most of the standards in High School are well above that, leading to my fear that the Core will scare teachers into showing everything, proceduralizing everything and developing a bunch of students who think math is just memorizing (an old school Biology course).

Worst yet, it will lead to a group of students who do not want to attack a math problem unless it fits into a little box they have seen...  I see it often with students who transfer to my school, students who won't start a problem unless they know the "procedure" to finish.  The problems we need to solve in our world are not this clean.

The Core will not produce problem solvers unless we look at our students and test them for true skills.  Yet it remains to be seen it we are going to test well, or measure end results well...    If we don't it will be another program with all the right thoughts and none of the right results.