Battleground Schools

I had so many questions and thoughts while reading this article, but the ones which kept me thinking and questioning our education system are: 

(Page 390) A particularly striking point was how standardized tests are designed to filter out certain curriculum content. When students successfully master a concept and consistently answer a question correctly, test creators discard that item because it fails to "discriminate" between high and low achievers. Essentially, the assessment is continuously adjusted to guarantee a consistent failure rate. This raises several questions: Do test makers simply discard content because a large majority excels at it? Rather than dismissing these successes, why isn't there an effort to build upon those foundational skills? What is the ultimate purpose of learning these concepts if they are eventually deemed unworthy of assessment?

(Page 396) Dewey’s thoughts on challenging obedient students really stood out to me. While I agree that high achievers need to be challenged, the fundamental first step is instilling basic discipline. Today’s educational discourse heavily emphasizes inquiry and innovation; however, I believe inquiry alone cannot motivate students to innovate or become self-directed learners if their core character traits are neglected early on. Essential qualities like discipline, respect for others, and time management must be cultivated at a young age. We cannot suddenly expect middle schoolers to be innovative simply because we adopt an inquiry-based approach. That level of engagement requires a foundation of structure and discipline, which I believe is often best established through traditional teaching methods.

(Page 394-397)While reading these pages, I was constantly questioning why the educational policies were made by the admins and not by the educators themselves. Educational policies should ideally be shaped by actual subject matter experts, such as mathematicians, or highly experienced educators in the field. Too often, policy-making seems driven by administrators who focus solely on metrics rather than educators who truly understand the underlying pedagogical concepts. It is disheartening to feel that teaching might be the only profession where policies are dictated by those outside the daily practice of the job. Furthermore, it is surprising to see how rolling out a new curriculum, even one designed for better learning outcomes, can fail if it is launched without adequate preparation or clear communication of expectations to parents, teachers, students, and administrators. Because the policymakers are not the ones in the classroom, it is ultimately the teachers and students who suffer the consequences of these abrupt changes.