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NOV/DEC 2010 ■ EDUCATION UPDATE ■ spotlight on schoolsThe Missing Voicesstudents, and to better prepare young people fortheir future.A paradigm shift is needed. It requires that weradically transform the way we think about childhood,education, human capacity, learning andeven standardized testing.We must begin by working in partnership- teachers, parents, administrators – studentsthemselves – to make school a place that emphasizesthe whole child. A place that offers physical13education, showcases the arts, fosters talents,develops citizen skills, develops lifelong learnersand encourages individual growth of students andteachers and a respect for both. #Vicki Abeles is a New York attorney turned documentaryfilmmaker whose film, Race to Nowhere, isscreening in theaters, schools and community venuesnationwide. Race to Nowhere will play at the92nd Street Y, Saturday, Nov. 13 at 7PM and willbe followed by a facilitated dialogue with Abeles.Good schoolsare the cornerstone of astrong communityby Vicki Abeles &Sara Truebridge, Ed. D.Discussions about quality education and adequatelypreparing students for the future havebecome deafening. Yet the voices from those onthe front lines - teachers, students and parents –are often missing. What would they be saying ifwe could hear them?In the documentary Race To Nowhere, thosein the forefront shed light on how the currentdialogue on education reform. Its narrow definitionof achievement and myopic one-dimensionalfocus on test scores and competition is holdingup a one-size-fits all approach to reform that ishaving crushing, unintended consequences. Kidseverywhere, regardless of their background, areunder a new kind of pressure to perform, the kindof pressure that impacts physical and emotionalhealth and hampers their development.High-stakes testing has taken the place ofmeaningful teaching and learning. The tests satisfythe desire for a simple, quantifiable way tomeasure our schools, teachers and students. Butthe scores tend to reflect parental income and zipcodes rather than how our schools are doing, andthe tests have the effect of narrowing the curriculumand the way it is taught. Testing encouragesa type of thinking that trains students to seekquick results and only a superficial knowledge ofthe material. It ignores those subjects not testedand creates students who have been trained tolook for the right answer instead of developingproblem solvers.Teachers are pressured to teach to a script ratherthan to teach for engagement and understanding.They are forced to cover a broad range ofmaterial quickly and without regard to what theyknow as professionals about education and thedevelopmental needs of the children. Many arefeeling unsupported and leaving the profession.Testing also ignores the importance of activeand engaged participation of students in thelearning process. Motivation to learn for pleasureor even to continue in school at all is alsoimpacted. As our classrooms have been turnedinto test prep centers, an increasing number ofstudents are becoming disengaged, checking outand dropping out.And this environment promotes fear withinyoung people preventing them from taking risksand from involving themselves with learning.Today’s students need room to make mistakes—mistakesprovide important opportunitiesfor growth.A toll is also exacted on the health and wellbeingof our youth. There’s an epidemic ofyoung people who are anxious, depressed andsleep deprived, exhibiting psychosomatic symptoms,abusing performance medications, andcompromising values because of the pressure toget the grade or simply to get through the quantityof material.Accustomed to a regime of memorizing, crammingand regurgitating information, many entercollege lacking effective problem-solving orthinking skills. Over 40 percent of college freshmenhave to take remedial courses. And mentalhealth offices on campuses are overflowing.Business leaders tell of young people who lackthe skills needed most to thrive in the adult world–working together cooperatively, communicatingand solving complex problems. Having beentrained, instead of educated, in such a narrowmanner, young people are afraid to take risksneeded for innovation and they also lack thecreativity of previous generations. Industry isspending billions retraining these graduates.Much of the attention given to improvingschools has focused on raising standardized testscores and promoting the latest program, keepingstudents in school for longer hours and increasingtime devoted to homework and studying. Ratherthan doing more of what we’ve always done,improving educational success must be groundedin a deeper understanding of how schools canbe restructured to make learning more relevantand engaging, to provide access to quality educationfor all children, to provide opportunitiesfor experiential learning, to allow time formeaningful relationships between educators andIn times like these, we need to build up our communities by investingin public education, rejecting shortsighted gimmicks that hurt studentsand challenging naysayers who lack the facts.A recent poll showed what we already knew: New Yorkers overwhelminglysupport their schools. Working together, we can face the challenges ahead,give our kids a brighter future and build stronger communities.Quality public educationA great investment for our statePaid for byNew York State United Teachers.Discover MarymountMarymount School of New York1026 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK, NY 10028 212.744.4486 WWW.MARYMOUNTNYC.ORG