Let's assume that primary & secondary schools (pre university) are here to stay. What then do we really want as outcomes of that schooling? 20% - 30% will go on to university. A large proportion will go directly to jobs, but every one of them will be a global citizen. Should the outcomes of school prepare for university? for jobs? or for lifelong learning? Do we want people to finish school with good knowledge, good skills or good attitudes? We need to be sure of what we want so that the processes & climate of schools match. In Australia we say that we value the attributes of a life long learner most, but our schooling system focuses on & rewards academic success, which according to educational & adolescent psychology conflicts with a focus on learning,
In addition to what has already been observed, the effectiveness of schools can be assessed in terms of students' performance in public examinations. This is the case, for example, in India, where all students compete with each other on a nationally administered exam and/or a state-administered exam. Strangely enough, its has been reported that schools have little impact on the academic outcomes of their students (see p. 14 in):
F. Tijen Aksit, A comparative case study on schools effectiveness characteristics of two private high schools in Ankara, Ph.D. thesis, Middle East Technical University, 2006:
http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/3/12607052/index.pdf
Using Creemers' model (2004), student outcomes are explained in terms of each student, classroom, school and national context level (p. 22). It was found that in Latin America, the most effective schools tended to have
1. high levels of school resources,
2. multi-graded classrooms with heterogeneous student groupings,
3. frequent student assessment,
4. high level of parental involvement at the class and at the school level,
5. positive classroom climate, especially in terms of discipline (see p. 25).
In short, what we really want are independent minds with adequate training on how to arrive at decisions independently based on available information. Hopefully, graduates would have the ability to probe and cull from available information to gain insight into what has been discovered by others and to make it possible to formulate theories and to make decisions based on what has been found.
My feelings too James. why then do we often end up doing the oppo site to what we say? Many of our students end school with the belief that they can't learn or make informed decision.
Mark,
A lot depends on the approaches to learning during the pre-college years in preparing students to be decision-makers. Great teachers tend to inspire students, stimulating their curiosity, encouraging them to edge a bit beyond the requirements. And great books such as Euclid's Elements and Gulliver's Travels go a bit beyond the traditional textbook approach to reading assignments.
In addition to what has already been observed, the effectiveness of schools can be assessed in terms of students' performance in public examinations. This is the case, for example, in India, where all students compete with each other on a nationally administered exam and/or a state-administered exam. Strangely enough, its has been reported that schools have little impact on the academic outcomes of their students (see p. 14 in):
F. Tijen Aksit, A comparative case study on schools effectiveness characteristics of two private high schools in Ankara, Ph.D. thesis, Middle East Technical University, 2006:
http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/3/12607052/index.pdf
Using Creemers' model (2004), student outcomes are explained in terms of each student, classroom, school and national context level (p. 22). It was found that in Latin America, the most effective schools tended to have
1. high levels of school resources,
2. multi-graded classrooms with heterogeneous student groupings,
3. frequent student assessment,
4. high level of parental involvement at the class and at the school level,
5. positive classroom climate, especially in terms of discipline (see p. 25).
School should put you on your life path. It's the first phase of a long journey.
To be able to start the second part students should know more about themselves, be resilient, curious, motivated, have a sense of belonging and then Panta Rhei, everything flows and we know that learning never stops ....should students be told this!!??
Holly, I agree with what you say. As a high school teacher I know that students ARE told this. The problem is that lifelong learning is dependant on motivation and the motivation to continue some things like maths and science is lost because of (mainly) assessment in school (and some) teacher beliefs.
Hi Mark
I agree with you.
Assessment in the traditional way is an abstract way of proving knowledge and is mostly a way of keeping students away from further learning.
I have recently gone back to uni( Fine Art ) and being an online version assessment is done through out the year where you put your work in folders that demonstrate your development of knowledge. It a grand way of compiling all things learn.
As an Atelierista I don't give any kind of formal test and the kids thrive. They never feel pressured.
How do you go about it?
Unfortunately I am hamstrung by a National system that mandates some things about assessment and reporting that get in the way of motivation. If I couldn't demonstrate that I was doing those things I would be fired. Even so, I have done as much as is possible to mitigate the negatives by framing assessment as carefully as I can as a 'collection of learnings', from which I have to give a grade twice a year. I think it doesn't work as well as I would like because the students MUST get a report in a form that judges their relative worth. Also I am the only department in the school working like this and the students carry their impression of school from the other departments into mine.
What outcomes do we really want from schools?
Think different stakeholders e.g. student, parent, school, employer, government etc. might have different expectations of the outcomes. Some possible outcomes can include the following:
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Teacher Education
- School