The state of our schools has always been troubling to me. Back when I was a student, and now that I am a teacher, it still bothers me daily. When I was a student I knew that there were great teachers, teachers that could inspire me in subjects I didn't even think I cared about, but those great teachers were always having to fight the system, and break the rules in order to achieve greatness Even in high school I could see how broken the system was. And, those great teachers stood out in my mind apart form the rest. Worksheets, point chasing, hours and hours of meaningless homework, extra credit that meant nothing more than, "putting in my time" all were the norm throughout most of the school. I wondered why the system was so set in stone that even the great teachers felt helpless to change much outside of their classroom.
During school, I thrived in art, music and theatre classes. I took as many as I could, and I knew I was learning, growing, and gaining true knowledge, knowledge where I was not chasing points, or filling in blanks, but knowledge I was internalizing, useful, and would help me throughout life. I thank God that my school offered and valued the arts, and ran a schedule that allowed me to take so many art courses. I didn't see behind the scenes to know how my school arranged a schedule that allowed me to learn, and take so many courses that were to my benefit, but now that I am on the other side, and I can see the workings behind the scenes, I am sad. I am swimming up stream, battling for my students, their futures, their success in life.
Schools today, in the United States have lost sight of the American Dream. We are striving to be like China. We standardize everything, and if our students can't fill in the right bubbles on a test, we pull them out of EVERYTHING. We call classes that have the bubble test associated with them the "core" and the rest, extra, fluff, expendable, practical, elective. Are they kidding me!? Don't get me wrong, math has a place in my life, though with all of the calculators, excel spreadsheets, and google I can honestly say I haven't used much over basic math for years. I understand that if a student cannot read it will be difficult for them to learn other subjects, but to pull a student out of the classes that have direct impact on their well being, to drill and drill, and drill them on the area they are struggling? I can honestly say I would have dropped out of school! How awful for their happiness and self esteem; let them explore, let them play, let them be curious, let them learn about the big picture. I cry when I think about the talented students who were pulled from art, to be drilled for the test, I fought for them, but I am fighting more than just my schools system. I am fighting an entire culture! Where have we gone, and how can we stop the madness?
In the United States, we are unique, we are creative, creators, we are innovators, we build new things, we accept everyone, we encourage entrepreneurs, we value the arts, we hold freedom dear, so what is wrong with our school system? It is becoming rigid, control, standardized, we are taking away state control through bribery, in the name of equality, but we are loosing the things that make us great.
My heart goes out to my students who can't take the arts today, due to having to spend all day working on their test scores, my students who in high school can't take the art credits they want. I hear teachers in meetings say, "we need schools focused on math and reading" , "we can't have band taking away from our intervention time". Are they so blinded by the test?
The Nation is screaming for employees who are: creative, innovative, high order thinkers, so what is the disconnect? Why can't our school system step up, and make some changes, changes that encourage well rounded, education full of everything our students need to become life long learners, able to think for themselves, and research, evaluate, plan and create whatever they may need. I don't have all the answers, but I know we have a BIG problem, and we should spend more time devoted to fixing this mess we call education.
For more about creativity, and the arts in our schools, check out this article (must read):
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nicholas-ferroni/us-art-history_b_1601537.html?utm_hp_ref=tw
During school, I thrived in art, music and theatre classes. I took as many as I could, and I knew I was learning, growing, and gaining true knowledge, knowledge where I was not chasing points, or filling in blanks, but knowledge I was internalizing, useful, and would help me throughout life. I thank God that my school offered and valued the arts, and ran a schedule that allowed me to take so many art courses. I didn't see behind the scenes to know how my school arranged a schedule that allowed me to learn, and take so many courses that were to my benefit, but now that I am on the other side, and I can see the workings behind the scenes, I am sad. I am swimming up stream, battling for my students, their futures, their success in life.
Schools today, in the United States have lost sight of the American Dream. We are striving to be like China. We standardize everything, and if our students can't fill in the right bubbles on a test, we pull them out of EVERYTHING. We call classes that have the bubble test associated with them the "core" and the rest, extra, fluff, expendable, practical, elective. Are they kidding me!? Don't get me wrong, math has a place in my life, though with all of the calculators, excel spreadsheets, and google I can honestly say I haven't used much over basic math for years. I understand that if a student cannot read it will be difficult for them to learn other subjects, but to pull a student out of the classes that have direct impact on their well being, to drill and drill, and drill them on the area they are struggling? I can honestly say I would have dropped out of school! How awful for their happiness and self esteem; let them explore, let them play, let them be curious, let them learn about the big picture. I cry when I think about the talented students who were pulled from art, to be drilled for the test, I fought for them, but I am fighting more than just my schools system. I am fighting an entire culture! Where have we gone, and how can we stop the madness?
In the United States, we are unique, we are creative, creators, we are innovators, we build new things, we accept everyone, we encourage entrepreneurs, we value the arts, we hold freedom dear, so what is wrong with our school system? It is becoming rigid, control, standardized, we are taking away state control through bribery, in the name of equality, but we are loosing the things that make us great.
My heart goes out to my students who can't take the arts today, due to having to spend all day working on their test scores, my students who in high school can't take the art credits they want. I hear teachers in meetings say, "we need schools focused on math and reading" , "we can't have band taking away from our intervention time". Are they so blinded by the test?
The Nation is screaming for employees who are: creative, innovative, high order thinkers, so what is the disconnect? Why can't our school system step up, and make some changes, changes that encourage well rounded, education full of everything our students need to become life long learners, able to think for themselves, and research, evaluate, plan and create whatever they may need. I don't have all the answers, but I know we have a BIG problem, and we should spend more time devoted to fixing this mess we call education.
For more about creativity, and the arts in our schools, check out this article (must read):
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nicholas-ferroni/us-art-history_b_1601537.html?utm_hp_ref=tw
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