TeachMoore

Community Colleges: From Stepchild to Spotlight

Community colleges have long been maligned by the mis-perception that they were not as good (read rigorous) as their university siblings. In reality, community colleges have a very different mission and serve a much broader student demographic than most traditional four-year universities.

With his announcement of a plan to move $12 billion in much-needed assistance to community colleges, President Obama may help catapult this uniquely American institution on a Cinderella-like ascension in our society.

According to the American Association of Community Colleges, the nation's nearly 2,400 community colleges serve over 11 million students. The average community college student is 29 years old; 60% are women, 35% are minorities, and 39% are the first in their family to attend college.  The community college system produces 59% of our country's new nurses each year; 80% of our firefighters, law enforcement officers, and EMTs; and 41% of community colleges offer their students degrees earned totally online.

The rapidly changing economy has helped boost community college enrollment, but that boom has aggravated some long-standing problems within the system. The student population most drawn to community college includes people who are more likely to need remediation or support services: displaced workers and other older adults who have been out of high school for awhile before attempting college level work; persons who dropped out of school and returned later to earn GEDs and complete their education; new immigrants, many trying to learn the skills to become full citizens; and students who may not have seriously considered college at all until their senior year in high school or even after graduation. Community college exists to give people options and opportunities. For some it is their second chance at a more successful life; for others it is their only chance.

Lest we forget, however, some of the students who come to community college are "ready" for four years of college, academically, but may not be ready financially. Not every child who graduates high school does so in the top ten percent of the class. Where do all those average and below-average students go? Many of them end up at community college. So do many laid off or frustrated workers, single mothers, new citizens, and thousands of others looking for a fresh start.

The community colleges do face serious challenges. If you haven't seen it, check out the John Merrow piece, "Discounted Dreams" on struggles of community college students. Also helpful is the report Basic Skills for Complex Lives, from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. One problem Merrow and others have exposed is the resistance among four-year institutions to accepting the transfer credits of community college students (primarily for economic not academic reasons).

Community colleges are, in general, not as well-funded as other post-secondary institutions, but they generally cost students and their parents much less. Usually, community colleges get the leftover educational funding after PK-12 and universities. [In MS, the four-year colleges are called "Institutions of Higher Learning" - making the community colleges what--institutions of "lower" learning? The power of perception should not be underestimated]. Nevertheless, community colleges have proven themselves resilient and resourceful in providing access to education for broader and broader segments of our population, and the high-profile push from the Administration may begin to change not only the perception of community college, but its under-resourced reality.

Independence Day: Ending the Silence of the Lambs

For years, I was told that good teachers did not "get involved in politics." The virtuous teacher was the one who just locked herself in the classroom and devoted all her energies to the challenges of teaching.  I soon learned, however, that everything about education in America is political, and there were some very uninformed or underinformed people off somewhere making crucial decisions about what I should, could, or must do with the students for whom I am responsible.

When my husband and I first moved back to Mississippi in 1987, we were under mission assignment for a large Christian denomination to establish a youth outreach and a new church. However, when the county association discovered we were Black, they balked at providing the support we had been promised (which included living arrangements for us and our four children). A meeting was called that we were not allowed to attend. Instead, a member of the association was appointed as a surrogate for us. We were denied permission to establish the work under their auspices, and had to set out on our own with $50 and a footlocker that held all our household possessions. I've often wondered what that "surrogate" did or did not say on our behalf.

Many times since then, I have been in situations as a professional educator in which my colleagues and I were not allowed to speak for ourselves. One of my greatest hopes as I became recognized for teaching excellence was that it might afford me a platform to speak on behalf of other teachers who had been silenced for so long. One day, during my tenure as Mississippi Teacher of the Year, I spoke at a small rural elementary school. At the end of my presentation, a group of retired Black teachers encircled me as they told me how proud they were that "one of us" would be going to Washington, D.C. [for the TOYs recognition and the announcement of which of us would be the National Teacher of the Year]. Then, in an act which took me back to my childhood in the Baptist church, they pressed a handkerchief full of money into my hand. These were women who had taught under the old segregated system (and as some said under the new one). It would have been impossible for any of them to be considered for State TOY, Milken Award, or any other such recognitions. Yet, they taught valiantly, many of them with consistently marvelous results, under wretched conditions. I took very seriously the responsiblity to be their voice wherever I spoke from then on, opening with a verbal libation in their honor.

As a group, teachers are still largely ignored on matters of educational policy, curriculum, scheduling, class assignments, discipline, or dozens of other matters directly related to our working conditions, and more important, to our students' learning. [Remember, I'm in a right-to-work state, no bothersome unions, contracts, or tenure to hold back our student achievement, no siree.] More insulting and more dangerous than being forbidden to speak, is being told we can "have input" on a decision that has already been made or will be made regardless of what we might say. Occasionally, we'll see a "token" teacher (I've been in this role) on a committee or program.

Recently, I and others have noticed a growing trend, especially at the national level, in the wrong direction--away from inclusion of accomplished, successful teachers in the planning and implementation of educational reform policy. I can't think of another area in which those who consistently demonstrate success and expertise in a field are so routinely and blatantly ignored in its research and development.

Despite the urban myths, there are educators all over this country who year-after-year prepare students for success in college and career; their work is documented and consistent. Some of these educators work in high-needs schools with what are called at-risk students. Where are the voices of these experienced educators on venues such as the recent NGA/CSSO national standards project?  There are one or two notable former classroom teachers and some highly respected education researchers--I guess they are the surrogates for us in this instance. But why rely only on the surrogates? Even many of the national organizations that purport to represent teachers are increasingly headed and staffed by persons far removed from the work of the classroom.

The rise of social networking outlets and virtual communities has made it possible for teachers to connect and exchange ideas in powerful new ways. These tools may also be the vehicle for bringing the voices of highly successful teachers to the public arena, without taking us away from our primary responsibility. This presupposes, however, that teachers will speak out and share what we know with those who need to know. It is past time for accomplished teachers to insert ourselves (invited or not) into the public discourse on ed policy.  Happy 4th!

Politicians Promoting Use of Technology in Schools (Better Late Than Never)

Don’t you love it when policymakers and others “discover” something that teachers have been fighting or begging for; then turn to the cameras and say: “Wow! This could revolutionize education! Why aren’t more teachers doing this?”  Sigh.

That’s how I felt as I watched testimony from the June 16 hearing before the House Education and Labor Committee on “How Innovative Educational Technologies Can Boost Student Learning and Teacher Effectiveness.”

Aneesh Chopra, White House Chief Technology Officer, gushed over the many possibilities for technology use in the classrooms as he highlighted some “on the ground” examples, including an e-book platform for collaborative writing and sharing of texts in physics.

College sophomore, Abel Real, from North Carolina shared his inspiring story of how a teacher and a school district commited to integrated technology use motivated and enabled him to successfully complete his education. He also explains how it has helped other high-needs, at-risk students.

I wonder, whether the House Committee and others listening to him realize how much technology is and has already been used in public education around the country, often by teachers having to circumvent access and resource issues?  Hopefully, this hearing suggests that the  White House and Congressional initiatives will begin with a broad search of what is already successfully being done; and engaging tech-experienced educators and students in helping plan for what could be.

I also wonder whether those in attendance at the hearing caught in Mr. Real’s remarks the importance not only of the technology, but of how it was used by the educators as an integral part of the overall teaching/learning experience, not as a sideshow. Chopra’s remarks implied this understanding; any federal actions on this issue need to keep that integration as a core principle.

The interest of the Executive and Legislative branches in promoting the use of technology in education is admirable. But past administrations have paid lip service to this, too. Although I’ll save the real rejoicing for a systematic effort to unchain teachers from antiquated policies and provide real resources to make innovative use of technology in education a reality for all our children, it’s a good start.

At Last: Black Colleges Included in National Discussion on Teacher Prep

An extremely important event (that got scant notice in the press) has brought a key segment of the education community back into the national ed reform dialogue.

June 9th, over 1500 representatives from the Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) convened in D.C at the invitation of the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) and the White House Initiative on HBCUs to address the nation's need for more high quality teachers.  The teacher education programs of HBCUs continue to produce over 50% of America's practicing black teachers.

In what was both a shameful and encouraging observation, Dr. Leonard Haynes, Executive Director of the White House Initiative on HBCUs noted this was "the first time that the education department sought to enlist HBCU teacher education programs to help formulate strategy to address....a looming teacher shortage."

Secretary Arne Duncan addressed the meeting, which  also featured a report from two of the nation's leading Black teacher educators that found Black and Latino students gained the most from having National Board Certified teachers in their classrooms. Duncan responded with a call for a "critical mass" of NBCTs.

The timing of the meeting is interesting given the recent ruckus over a proposed cuts to HBCUs by the Obama administration in its first budget. Nevertheless, I am encouraged that these long-standing and longsuffering sources of Black teachers have at least been acknowledged for their past and future contribution to American education.

National Standards: Another Chance to Do the Right Thing

Our friend and deep thinker, Anthony Cody, has raised some essential questions about the new quest for national standards in education. Along with an insightful comparison of how the same political winds that fueled the original NCLB legislation are now carrying the siren call for standards, Anthony speaks some painful truths about the golden profits that may be the real prize of our political argonauts.

"...it allows the testing and publishing industries a chance to make literarlly billions of dollars of profit from revamping the curriculum and tests from coast to coast."  Ahhh, economic stimulus indeed.

He also shares my concern over who will and will not be involved in the development of these standards:

"And what about a democratic process? We are apparently about to be handed a set of standards that will dictate what is taught in millions of classrooms across this nation. How will these have been arrived at? Who, besides the Gates Foundation millionaire’s club, and the standardized test companies and the publishing companies will have been engaged in this profoundly civic process?"

Although he ends the article on a cautiously hopeful note, thoughtful educators can't avoid skepticism towards these high profile pronouncements when our own long, sincere efforts at developing meaningful subject area standards have been alternately ignored and ridiculed by some of these same concerned leaders.

On the other hand, this new initiative which seems to have political and financial support (something the efforts led by the professional subject area organizations did not enjoy), could be an opportunity to take what teachers began and turn it into a true research and development project for American education. Something on the scale of how we have pursued advances in military technology or consumer products.

Grandmama used to say it's never too late to do the right thing. The governors, Gates Foundation, and the Obama Administration could make this a truly productive, inclusive process by inviting those teachers who have long held their own students to high standards to be an integral part of the development process (not just token representation). As Anthony suggests, the surest way to kill a great educational reform is to ignore those who will be most directly affected by it.

New Push Seeks to End Need for Remedial Classes Before College - NYTimes.com

• New Push Seeks to End Need for Remedial Classes Before College - NYTimes.com - Annotated

  Explores disconnect between high school instruction and college readiness. This story is from New York, but it could just as easily have been here in Mississippi or anywhere else around the country.

  tags: remediation

  This recent article in NYT, profiles one community college freshman faced with the now common problem of being placed in remediation for basic English even though she has just graduated with a diploma from high school. It highligts many important and disturbing issues about the lack of consistency in our educational system. Here are a few highlights from the article: 
  
  
  
  "The two systems don’t communicate well at all.” --What an understatement.
  
  

  "Even some high school honors students failed college placement exams and were assigned to her developmental courses, she said.
  

  “Boy, were they surprised,” Ms. Manchin said."

  I had a niece in this situation. She had been a member of the high school honor society, and had taken honors English courses all the way through high school. Yet the state college wanted to put her in remedial English based on her ACT subscore for the English section of the test. This is disturbing when we have considerable documentation that these college entrance tests (ACT, SAT) are not good predictors of the performance of African American students in college settings. So why are colleges still making these decisions based on flawed information?
  
  

  "Three English teachers and five math teachers were uncertified, she

  Anybody else see a connection between the high percentage of uncertified persons in this school and the dismal performance of its graduates who attempted college? Why do they even refer to these people as "teachers"? They're just sitters.

How did it get like this and what should really be done about it?

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

The Basic Math of School Reform

I know it's the end of the school year, (or the start of summer school for some of us), but here's a quiz for education leaders and policymakers. (Warning: Clicking, reading, and light thinking are required).

A. Responding to survey results on why students dropout, posted by Barbara Pytel on Suite101.com, McRel suggests that the key to the problem is what teachers are and are not doing to engage students in their classrooms (e.g., relying too heavily on lecture format and seat work).

B. Responding to a question on how to improve professional development for teachers during an interview with the Des Moines Register, Linda Darling-Hammond observed:

"In most high-achieving countries, teachers have 15 to 25 hours a week [that's paid time--my emphasis] where they are planning collaboratively with their colleagues, so they are not just making up lessons at the kitchen table on a Sunday night by themselves."

True or False: Making more of B the rule and not the exception for U.S. teachers would go a long way towards resolving A and lead to better quality teaching for all students.

{Answer key: True}

If you failed the quiz, remediation is available by reading (carefully) Barnett Berry's recent editorial in EdWeek on "Ending the Battles over Teaching" [pay special attention to his list of how the not-so-distant future of teaching in public schools could look].

(Hat tip to Larry Ferlazzo for pointing me to the McRel piece).

{Update!! Check out the most recent Carnival of Education at siobhan curious. Thanks for including me!}

Tag-Team Blogging over at LFA

Come vist us over at Learning First Alliance's Public School Insights blog. Claus von Zastrow has invited Larry Ferlazzo and  me (yes, Virginia that is correct English) to exchange views on parental involvement - one of my favorite topics. Larry is also a member of the Teacher Leader Network and an award-winning teacher/blogger. Join us!

Go Figure: The More We Test, The Worse Student Achievement Gets

ASCD Inservice recently quoted a legislative aide bemoaning how little emphasis NCLB has placed on secondary schools, specifically on increasing the communication between high schools and colleges on performance expectations for students.

Well, some might argue that the testing frenzy engendered by NCLB has not only affected secondary schools, but it has done so in a very disturbing way.

As part of a faculty-led research project at our community college, we looked very closely at the performance of students from the seven-county area we serve (The Delta region of Mississippi) over a five year period (2001-2006). We discovered that as the state high school exit exam in English was settling firmly into place, more students were arriving at our college (and others) in need of remediation. The consensus among English faculty at the college (and our analysis of work samples confirmed it) was that the quality of students writing was measurably worse than it had been before the mandatory testing program was put into place.

As the legislative aide suggests, we thought it would be a good idea to get together with our secondary peers to discuss expectations, curriculum, learning strategies and the like, but they were too busy with test preparation and administration.

Fresh Air on Edcation Reform

"..the truth shall set you free."

If you haven't yet, check out Ronald Wolk's editorial in EdWeek, "Why We're Still At Risk: The Legacy of Five Faulty Assumptions."

A refreshingly accurate summary of where we are in public education reform, how we got here, and at least one really interesting suggestion of what might help. What I like most about the article is Wolk's direct assault on the "faulty assumptions" that have become almost gospel among those who would "fix" public education.

I'll resist the urge just now to comment more on the article, but I expect it will generate more productive discussions than what we've heard recently on education reform. Hope the new USDOE leadership is paying close attention.