Monday, July 20, 2009

Accountability and Measurement if any

David Orbits writes in response to an article about the United Nations titled:
After $196 billion, no proof U.N. programs help:
Some programs may actually hurt health care by disrupting local services

The lack of effective measurement is not limited to Education. Results in the UN health programs can also be both ineffective and unintended. See below. All that money spent and no plan in place to measure effectiveness and efficiency.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31427832/ns/health-infectious_diseases/


The underlying problem is the same with Education at all levels from the school, to the district, state, federal … to the NSF Education Directorate. Any organization of humans, unencumbered by independent measures of the organization’s efficiency and effectiveness relative to its goals, has little incentive to be either efficient or highly effective. This is simple human nature. Absent any data, everyone is above average. In health care more people will die than should have, in Education more people will be stuck in low-wage jobs for the rest of their lives. All because of the natural human tendency to evade accountability.

Does anyone know if companies exist that perform audits of the educational effectiveness of a school, or a district, by grade level and demographic group for a selected subject? A properly selected sample with an “appropriate” standards based test for the grade level by an independent 3rd party could certainly shine some light on things. Need to be very careful to avoid conflict of interest issues. Having a bunch of Ed School folks or curriculum publishers constructing tests and performing audits would be very bad.
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As close to what Mr. Orbits suggests was the Phi Delta Kappa curriculum audit done for Seattle.
It is not exactly what Mr. Orbits suggested but was quietly brushed under the rug.

http://mathunderground.blogspot.com/2009/01/curriculum-audit-one-year-later-not.html

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In the same way that it can be said:
About the UN that some programs may actually hurt health care by disrupting local services, in Seattle the plan for centrally directed "Managed Instruction" hurts local school classroom instruction.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm hesistant to respond to what most blogs have to say - but, for instance, it seems that school reform brings up issues that strike everyone as something a rational person would do to fix it and then the teacher respond against school reform.

It ain't so and I have to agree with the public teachers, because no other teachers in the world have to jump through as many hoops wearing straight jackets.

Bill Gates thinks teacher evaluations are a positive thing. Well, yes and no, teachers do have evaluations by the way. It hasn't helped raise achievement and I'm ommitting the WASL, because that's another reform lemon. WASL test scores are meaningless for college. Yet I think that was what everyone was led to believe.

Its somewhat irrational, er hypocritical do you think, that school reformers like to boast about test scores going up a point or two and then **** all over teachers.

There are rules for evaluations. Some principals follow them, some don't. Evaluations are meant to be positive and encourage teachers, not drive them to drinking or a rubber room.

In this age, where dishonesty reigns over education and reformers enjoy lighting fires to burn their critics...

I see no other reason for justifying more evaluations.

Will High Tech High or Green Dot teachers ever be given the same evaluations? I doubt it. Ever been evaluated for writing a 'constructivist' lesson plan. The reform movement is driving down a slippery road. Look out below.

It will lead to something very similiar to post-Bush syndrome. When the lawyers finally come around to drive wooden stakes into their dark, little hearts (if they have one) it will be too late for most of us.

There's a teacher I know who's certifiably insane (post traumatic stress disorder under duress). She's not even close to retirement.

The district evaluated her for five years (three 3" 3-ring binders) and then put her on paid permanent leave (going on year 4). And now the union is assisting her sue the district for creating a stressful and unsafe work environment.

Big, important people should be more careful how they choose their words, because other people will listen and act (often unreasonably).

Anonymous said...

Oh why are you hesitating to respond??
___________________
Britney
We do your Marketing for best sales

Anonymous said...

Oh why are you hesitating to respond??
___________________
Britney
We do your Marketing for best sales