WINNEMUCCA - Actually the testing season has been here for quite some time. Many believe that testing to prepare for the test accompanied by more testing for the just-in-case, is a wise, academic choice. While I firmly believe in knowledge-based testing, especially state and/or national examinations to assure Nevada students are being taught what they need to know and be able to do, an overload of tests is counter-productive. A tsunami of data is impossible to shuffle and sort and exam time limits minutes of in-class instruction. I prefer engaged, interactive classroom learning and exploration.
Changes are being made to incorporate Common Core Standards (CCS) into the curriculum. Currently these have been adopted for math, reading, and language arts; others are being formulated for science, social studies, and additional subjects. It is a wise idea that student expectations for achievement are similar for California, Virginia, and Nevada. Families move and it is reassuring to know that Little Dumpling is prepared with a well-coordinated education wherever the family may roam.
For years Nevada teachers have collaborated to create excellent standards and assessments with rigor at the forefront. CCS are believed to be more stringent (frighteningly so in many cases). Fourth graders are expected to apply mathematical skills with fractions and decimals that I learned in junior high, but challenge is most often good, and with training and preparation teachers will tackle the task so that students flourish. What scares me beyond the difficulty of many standards is the thought that once again instructors are being burdened with requirements that may vanish within years. "CCS are here forever" is just not very convincing.
Transitioning from Nevada Academic Standards to CCS involves extensive thought and planning. By comparing standards for 6th grade text analysis with old, new, and by grade level, teachers will determine what students know now and what they need to know and be able to do by the end of the year plus fill in gaps as necessary. Educators are fully committed to the long-term success of every child. But advice has been rendered to toss out the old, turn a blind eye on the past, and forge ahead full steam with the new. Great, if teachers do not care about previous learning when students arrive in August and if teachers only focus on "checklist education": I taught it; they should have learned. Experience affirms that struggling with too many variables remedied by a blanket approach does not produce positive results. We know that kids move; divorces and death happen; expertise and experiences vary; understanding fluctuates.
In addition to teacher excellence, students need parents who are actively and positively involved in their children's education. To be that A#1 parent, go to the Nevada Department of Education website, search "Assessments", study and analyze test questions and expectations for learning. Head to "Common Core Standards." Read and evaluate what it is your child should know and be able to do by grade level. This may take several visits as you develop a clear vision of each standard. Compare grade levels. Create a clear image of education expectations. Reflect this image 29 times to account for other class members striving to learn (at the secondary level consider the needs of 200+ students.) Now whip up a dozen lessons.
Now you understand the stress and pressure of the classroom teacher and are more aware of what is packed into a day of teaching. Working with Great Basin College in the teacher education program, I watch fledglings arrive in my EDUC 311 class, observe as they grow, ponder why many change majors, and hopefully celebrate the culmination of training with student teaching, graduation, and employment. With starting salaries at about half of what a teacher might make at other jobs in our area, it is definitely not the lucrativeness of the profession that attracts students to teaching. In fact many have been shamed into thinking that a "signing bonus" indicates greed over dedication when it actually translates to rent and food. Where can we find those who are devoted to the proposition that an exceptional teacher is the number one key to success for every child?
If you have been wondering about a career full of challenges, heartbreak, delight, and more teaching may be for you. There are bridges to cross and others to build, instruction to provide and assessments to administer, but in the end the results of guiding students to the wonder of knowledge are mind-boggling and uplifting.
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