Social class back in the Times

Barbara Ehrenreich wrote a gorgeous piece in the New York Times about “the economy” and its effects on the already-struggling-to-make-ends-meet-in-the-good-times people.

Jane Van Galen has it linked on her blog along with some excellent quotes and pointed commentary. (Thanks to Andrea N. for telling me about it on Jane’s blog!)

Ehrenreich’s piece is the first in a series – so let’s hope the next ones are just as straight forward and educational (at least to those who don’t know it already).

NYT often has great pieces on social class – one series ended up as a great little book I’ve used in courses, Class Matters.

 

Cheating on State Tests? Are We Surprised?

A friend in Dallas sent this article to me today:

All 8th graders in a Dallas school district must retake the state test because of “irregularities.”

And it reminded me of the probe in Atlanta this year as well as across at least four districts across Georgia:

Principal resigns and Assistant Principal is re-assigned during investigation into cheating on the state tests in Atlanta

State of Georgia says students didn’t cheat but were cheated by adults who did change answers in four districts

When any one “test” is valued higher than other measurements, you can guarantee that test will be corrupt and invalid from the beginning. The cheating by adults doing whatever it takes to save their jobs and their schools in this ridiculous historic moment we find ourselves in has been going on since the beginning of the No Child Left Behind Act:

And we thought cheating was bad in 2007?

And with my own daughter telling me that one of the reading passages was “just too long” so “I decided to guess the answers” – we see why teachers and other adults would WANT to cheat. They know what kids can do – they know kids are smart – they know that the stupid test with its insane rigidities, weirdly stated questions, strange reading selections, and “regularities” such as no talking, no vomiting, no looking around, no eye-balling, no gestures, no crying, no walking, no peeing, no eating, no drinking, and you must wait for everyone to finish before you move, create a context where most kids cannot, and do not, perform their best.

Can we just admit that we’ve made a huge mistake by tying these state test scores to federal rewards and punishments – and to children’s promotion or retention fate?

If you don’t know about Fair Test already – check it out. It’s one of dozens and dozens of organizations working against the misuse and abuse of testing instruments and test-takers.

 

Georgia’s Promotion/Retention Policies – Advocating for Parents, Students, Teachers, and Administrators

We all know how ridiculous it is to decide a student’s fate on one test score. It doesn’t make any sense at all from an academic, social, emotional, or policy perspective. Teachers, students, and parents know best about how a student has progressed across a year – and if a teacher doesn’t know that, then she is not doing her job. I can’t get to this issue though – because kids’ lives are being ruined by unthoughtful decision-making about whether they should be promoted or retained. Wanna know the odds that a kid will finish high school if she or he is retained one time in their educational career? Not good…check out the statistics for yourself.

I’ve heard numerous stories about students in all grades being spontaneously “retained” at the end of the school year because – and only because – of the CRCT scores. And kids are carrying home this news on the last day of school – crying on school buses. This is regardless of how well the student has done all year.

Here are some facts about the Georgia state policy on promotion/retention:

THERE IS ONLY A STATE POLICY FOR 3RD, 5TH, AND 8TH GRADE regarding CRCT scores -

THERE IS NOT A STATE POLICY FOR OTHER GRADES regarding the CRCT scores – DO NOT LET SOMEONE TELL YOU THERE IS (or ask for it in writing – I can’t find it anywhere). That means that any last minute decision to hold back a child in K,1,2,4,6 based on CRCT scores is not substantiated in state policy – and parents, teachers, students should fight this decision if it is not in the best interest of the child.

For 3rd (READING SCORES ONLY – DOES NOT REQUIRE MATH SCORES), 5th, and 8th graders (BOTH READING AND MATH):

1 – The school district should have a local policy about how the CRCT is “weighted” in decisions of promotion and retention.

2 – The school district should have a local policy about the other factors that will go into deciding whether a child is promoted or retained.

ASK ABOUT THESE TWO POLICIES. ASK FOR THEM IN WRITING.

3 – If a child in 3,5, or 8th grade does not pass the CRCT, the family must be notified BY FIRST CLASS MAIL WITHIN 10 DAYS OF THE SCHOOL’S RECEIPT OF THE SCORES WITH THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION:

a) The below-grade level score on the CRCT

b) The specific re-tests to be given and testing dates

c) The opportunity for accelerated, differentiated, or additional instruction (this can be like summer school – but this is NOT mandatory for students to attend prior to retaking the test. It is only mandatory for the school to offer it).

d) The POSSIBILITY that the student might be retained for next year

IF THE STUDENT RE-TAKES THE TEST AND STILL DOESN’T MEET GRADE LEVEL EXPECTATIONS:

a) The principal may choose to retain the student – and if so, the student’s family must be informed BY FIRST CLASS MAIL of this decision, AND of the option of the parent/guardian or teacher to APPEAL this decision.

IF A PARENT/GUARDIAN OR TEACHER APPEALS THE DECISION:

a) A “placement committee” must be formed and convened to discuss information about the child from across the school year that one might not know from looking at the CRCT scores. This committee would be: the principal OR a designee, the family/parents/guardians/ (I would add other advocates), and the teacher or teacher(s) who know the student best in the subject of the CRCT. If a child receives special education – THE IEP COMMITTEE IS THE PLACEMENT COMMITTEE).

b) In addition to other things, the placement committee must establish ongoing assessments for the child in the next year to monitor her/his progress.

c) The decision to promote to the next grade must be unanimous.

BUT – IF IT IS NOT – THERE IS A WAY TO APPEAL THIS DECISION THROUGH THE LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT. CALL THEM AND ASK FOR THE POLICY IN WRITING AND ASK FOR SOMEONE TO EXPLAIN IT TO YOU IN PERSON OR OVER THE PHONE AS WELL.

Listen – the No Child Left Behind Act has created a machine that eats up children, families, teachers, and administrators. CRCT is part of the machine. Everyone is working over-time to cover their own butts – and you’ll find VERY FEW PEOPLE going out of their way to save a child who is dangling over the edge getting ready to plummet into the grinder.

If you don’t do it – no one else will.

STAND UP FOR KIDS.

(ALL INFORMATION PULLED DIRECTLY FROM PROMOTION/RETENTION POLICY DOCUMENT “STATE BOARD RULE” 160-4-2-.11.PDF ON THE GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION WEBSITE. I have paraphrased most of this given the complex language of the original document – but I have also pulled some direct quotes. I have the full pdf if someone wants to contact me about getting it)

 

Hayden gets a response from the governor

After a long wait, Hayden finally received a response to the governor about her letter regarding the state tests. After reading it with me she asked, “what does that mean?” and I replied, “he’s defending the tests and probably won’t work to change them.” But we are both happy that someone did read and respond to her!
STATE OF GEORGIA

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

ATLANTA 30334-0900

Sonny Perdue
GOVERNOR

Dear Hayden:

Thank you for writing me regarding our state’s efforts to provide a quality education for students and better prepare them for future success. I understand the concerns you have shared about Georgia’s testing program and I appreciate the opportunity to respond to you.

Georgia’s testing program measures the level of student mastery of the Georgia Performance Standards, identifiesstudents failing to master content and assists school systems in identifying strengths and weaknesses in order to implement more effective programs.

I believe we must provide the best possible learning environment for children to achieve in school. Experience has shown that a carefully prepared testing program can be a valuable tool to help evaluate the effectiveness of instruction and the progress of students. I appreciate you sharing your thoughts and suggestions on this matter.

 

Reinventing Summer Camp and Schools…

Here’s a great piece about a super summer program offered at UGA and other places around the country that was published in the Athens Banner-Herald

And my response to the editor (let’s hope it gets published!):

“Reinventing Summer Camp – Reinventing Schools”

Yesterday I walked through crowds of children at Camp Invention held at UGA who were smiling, pondering, laughing, and talking as they worked at difficult challenges and pushed themselves and others to perform beyond what they could do alone.

In stark contrast, I had a conversation with a first grader today who is attending summer school because of low CRCT scores. His chin quivered and tears welled up in his eyes – he doesn’t want to go tomorrow; they’re doing stuff he already knows; he’s tired of school; he wishes school was at a park where he could learn fun stuff. I could only listen and say I was sorry, but I’m more than sorry. I’m angry about the disparities of educational opportunities offered to students who are assumed to be “creative” and those assumed to need “remediation.”

What if all summer school programs could build on decades of research that inform the premise of Camp Invention? How might this child feel different about attending school? Would he be smiling, pondering, laughing, talking, and working at difficult challenges with others that he couldn’t do alone?

I imagine he would.

Thankfully Clarke County is opening J.J. Harris Elementary School in the fall – a school promising to immerse all students in instruction typically reserved for those labeled  “gifted.” I hope, for the sake of this one child and thousands of others, that surrounding schools will take notice and reconsider their summer and academic year programs.

Let’s start reinventing schools too.

Stephanie Jones
Education Professor
University of Georgia

 

Creative wills to make money – know your rights:)

She stopped me in the parking lot of a convenient store and popped open her trunk, “Does your little girl like Barbie?”

“No, thank you,” I said.

“But look, it’s a great little basket – you have a sand bucket and shovel, some Barbie stickers and paper for writing. Cute, huh? Eight bucks.”

“Hmmmm…we really don’t need it.”

“Five bucks.”

“Okay. I’ll take it.”

I’m from a place where creative ways for a head of a family to make a buck are used by most people I know. Cutting someone’s grass, shoveling some snow, selling make-up, selling left over prescription pills, cutting hair, setting up a flea market booth, having a yard sale, fixing a car, repairing a roof, making and selling jewelry, taking someone’s picture, cleaning someone’s house, giving someone a ride for gas money, betting on a horse, playing pool, grooming someone’s dog, collecting aluminum cans, standing on the corner with a pizza advertisement, working at a food pantry to get the leftovers. You name it, I’ve seen it done, and done a lot of creative stuff myself to make money. And those were in good times.

Now times are less than good – and people have doubled and tripled their creative efforts to make money. I had never been stopped in a convenience store parking lot to buy a cute bucket for kids, nor have I ever seen so many yard sale signs, so many crafts laid out in front yards with “for sale” signs on them (I saw a really cool wooden clubhouse for kids in a yard that had been handmade – but it would have never made it back to Georgia), so many cars for sale in driveways, furniture sitting out with signs on it, and on and on and on and on and on.

It never ceases to amaze me how much hustle people have in them when the cards are down, how they do what they need to do to get food on the table and the rent paid, and how people shift money around from person to person, family to family to help others get food on the table and the rent paid.

My great uncle works in a food pantry and brings extra food to my grandma and her brother – he told me about all the “strangers” suddenly coming for food, not the usual folks who tended to be older and on social security drawing very small monthly checks. “It must really be bad,” he said.

Indeed.

And I think of the Barbie bucket I bought in the parking lot and the signs – dozens and dozens of signs – advertising items and services for sale. Hustlin’ we call it in my family – hustlin’ to make a buck – and so rarely does that hustle happen in the official economy, that one that is above ground, above the table, counted in government statistics and weekly reports. It seems to me more people are hustlin’ out in the open when they used to be more underground. But the underground economy is sagging too, so the creative efforts are coming out from everywhere. These are folks who have either rejected the official economy because of the devastatingly low wages (I mean, really, does anyone think you can feed yourself, much less a family, on $7.00 an hour?), bullshit red tape (have you applied for jobs lately? nearly everything – even foodservice – requires online applications), humiliating drug tests (does anyone really think that someone who smokes a joint on the weekend should not be allowed to cook a hamburger on Wednesday?), or have taken up hustlin’ as a second or third job (should it really take two or three jobs to live a modest life?).

But they know their rights, and they know they have the right, and the responsibility, to make money for rent and food, so they do it. And I also know that if the government could tax them on their Barbie bucket sales out of their trunk, it would. And that $5.00 sale, with a cost of items at at least $4.00 would leave a $1.00 profit, a .30 tax, and .70 left for her hustle. Not quite worth it…unless of course .70 is exactly what you need to buy that loaf of bread that will feed your kids half the week.

Reminds me of a verse from a song – Know Your Rights by The Clash:

And Number 2
You have the right to food money
Providing of course you
Don’t mind a little
Investigation, humiliation
And if you cross your fingers
Rehabilitation

 

How to Make School Not Suck #3 – Leave the state tests alone already!

#6 Stop going on and on about the state tests even AFTER they’re over! We already know the stupid tests have taken all the “real” education out of schools and they’ve taken attention away from real academic learning, inquiry, curiosity, democratic engagement, and authentic projects. But once they’re over, DROP IT! But noooooo, some schools can’t seem to do that. Many weeks after the tests were over and the scores were in, celebrations are held for the “highest scorers” and those who have “exceeded expectations” get public recognition, and some even certificates!  I mean, are you freaking kidding me??!! It’s not enough to torture kids for weeks or months prior to the test with test preparation, test cheers, pep rallies, homework, etc. etc. etc., but now the kids who didn’t simply “meet” expectations but “exceeded” them get recognized?! All this time you’ve been telling kids you just wanted them to do a good job – but you lied. You really wanted them to do better than most other kids – passing wasn’t enough – and you do this publicly??!!

Get off it already.

Around every corner of this problem is another problem.

I shake my head in disbelief.

You would think that some educators have never, ever, ever read a single article or book about the negative impact of high-stakes standardized tests, competition, extrinsic motivation, privileging some kids over others repeatedly, “shaming” kids through exclusion, etc. etc. etc.

Besides, it’s really clear here that you are saying to kids, “Really, all you matter to us is a number. We don’t give a damn about what your dreams are, what you hope you can accomplish in school, the questions you wonder about, or how hard you’re working. And we don’t care if you have made two years’ growth this year, or came in so strong already but seem to have made no progress. We just care about that little score you’re going to give us in the spring, and then we are going to use that score to reward or punish you after the tests are long over. And we’ll do so publicly. So you better do good, because just when you thought the trauma of taking the test was over, we’ll make you re-live that over and over. (smirk).”

Sick.

 

How to Make School Not Suck #2 – Awards

#5 Stop singling out the same kids over and over for school awards. You know exactly the kind of celebrations I’m talking about: a very small number of well-dressed, submissive, overly-willing-to-please kids get all the recognition in a class-wide or even school-wide award ceremony. If the other kids are lucky, they might get their names called out, but then some sit there never having had the thrill of being publicly recognized for their gifts and talents. Do this: if you or your school gave out awards for the end of this year, ask yourself some tough questions: a) who were the kids that never got recognized? b) how many of those kids are from middle-class or wealthy families? c) how many receive free or reduced lunch? d) how many of those kids are white? African American? Multiracial? Latino? Asian American? e) how many of those kids have already had the privilege of “special programs” such as the gifted program? f) is there any evidence in your answers that you are, or your school is, perpetuating stereotypes and expectations for kids based on race and class?

If you know anything about how children build personal connections with school and develop motivation in school, then you’ll already know that the kids who never get recognized are the very ones who will decide to quit trying. When you reward everything they are NOT, and nothing that they ARE, you send very clear messages about whether they even belong in the school setting. Shame on anyone who does this.

And – we’re sending horrible messages to the kids getting all the recognition as they sit and watch their classmates’ eyes well up with tears and yell and lash out at students and teachers: You deserve praise and they don’t. And when they can see traces of racism and classism in those decisions (even if they can’t articulate it that way – my own daughter said, “all the kids who didn’t get an award were _____” – she knew), they can begin to adopt those same racist, classist beliefs about school and society at large.

And what about the parents of children who attend such events whose child never gets recognized? Well, they probably already hated school and you because they have read through this bullshit long ago. But you surely didn’t help things.

Every single child has something worth valuing publicly.

Period.

Recognize and reward the wonderful talents and gifts of every student and you will create a better world, starting in your classroom, school, and then beyond.

Stop repeatedly making some of your students Powerful and others Powerless in school settings. Rethinking awards is one place to start.

Besides, without knowing it, you might be publicly and proudly revealing the racist and classist practices that are already at play in your classroom or school, and surely, surely, no one would want to be caught in THAT situation.

 

New publications…

Two new articles:

Jones, S. and Enriquez, G. (2009). Engaging the intellectual and the moral critical literacy teacher education: The four-year journeys of two teachers from teacher education to classroom practice.  Reading Research Quarterly, 44(2).

Jones, S. (2009). Against all odds: A case study of one White, middle-class female teacher becoming an engaged intellectual. Changing English, 16(2), 231-246.

And a really cool book I have the honor of being a part of:

Jones, S. (2009). Jagged edges: A psychosocial exploration by one who “made it.” In (Van Galen, J.A. & Dempsey, V.O., Eds.) Trajectories: The social and educational mobility of education scholars from poor and working class backgrounds. The Netherlands: Sense Publishers.

 

How to Make School Not Suck #1

I’m aching to write a book called “School Sucks,” but I don’t want to be too negative, you know? I mean I am an education professor, surely I should not be preaching about how much school sucks, right? Surely I should be the person waving a banner recruiting people in, being a cheerleader for schools, teachers, education, and schools, right? On the other hand, school does – in many cases – suck. It sucks as a kid when you’re stuck in a chair and get yelled at by the teacher for falling off it after a couple hours of test preparation madness; it sucks as a teacher when you’re finally doing some cool stuff with your kids and the principal comes in and wants to know what standards you’re covering; it sucks as a principal when you want your teachers to do what’s best for kids but the district office will punish you if you don’t meet AYP; it sucks as a parent watching day after day go by knowing that your kid is going off to a place where kids are expected to behave like robots, learn their math facts like computers, follow rules like – well, who follows rules??; it sucks to be a kid and go to  a place every day where you’re not expected to be like a kid at all who would prefer curiosity, experimentation, play, humor, physical movement, friendship, nurturing, kindness, and un-sucki-ness.

So I’ve tried to make the title a little more positive – a little nicer for those who may never read a book called “School Sucks.”

I don’t know if or when it’ll ever become a book, so I decided just to share some of my random thoughts about some things that make school suck for kids here, especially since a friend told me he wouldn’t respect me if I didn’t get started on this project immediately. So here’s my eensy weensy start…

#1
Stop smiling so much at the kids with nice clothes.
You know it happens, the kids who dress “nice,” or as some kids might say, like “preps,” “jocks,” “stuck-ups,” “teacher’s pets,” or “rich kids,” get all the positive attention even when they don’t deserve it. Even when they come to class late, don’t do a good job on their homework, whisper mean things to kids on the playground, and secretly exclude the kids with the not-so-nice clothes, the kids with nice clothes still get treated nice. Stop doing it! This makes school suck for kids who don’t want those stupid clothes, don’t have money for those clothes, or who are trying everything they can to get those clothes. Even kindergarteners notice when the well-dressed kids get all the attention. Stop it. Besides – without even knowing it, you might be promoting materialism and consumerism just by rewarding those who pay big bucks for cheaply made clothing in sweatshops and other subpar working conditions across the globe with your smile and special attention. Smile more at everyone – make school not suck.

#2
Stop gushing over kids who went on exotic trips during spring break.
It sucks, I know, seeing seven and eight year olds trot around the globe like nobody’s business, seeing things in real life that you’ve only seen in books or on television. But stop gushing over it, alright? All this gushing makes school suck for kids who went to a babysitter’s house and thought they had a ball all week until you made a big deal about the trip to Paris little Lucy went on. Make everyone’s spring, summer, fall, and winter breaks seem cool, valuable, educational, and admirable – not just the kids who happen to have been born in a family that can afford to go on expensive vacations. Besides – without even knowing it, you might be promoting an elitist and colonial attitude toward “others” around the globe who are assumed to be there for us middle-class Americans to gaze upon and wonder about. Gush over everyone’s fun and sorrow over school breaks – make school not suck.

#3
Stop saying things like, “He’s never even been to the zoo!”
What kind of school God made the zoo the pinnacle of all experiences that will magically make all our academic dreams come true? It really sucks when all the cool things you’ve done with your family don’t seem to matter to anyone and all that really matters is if you’ve seen caged up animals who are in fake habitats and gawked at all day by well-dressed families trying to do everything they can to give their kid an advantage in school. Besides – without even knowing it, you might be promoting the idea that animals are put on earth to be controlled by humans and to become humans’ entertainment as they live their lives in captivity. Find educational reasons to value everyone’s home experiences – make school not suck.

#4
Stop announcing the names of kids who still haven’t brought in field trip money.
This REALLY makes school suck for kids whose families are barely surviving and don’t have the money for life’s necessities, much less the $6.00 fee to go to the zoo where they keep animals in captivity and we gawk at them for our entertainment. Here’s the thing – if out-of-school experiences mean so much to educational success (and I would agree here that this is true), then tell your school and district to stop wasting millions on test prep materials and testing materials and use that money to pay for field trips that mean so much to educational success. Or, find lots of free field trips to go on. Or, use public transportation so the cost is lower. Or, convince your principal to create a fund that pays for families who can’t afford it (without announcing it). Or, have an open conversation with your students about the fact that because we live in a society that inequitably distributes economic resources, we expect that different families will be able to pay different amounts for field trips and that sometimes means that families are not able to pay anything at one time or another. No big deal. The big deal, in fact, is that our society should make sure it has decent paying jobs for everyone so that everyone could afford the field trip fees. THAT would make school not suck for the kids who don’t have the money to pay and can’t stand the humiliation and shame that comes along with not having the money to pay and go home angry at their parents because they don’t have the money to pay.

#5
Make field day free for all students! At a middle school in Northport, AL, students had to pay $10.00 each to participate in the end of the year field day; those who didn’t or couldn’t bring money were sentenced to study hall. What were organizers thinking when they made these decisions? Field day doesn’t cost anything, but even if there were expenses involved, how could anyone think it would be right to keep non-paying students inside? I’ll be circulating a petition to make Field Day free for all.

#6
Stop privileging school athletes by giving them a day off of school for “athletic day.” While the middle school athletes spent a day at Alabama Adventure Amusement Park, non-athlete members of the geocaching club, chess club, math club (etc. ad nauseum) stayed behind. Why can’t everyone in the school community be invited to go to the amusement park? Do athletes, and athletes alone, deserve a special day? Of course not! It’s absurd!