Raising Teacher Expectations for Achievement

One of the concepts covered in Chapter 15, was the concern or issue of cultural bias and discrimination within testing. Native Indian, African American, and Central and Latin American students tend to be the populations most effected by this. As a result, many students fall into the "stereotype threat" early in their educational careers, believing that they will perform poorly when assessed because traditionally their groups do perform poorly. I wanted to address some concerns I have with the education system and the expectations of teachers in low-income, low-acheiving schools which also influence how these students perform on tests. In addition, I would like to provide an example of how the new Common Core standardization is being implemented in the Native community to reinforce and maintain tribal languages and tradition.

First let me discuss the implementation of No Child Left Behind in 2001. It mandated high-stake tests and accountability in public schools at primary and secondary levels; and it also incentivized improvement by offering bonuses and increased funding in schools that showed progress. Those schools who did not show progress, however, were sanctioned, corrective policies were instituted, and students were given the option to attend a better public school at the district's expense. The policy meant well, but it fell short of initial expectations and in some ways was detrimental to the way coursework was emphasized and encouraged teachers to push students through schooling before they mastered certain skills necessary to succeed at higher levels. In 2010, the documentary Waiting for Superman came out, and it exposed some of the issues with this policy for students in lower-income communities and lower-achieving schools.

This film provides evidence of NCLB leaving children behind in lower-performing schools; these schools and students are predominately from minority families and communities. The statistics of students who enter some of the high schools versus those who actually graduate from the schools are baffling, and one of the issues that the film raises is that teachers are not the only influential component to these failing schools. Another concern is the communities the schools are located in, and the outside factors contributing to student interest. The schools struggling the most with return rates, test scores, and maintaining a consistent staff, are those in low-income areas and they are critically overlooked because of the minorities that populate the student bodies. Furthermore thanks to NCLB, the students at these schools should have the option to attend better public schools; unfortunately the ratio of students in need of transfers and number of better schools is disproportionate, leading to a lottery system that provides only a lucky few the opportunity for better education. In addition to location and socio-economics, the teachers staffed at these schools are frequently not as experienced, devoted, and in some cases even lack basic teaching qualification.

One leading frustration for me with our education system is that we keep trying to push for a raise in standards and student expectations, yet we still fall short with regards to expectations of teachers. There is a section of the chapter that focused on cultural bias in exams and what groups were most likely to experience it. Before we can address bias in testing, I think we have to first address the clear discrimination against minorities and the quality of their instruction in comparison to higher-income, predominately white schools. The article we read for this week mentions that schools with higher test scores are staffed with teachers who have taught for longer periods of time in the districts. These are teachers who have devoted careers, even if they have transferred schools, to providing adequate instruction for their students. The middle and higher income school districts tend to have an easier time keeping teachers in their classrooms and in the profession. They have more resources, a more easily motivated student body, so success in reaching the standards is fairly simple as long as they stay on course and at pace throughout the year. They make reaching the standards look simple, but here's the thing, THEY SHOULD. Their pursuit in higher education was to become effective instructors; they have access to resources, know how to improvise, plan the lessons, and motivate students. It makes sense that school districts who largely employ these teachers are successful. In contrast though, are the low-income districts lagging behind in performance and long-term teacher employment. As a future educator, one detrimental and frustrating contributors to this high teacher burn-out rate is Teach for America. This program is well-intentioned in theory, but one of the most crucial problems I have with it is that when you visit the "Who We Look For" page on their cite; they claim, "Some corps members were educators prior to joining, but many do not have any prior experience in the education field"(teachforamerica.org). Now let's consider this in comparison to Doctors Without Borders, which specifies as a "General Requirement" that participants must have at least two years of prior relevant professional experience. We do not allow individuals lacking the education and experience in the medical field to work as nurses and doctors in voluntary medical organizations, so why do we allow volunteers with no prior teaching experience or expertise to teach in our schools? Also, if the highest scores are seen in districts with long-term teachers, how is hiring unqualified people under two-year contracts a reasonable and effective solution to declining student return rates and disappointing test scores? Even worse is that we do not place these people in high-performing schools from middle and upper class districts, but rather, in the schools with low-test scores in low-income districts. Not only does this further inhibit the ability to succeed academically for these students, but also perpetuates the stereotype threat in these districts. First of all, these students have stress unrelated to school (financial, social, etc.) that students in higher classes at the same ages do not necessarily consider. Second of all, they have unqualified teachers; potentially participating in Teach for America under two-year contracts. Two-year contracts that devalue the importance of professional careers in education by allowing other professionals to "dip their toes" into the system before they start their "real jobs". How are those attitudes towards minorities' education supposed to encourage performance from students from discriminated and disadvantaged communities? If anything, it internalizes racism more than ever. 

Here is a link to these websites if you wish to know more:
http://www.teachforamerica.org/ 
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/

To conclude, I would like to look at how more recent Common Core standards can be implemented to  empower minority groups in the US and provide sustainable improvement to low-achieving districts. In New Mexico, the Jemez tribal group is working with their local Head Start program to teach the common core requirements and incorporate their tribe's traditions and language into the teaching curriculum. In doing so, the native community will be empowered by reintroducing their traditions, languages, and values to their acculturated youth. Kevin Shendo, education director for the Pueblo of Jemez closes with, "The common-core standards are what we are challenging our children to learn, but how can we expect them to master the content if it has little relevance to their life experiences and communities? Through the ways we implement the standards, as educators and leaders, we have the opportunity to honor the rich history of this country and the diversity which makes us all unique" (Shendo, "Common Core From a Tribal Perspective"), and I believe that his creativity, devotion, and enthusiasm for improving education for minorities and the push for "policies of empowerment" are what we need to see more of with regards to teachers and teaching before we can raise the standards of academic performance and expectations of our students.

Here is the link to the Jemez education article:
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2013/12/04/13shendo.h33.html