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Elementary Teachers Given Low Grades
May 24, 2007
The head thinks, the hands labor, but it's the heart that laughs.
-Liz Curtis Higgs
-Liz Curtis Higgs
The researchers take teachers to task for spending too much time on basic reading and math skills and not enough on problem-solving, reasoning, science, and social studies. They also suggest that U.S. education focuses too much on teacher qualifications and not enough on teachers being engaging and supportive.
Among the findings on what teachers and students did and how they interacted:
- Fifth-graders spent 91.2% of class time in their seats listening to a teacher or working alone, and only 7% working in small groups, which foster social skills and critical thinking. Findings were similar in first and third grades.
- In fifth grade, 62% of instructional time was in literacy or math; only 24% was devoted to social studies or science.
- About one in seven (14%) kids had a consistently high-quality "instructional climate" all three years studied. Most classrooms had a fairly healthy "emotional climate," but only 7% of students consistently had classrooms high in both. There was no difference between public and private schools.
- Although all teachers surveyed had bachelor's degrees �" and 44% had a master's �" it didn't mean that their classrooms were productive. The typical teacher scored only 3.6 out of seven points for "richness of instructional methods," and 3.4 for providing "evaluative feedback" to students on their work.
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Google Children's Center Is Opening in 2007!
Google is expanding its employee child development program by opening a high quality center in Mountain View, CA. The center will offer an integrated approach to curriculum and plans. See detailed job descriptions or apply for these exciting job opportunities!
Google is expanding its employee child development program by opening a high quality center in Mountain View, CA. The center will offer an integrated approach to curriculum and plans. See detailed job descriptions or apply for these exciting job opportunities!
Comments (3)
Displaying All 3 CommentsPhi Delta Kappa ECEC
Jamaica, NY, United States
I live in New York State, and I'm not familier with the educational policies in other states, but, New York City--not the State--has a system that is not conducive to learning for children. NYC has teachers teaching to test (getting high reading and math test scores) rather than teaching to learn. It is stressful for the children as well as for the teachers. Principals and teachers have to worry about test scores to keep their jobs!
Teachers also have to spend a lot of valuable classroom time on discipline. Children in NYC are losing so much valuable education time.
NH DHHS
Concord, NH, United States
Interesting...I am reading an article in the Nation about NCLB, and it relates how this legislation is changing the way teachers teach, in the same ways you are criticizing--less problem-solving, analysis and critical thinking, less hands-on, more multiple choice, test-oriented. So I hope you are not attributing this current landscape to teachers...
Cherry Point CDC
Cherry Point, North Carolina, United States
Hats off to all teachers! Bless you for all that you do. Think about what cause you to want to teach in the first place. How you were going to ensure every child had a quality education and at the same time exciting time doing it! Let's just slowly get the corners of the box bent, then peer out, and then step out. Take your classrooms on adventures through the imagination and actual out of the classrooms. Allow children to experiment with items and nature. Allow the children to use their theories and ideals of what the outcome should look like and use groupings that will pair the most explosive minds with the minds not yet tampered with. Allow them to teach you and you faclititate. Most of all, get excited about what you're doing so that they will blossowing into someone you will be proud to identify your self with later in their lives. Remember you are writing a book of life not just you but all to read later through those lives you have touched.
Thanks so much!
Sharon
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