New Secretary of Education Arne Duncan: What It Could Mean for Kids (continued)
Topics: Politics and Education, Political/Voting/Civic Holidays & Occasions, Technology and Learning
Bruce Fuller, Ph.D., Professor of Education and Public Policy at the University of Berkeley says Duncan's selection shows that Obama will place school improvement high on the domestic policy agenda. “Mr. Duncan will have the new president's ear. He mirrors the president-elect's style of governing: get all sides around table, listen carefully, and experiment with meaningful reforms,” Fuller says. “While tough-headed he's rarely antagonistic, nor a kick-butt, take no names kind of reformer .”
School Choice
Duncan has been a consistent proponent of school choice, especially the funding of charter schools. He has a record of championing charter schools in Chicago, “even when it was controversial,” Obama says. The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools President and CEO Nelson Smith says Duncan has strongly supported public charter schools in Chicago, and “will continue to be a strong advocate for chartering and carry forward with President-elect Obama’s commitment to double the federal support for charter schools as a key component of his reform efforts.”
College Funding
Though he will be responsible for higher education policies that help prepare students for college both academically and financially, Duncan has limited experience in the higher education sector.
Early Childhood Education
In the last eight years, Chicago has increased the number of low-income children who have access to pre-kindergarten programs. Advocates of early childhood education say they are confident that Duncan will swiftly execute Obama's plans to provide universal preschool to all.
Improvements to Science, Math and Technology Education
Duncan's track record in Chicago has shown a commitment to improving student access to 21st century technology. In 2004, Duncan and city officials launched a new program under which a public school called Virtual Opportunities Inside a School Environment (VOISE) was opened. VOISE is dedicated to technology education—students are given laptops in the classroom and those without home computers are provided one.
Teacher Quality and Retention
When it comes to getting high-quality teachers in the classroom, Duncan has shown he wants to think out of the box. He shut the Dodge Renaissance Academy on Chicago's West Side, a once failing school, and reopened it as an experimental teacher-residency program for those seeking advanced degrees in education. The experiment seems to have worked; since the school reopened in 2003, the number of students meeting state standards at the school has more than tripled.
Duncan has initiated pay for performance incentives for both teachers and students in Chicago, and has sought backing from groups traditionally opposed to merit pay, such as teacher's unions.
Obama said that Duncan has the skills and experience to put high-quality teachers in the classroom. “He’s worked tirelessly to improve teacher quality, increasing the number of master teachers who’ve completed a rigorous national certification process from 11 to just shy of 1,200, and rewarding school leaders and teachers for gains in student achievement,” Obama said.
How Duncan's policy ideas might affect classrooms in the next four years is up for grabs. “He's got to hit the ground running,” Fuller says. “We'll find out whether this former basketball professional has remained in good shape.”
But, one thing is sure: the appointment has served to renew Obama's commitment to improving education in America. "In the next few years, the decisions we make about how to educate our children will shape our future for generations to come,” Obama said in a statement about Duncan's appointment. “At a time when companies can plant jobs wherever there’s an Internet connection, and two-thirds of all new jobs require a higher education or advanced training, if we want to out-compete the world tomorrow, we must out-educate the world today.”
Duncan's appointment will now go to the Senate for confirmation.
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Comments from readers
'Sought' being the key word there, as he hasn't received it. Running schools like a CEO, and treating kids like products to compete for jobs does a great disservice to education and our children. This seems to be the approach the current administration took, and hardly a 'change'. Achievement and success will still measured by test scores and how well the teachers can get their students to fill in the right oval. Am I the only one who finds this thoroughly depressing? This is not education, and it is certainly not learning.
Why are we so reluctant to consider that teachers might actually know what they are talking about when it comes to teaching?
Also for further consideration:
http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/soe.htm
Obama's Betrayal of Public Education? Arne Duncan and the Corporate Model of Schooling
http://www.truthout.org/121708R
Arne Duncan's Privatization Agenda
http://www.counterpunch.org/sharkey12182008.html
If I thought that Duncan’s views could simply be summarized as pro-privatization or pro-pay for performance, I too would be concerned. However, Duncan is a strong proponent of universal pre-schools. Expanding pre-schools beyond those who can afford should have a significant impact on increasing learning for lower socioeconomic students. Changing large high school with +3000 students to smaller schools that are theme based makes sense. Exploring ways to pay teachers more money or to possibly experiment with bonuses is worth considering. Expanding opportunities for high school students to learn outside of the classroom to support their education is worth trying. Increasing internet access in poorer communities to improve the digital divide makes a lot of sense. There is strong evidence that increasing the involvement of parents in schools improves student learning. Finding ways to increase accountability of teachers and principals is also a positive direction. The above represent changes that I hear Duncan supporting. There are thousands of great teachers and school leaders who know what works in schools. Let us focus more on spreading the successes and not be afraid of trying new things. The bottom line is he seems to care about all students and is working to improve teaching and learning. He seems to be identifying what works then he tries to replicate. Education cannot be more of the same because we are losing too many kids. More funding of what works is needed.
There are thousands and thousands of people who have worked in the CPS under him and would know him best. I can't believe you would write an article without hearing from those people.
High quality education is within easy reach. We just need to get back to the basics. I grew up without a computer and lets face it when I hit college it did not stop me from getting a computer science degree. If you have the fundamentals under your belt you will be successful. Get rid of all the fluff.
I don't know how this Education Secretary or any other government entity is going to make a difference. We have been educating people for a long time, it's not a mystery. They always do think of new ways to spend.
The internet does not make a child smarter. Let's first spend that money on making those children proficient readers and go back to basic math. Remember the goal of college is ultimately to teach you to think and develop strategies on how to solve problems.
Think of all the foreigners who come to America - ask you own Doctor, I'm sure you have more foreign ones than American and ask them if they had fluff in school and computers!
One final note, the studies show that Head Start kids did not do any better then those who did not go. Let's face it if you are in a home life where people don't value school or you are not being read to... think... in a large city why are school better in a richer district vs. a poorer one? Is it the curriculum or the teachers? Are the kids dumber? No, it is the home life. Those parents in the poorer districts don't understand. They are not reading to the kids, teaching them.
Unfortunately the library I'm in is about to close. I won't be able to come back until Thusday, March 5, 2009. Please provide me with an e-mail address at the above address. thanks.
Thank you
arne.duncan@ed.gov
For general questions of the department, you can also email:
education@custhelp.com
Denise Graab
Education.com Community Team
—that just because certain programs are mandated (anti-drug, anti-violence, anti-alcohol, anti-smoking, etc.), it doesn't mean there's consistent, ample time to teach them
—that just because elementary teachers are certified to teach a multitude of subjects, it doesn't mean they've realistically the focus, time, or energies to effectively execute all of them consistently
—that it is irresponsible for ALL students to not have access to full-time science, art, music, and physical education teachers (as these subjects take A LOT of time and dedicated skills to prep and efficiently deliver)
—that school-site administrators regularly fail to understand that each assembly, drill, and performance cuts into the scant time set aside to teach said mandated and high-prep subjects?
am i the only one?
"Teaching How to Teach"
We've been scientifically studying how people best learn for many, many years. We know a lot about creating good learning environments. Yet, wet tend to only see the results of that research in the context of learning disabilities and animal training. Why isn't this information more available for use in public education? Learning Theory can help beginning teachers learn how to teach. For example, if behaviorists could design teaching packets for different grade levels-- complete with lesson plans, this could help children who are home schooled as well as improve the learning curve for new teachers. Also, behavior problems in the class room could be addressed.
I think Arne Duncan should consult with Behaviorists who have experience using Learning Theory in the classroom. At Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, MI., they teach Behaviorism using the same behavioral principles that they teach you. I found this to be a superior way to learn. I have a B.S. in Psychology, a MA in counseling and a RN.
Please direct your inquiry directly to the U.S. Department of Education and Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan. You can call their toll-free phone number (1-800-872-5327), or email:
arne.duncan@ed.gov
or
education@custhelp.com
Thank you,
Denise Graab
Education.com Community Team
As soon as I started to see some light at the end of the tunnel, the light started to fade away. We are being told that our school district must cut Three point-four (3.4 Million $$) million dollars from our budget next semester, which will all but eliminate most elective classes.
Our ROP [Regional Occupation Program] and CTE [Career Technical Education] classes are winning awards statewide.
Our school, Golden Sierra H.S., is one of three ( 1 of 3 ) California Distinguished Schools, yet the anticipation and outright statements about shutting down electives for academic literacy classes is rampant.
We are circling the wagons, stimulating our 'Site Council' membership, developing a PTO for the high school and writing to President Obama and Sec. Arne Duncan, requesting 3.4 million dollars to stave off a total collapse of our successful CTE & ROP curriculum.
On Tuesday, June 2nd, we will be at the State Capitol in Sacramento for Legislative Advocacy Day, hoping to present this information to the Senate Committee on Education.
There are only so many avenues available to address these issues, as one heans back to class, day in and day out, to see that, in fact, 'every child is being left behind !'. That's pretty hard to watch.
Peace,
- allen