Don't blame the teachers. Blame the corporate system that is still training compliant workers who test well. -Seth Godin, Linchpin How the system defines success: TEST SCORES How many times in real life are we measured by one test. Yet policy makers have the audacity to let the future of children who are 8 and 9 years old rest on a score on one standardized test. Seth Godin proposes that our system punishes artist and rewards bureaucrats instead. In the state of Ohio we will soon be punishing many of our youngest artists. But who is really failing here? It's not the children, it's the adults, the policy makers are failing the children by telling 8 or 9 years old that they have failed. They are being told they have failed because on one day they did not accomplish the desired score on a test that they had to spend 2 1/2 hours of their lives taking. Our policy makers are punishing our artists. We must stop this! Success or failure is not defined in 2 1/2 hours. Success or failure should not be defined by policy makers. There are countless ways to define success and countless reasons to take risks and potentially fail, none of which can be measured by a standardized test. How I define success 1. Taking a risk. 2. Persevering. 3. Learning from failures. 4. Reflecting. 5. Refining. 6. Collaborating. 7. Communicating. 8. Problem solving. 9. Innovating. 10. Questioning. 11. Exploring. 12. Stepping outside of your comfort zone. 13. Kindness. 14. Empathy. 15. Authenticity. 16. Honesty. Some of the most successful people we know have first failed. However, I refuse to allow my teachers or my students to base success or failure on a standardized test. We will create plenty of opportunities for ourselves and our students that are worth failing. A 2 1/2 hour test is not one of them. How do you define success?
2 Comments
Carrie Higginbotham
11/24/2013 04:51:57 am
Loved reading your blog today. Right before I did, I was reading an article about Henry Ford's famous quotes. One of them I agree with wholeheartedly; "To do more for the world than the world does for you – that is success." We need to inspire children to make their mark on the world by teaching a growth mindset and how success comes from hard work, collaboration, and learning from mistakes and picking yourself right back up again. I don't like the message that is being sent or the huge decisions being made from test scores. That is not the whole child, and it does not reinforce the habits of mind, such as persistence, that we are working so hard to instill.
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12/6/2013 12:27:13 pm
This blog really hit home and I completely agree with you. I love when Dave Burgess said in his book, Teach Like A Pirate, there is no such thing as true failure- only feedback. Carrie is right we need to teach children how to develop a growth mindset so that setbacks are challenges that push them forward. We as teachers want to provide meaningful experiences that allow children to develop habits of lifelong learners who are passionate individuals. It is my hope and wish that changes will come down the pike so that children will not have so much at stake for one test!
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AuthorI hope my blog posts inspire risk taking and new ways of thinking. I hope to connect with other educators on our journey to always do what's best for children. Archives
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