What’s Important?

I was just searching through a slew of articles on education and found this one by a teacher that supports what I was saying about testing not being the right thing for young people – but he’s coming at it from the other side – measuring good teachers. His argument is that you can’t measure a good teacher by what students get on a test. I agree!

In the pursuit of classroom alchemy
BY JEFF LANTOS
I’m beginning my 20th year of teaching in the Los Angeles Unified School District, and if I’ve learned anything, it is that good teaching cannot be measured quantitatively.

So what’s important?

Is it important to you that your child or young person can remember facts? or is it important to you that your child can think?

I’ve often heard teachers saying that they want to teach students to think. But I’ve wondered if there is a teacher in the entire public school system that would know what to do with a classroom full of people that actually do think! Schools as currently designed are not made for young people to think. Thinkers would maintain and grow their natural powers of inquiry and discovery. They would ask questions! I’m not so sure there are many teachers around that would know what to do if their classroom asked questions (lots of questions)!

Choice in Schools