...Introduction A. Social Problem Education plays an important role in the way a particular country progresses. The US has always strived for high education standards; however, recent statistics point out that the country has competitively fallen behind when compared to other developed countries. For this reason, education has played an important role in the US agenda for many years. In January 8th, 2002, the US Congress passed a law called “No Child Left Behind Act” (NCLB), which expanded the role of federal government in education. This law strongly emphasizes the implementation of standardized tests in public schools to measure the progress of students as well as to hold teachers and schools accountable for students’ progress. A social problem that the NCLB is trying to fix is the fact that the quality of education in US’ public schools has decreased during the last years. Alarming statistics have shown that the country’s education system is not as internationally competitive as it used to be. For example, according to a report issued by the Council on Foreign Relations, the United States has slipped ten spots in high school and college graduation rates in the past three decades (CFR). Poor education affects the entire country because of the close relation that progress has with having a skillful workforce. Furthermore, other social problems, such as poverty and crime, are indirectly related to inferior education. An extensive body of research has found that people with...
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...Annotated Bibliography for Standardized Testing Perry Barr Devry University Annotated Bibliography for Standardized Testing : I was always told that one bad apple will spoil the whole bunch; which is true. Standardized Testing should be used to find the child with a learning disability and work with that child. Not to grade the whole school and that school gets a poor grade. That’s like taking a bunch of apples and throwing them out just because a couple of them were spoiled. A person needs to work with the good parts of the apple and make apple pie. Improve the child by adding things that will take that child higher and increase their ability to learn. Gregory J. Cizek, "Unintended Consequences of High Stakes Testing - P-12,” Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, Sep. 2001 Susan Ohanian, "Collateral Vomitage,” www.susanohanian.org, Mar. 14, 2002 Standardized testing causes severe stress in younger students. According to education researcher Gregory J. Cizek, anecdotes abound “illustrating how testing... produces gripping anxiety in even the brightest students, and makes young children vomit or cry, or both.” On Mar. 14, 2002, the Sacramento Bee reported that “test-related jitters, especially among young students, are so common that the Stanford-9 exam comes with instructions on what to do with a test booklet in case a student vomits on it.” Cizek is an education researcher and I believe his studies are in depth to the topic I am documenting. Assessment:...
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...Is America’s Education Sufficient? In the United States of America, education is considered to be something of a volatile subject, an object of scrutiny, and of course, something of great importance within the country. However, when one looks into the public education system in America, they’ll see something sorely lacking, especially when it is critiqued to on a global scale. This appears to be especially true when looking at it on a high school and middle school level. Which raises the question, is the public education system in America good enough for a student looking to get into a good college? A large reason as to why this question exists is that standardized testing and non-specialized education is the dominant force in America’s education, and it should be providing a sufficient, well-rounded education as well as preparing a student for their collegiate-level career, and it just isn’t doing what it’s expected to be doing. What America needs is an educational system that can not only prepare a student for college, but also one that can ensure that a student feels adequately prepared for life after compulsory education. Now, what is public education exactly? As stated in an article by the International Student Guide, in the United States, public education is not federally managed, and every single state has its own Department of Education to set guidelines for the public schools within that state. It is also funded by the state government by tax-payer dollars. Students...
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...What role should standardized testing play in Texas' public education system? The methods by which children are educated and academically measured in Texas have evolved over the past few decades, due to federal and state directed education policies. In an effort to establish accountability and improve the nation's competitiveness on a global scale, standardized testing has become a driving component of curricula nationwide. Almost every state, including Texas, governs its public schools under a national policy directive known as the "No Child Left Behind Act" (NCLB). The NCLB requires all states to utilize assessments to determine and report if a school has made adequate yearly progress (AYP) in the proficiency levels of all students. This is a relatively recent shift from local control of schools to centralized governance which is intended to improve education and eliminate harmful disparities in education quality (Ricci 342). Instead of school districts determining education standards, the state and federal governments provide the policy direction. One method to assess education performance and compliance with the centralized policy is the use of accountability measures - i.e., standardized tests. The NCLB, coupled with state policy, is intended to decrease inequality and set an objective measurement in place where school districts, schools, teachers, and even students can be held accountable for their progress or lack thereof. However, there are arguments from opponents...
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...Strayer University Scholl of Professional Studies Thomas Walkington PAD 510 Intro Public Policy Analysis Strayer University January 27, 2014 Abstract The purpose of this research is to identify the reformation from the No Child Left behind Act that was reform from President Bush to the President Obama Blue Print for Reform Act and the Raising to the Top for Education. The research proves that the reformation of the Blue Print has greatly increased in the education of all children to indulge in a higher education. This reformation has not only help with the children but the welfare of the economy and the communities as well. The report identifies key elements of the policy and makes recommendations for future policy development identifying official and unofficial actors, interest groups, the influence of two of those actors, their influence in further development of the policy Executive Summary A substantial body of evidence has shown that past reforms have largely failed to improve schools, but The Blue Print for Reform along with the Rise to The Top Program (RTTT) has made a significant change in education. The Blueprint for Reform builds on the significant reforms already made in response to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 around four areas: (1) Improving teacher and principal effectiveness to ensure that every classroom has a great teacher and every school has a great leader; (2) Providing information to families to help them evaluate and improve...
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...philosophy, and validates the methodology in research, providing a side-by-side comparison for examination of relative strengths and weaknesses of the program. For 21st century school reformists seeking alternative methods of education or an individualized, child-centered curriculum, Montessori presents itself as an adaptive, hands-on, future-friendly option for the democratic community as it evolves toward offering a full preschool to secondary public program. Keywords: Montessori, constructivism, independence, Dewey, progressive, alternative education Montessori: Evolving Toward a Public Secondary School in the 21st Century Since the time of early philosophers such as Socrates, Aristotle and Plato, to whom we can trace the traditional subjects of the common core curriculum, there have been heated political and social debates surrounding the field of education. Rather than being discouraged by their recurrent nature, academic planners and developers must examine these questions anew to refresh our views and test our assumptions about the necessary directions of education in current society. One of the most basic questions at the heart of this discussion is, what are the aims or purposes of education? In order to create an effective program of education, we must work backwards from these desired goals to develop appropriate strategies for achievement, examining the implications and...
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...research say about the teachers unions influence, both positive and negative, on human resources and how that influence impacts students’ performance? This research is significant because the public school system in the United States as a whole is atrociously underperforming and has been for many years. Most inner city public schools and those public schools that serve the poorer community are outright failing. Some states, such as California, have a parent strike law, which allows the parents to intervene and have the public school overtaken by an outside source if the school doesn’t meet the state standards. Many states have fought hard to prevent this type of law from entering their state. Obviously, it is in the teachers unions best interest to not have this law in their state. But is this disallowance of this type of law harmful to students performance? This law would threaten the teachers job security, so it’s easy to ascertain why they do not support this law. This leaves the human resources department, who may want the law, stuck in the middle and without an avenue to exercise their expertise. Human resources is limited with their ability to but polices in place because it has to abide by the laws of the teachers unions. In a private enterprise the public school system would have been closed for business if year after year that private enterprise didn’t produce positive results. More importantly, individual performance of each employee would have a way of being measured...
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...assessment of psychomotor learning and performance; that section is not annotated. This work was completed by members of ELAC and its subcommittees as noted above. 1 CLASSROOM ASSESSMENT Ahmad, N. (2002). Evaluation of teaching: Through eyes of students. Plano: Institutional Research Office, Collin County Community College District. This article reviews the student evaluations instruments used to evaluate learning and faculty in the classroom. The purpose of this article was to search for come standardized instruments of student evaluations. Instruments used are: Individual Developmental and Educational Assessment (IDEA), Student Assessment of Learning Gains( SALG), Instructional Assessment System (IAS), Student Instructional Report II (SIR II), Course/Instructor Evaluations Questionnaire (CIEQ), Student Evaluation of Educational Quality (SEEQ), San Francisco State University Instrument, Indiana University at Bloomington’s Multi-Op (Multiple Option System of Course and Instructor Evaluation), Student Evaluation of Instruction...
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...Music in General Education By: Kiersten Jackson English/101 Essay Writing Music in General Education There has been a large amount of debate about music in a general education setting. Many people think it is a waste of time and resources, while others state children benefit greatly from music. More often as of late, we are losing out on the virtues that music education teaches. There have been many studies that state there are links between music education and math (Graziano, Peterson & Shaw, 1999), music and standardized testing (CBSNR, 2001), as well as music and special education (MENC, 2002).However, research has determined that music is important in the lives of children, has many benefits and plays a larger role in general education. Music education has been noticed for quite some time as a form of expression and a universal language of sorts, thus expressing the importance of music in the lives of children. In recent history, music’s importance in cognitive development and impact on education in other courses has emphasized the need to continue music as part of a general education curriculum. Music helps with listening and language skills. Through music, children learn to hear different sounds, beats and melodies. The many different tones and beats help with speech and hearing development. If you have a beat to sing words to, it makes reading poems and rhymes much easier for some students. Music encourages movement and activity. Most children, even...
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...Effects of socioeconomic status on academic performance in Missouri public schools ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, 2009 Dissertation Author: Brent M Blevins Abstract: Understanding the effects of socioeconomic status on academic performance is important in determining effective and valid testing for all Missouri students. Determining the correlation between these two variables is important for all educators to understand, so that all students can achieve to their academic potential. Finding the correlation between academic performance and socioeconomic status can assist educators in determining instructional strategies that best fit each individual student. In this study the researcher analyzed the effects of socioeconomic status on the academic performance by retrieving data on the state mandated Missouri Assessment Program. The researcher analyzed fifty school districts on the communication arts portion of the MAP test. This data was used in determining the academic performance of these students. The percent of free and reduced lunch students in these districts was used in determining their socioeconomic status. The correlation between the two variables was determined by using the Pearson r Correlation Formula. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract.................................................iii List of Tables............................................vi CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION...................................1 Statement of the Problem.........................5 Importance...
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...behavior was going to end up on your “permanent record” and ruin your life. We shrugged them off, thought they were being dramatic or crazy and didn’t think much of it. Unfortunately for some students, the School to Prison Pipeline is making the threat of a bad permanent record all too real, as well as the consequences behind it. What is happening? Research suggests that The School to Prison Pipeline is damaging to students because it disproportionately affects poor, minority, and special needs students and is supported by unfairly applied disciplinary policies like “zero tolerance” and the standardized testing requirements backed by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. The School to Prison Pipeline, or Cradle to Prison Pipeline as some may refer to it as is the set of rules and policies that are currently funneling school children into the juvenile and criminal court systems. While order is needed in classrooms, the School to Prison Pipeline is a disservice to students and society given that these policies heavily impact special needs, minority, and poor students. With the increase of school shootings since Columbine in 1999, schools have become increasingly inflexible in terms of dealing with situations that a decade or two ago would have been handled by the school principal. In 2010 a NYC school student was arrested and sentenced to community service for doodling on her desk with an erasable marker (Aull, 2012). In 2008 a 13 year old Florida student was...
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...needs of workforce development organizations, (b) the assessment needs of individual youth to help make informed choices about their careers, and (c) the practical needs of practitioners for information about how to select and use different assessment tools. At the end of this chapter, Exhibit 3.1 contains information that can be used to help with the selection and use of assessments, including a directory of commonly used published tests. Meeting Institutional Assessment Needs Agencies and organizations in the workforce system use assessments to meet institutional needs in two ways-to determine a youth's eligibility for services and to document achievement of program goals by assessing the progress of program participants. The number of participants served and achievement of program goals can impact the amount of funding an organization receives. Funding for the youth programs considered in this guide may come from the Department of Education, the Department of Labor, other federal agencies, states, local governmental agencies, or a combination of these. Table 1.2 in Chapter 1 summarizes the eligibility and assessment requirements of IDEA, WIA Title I, and the Rehabilitation Act. More specific information on assessments mandated or permitted by several federal funding sources may be found in Appendix A. (Mandated assessments are those required for all applicants or participants. Permitted assessments may be provided for some applicants or participants if appropriate...
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...AN INVESTIGATION OF READING ACHIEVEMENT AND THE USE OF SUCCESSMAKER A DIGITAL READING PROGRAM A Dissertation Proposal Submitted to the Faculty of Argosy University Campus In Partial Fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education By Jeanne Nelson Argosy University Sarasota Campus March, 2013 Dissertation Committee Approval: ------------------------------------------------- Dissertation Chair: Dr. Janice Powell Ed.D Date ------------------------------------------------- Committee Member: Dr. Denise Davis-Cotton Ed.D Date ------------------------------------------------- Program Chair: Dr. George Spagnola Ed.D Date TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF TABLES ii TABLE OF FIGURES vii TABLE OF APPENDICES ix CHAPTER ONE: THE PROBLEM AND ITS COMPONENTS 1 Introduction 1 Problem Background 1 Purpose of the Study 1 Problem Statement 2 Research Questions 2 Limitations and Delimitations 3 Definitions of Terms 4 Significance of the Study 8 Overview of Study 8 CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE 9 Introduction 10 Introduction to the i-Generation 12 Technology’s Role in School Reform 14 Technology and Student Achievement 19 Teaching Reading Through the use of Technology 23 Pearson’s Digital Learning Platform SuccessMaker 25 Summary 30 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 31 Introduction 31 ...
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...Why is there even a debate amongst these groups when based on the 2014 PDK/Gallup poll of the public’s attitudes toward the public school revealed that 58% of Americans said the curriculum used in their community’s schools needs to change (pdkintl.org, 2014). The same poll revealed that the public believes only 13% of high school graduates are ready for the world of work, and only 31% ready for college (pdkintl.org, 2014). With all of this why are we all not taking a stand for the Common Core State Standards? The Common Core State Standards for mathematics create a staircase where students can build upon their knowledge conceptually at a pace that will be standardized across the country. Every student regardless of socioeconomic status, demographics, or political background should have the same pathway for their education. For example, a student in Atlanta should be given the exact learning pathway as a student in New York. We need to say good-bye to the days where we have teachers teaching mathematics solely through a textbook, rote memorization, and in a non-developmental order. As a parent and citizen of this country I see the importance of every student having the same opportunities to receive the knowledge...
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...THE VALIDATION OF A STUDENT SURVEY ON TEACHER PRACTICE By Ryan Thomas Balch Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Vanderbilt University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in Leadership and Policy Studies August, 2012 Nashville, Tennessee Approved: Professor David S. Cordray Professor Matthew G. Springer Professor Mimi Engel Professor Mark Berends Though there is widespread evidence that teachers matter, a more challenging problem exists in attempting to measure teacher effectiveness. It can be argued that student feedback is an important consideration in any teacher evaluation system as students have the most contact with teachers and are the direct consumers of a teacher’s service. The current paper outlines the development and preliminary validation of a student survey on teacher practice. Using data from a large-scale pilot in Georgia, the analysis finds that teacher scores on a student survey have a positive and marginally significant relationship to value-added estimates of teacher effects on student achievement. Further, there is a strong link between teacher scores and measures of academic student engagement and student self-efficacy. Finally, the paper investigates policy related issues that are pertinent to implementing student surveys as a component of teacher evaluation. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to those who directly supported...
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