A retired school teacher's comments
I received this comment a few days ago concerning my Coherent Curriculum article, and I thought it's enlightening enough to post here as well (emphases mine):
I am a retired public school teacher. I taught first, third, and 1-5 self contained LD and resource classes 1-5. As I walked the halls of my school and heard the lessons being taught, I was so enraged! I knew students sitting in those classes that had learned those skills I still heard being taught and retaught. The work on display outside the classrooms showed very little improvement beyond what the same children had done in the earlier years.
We spin our wheels over and over teaching the same thing year after year and wonder why they can't do better on testing. They are bored to death. This is not just in math. It is in phonics, language skills, creative writing, basic logic skills. As a nation we teach a "swallow and spit back out" curriculum that is mandated by the state standards.
If a child is capable of going beyond, teachers are not allowed to take them higher. "It's not on the grade level standards". Likewise, if a student needs to review last year's standards, it is not allowed. We must stay on grade level standards.
Now do you see why Johnny can't read, spell, write, solve problems, of think. He never had to. He just memorized information for a test and never saw it again until the next year when he rememorized the same facts and passed with flying colors. Homeschool teachers, please don't teach the "memorize and spit back out" method. Make you children reason, explain why or why not, defend a position with research data. Don't put out robots. Public school has already handled that job very well.
Jeanette
Comments
I hope you won't mind if I mention a post which deals with this on my blog at:
http://mathmojo.com/chronicles/2009/01/15/curriculums-just-another-brick-in-the-wall/
I also think that blogs like the Homeschool Math Blog give more inspiration and information than any year of public school ever could. I refer children and their parents to this blog often. They have told me that they appreciate the friendly style and clear lessons.
Keep up the great work, Maria!
Brian (a.k.a. Professor Homunculus at http://mathmojo.com/chronicles )
I have found working with kids that when they appear to be struggling, the problem is as likely to be that we are going too slow (boredom!) as that we are going too fast (lack of understanding).
Dan Howitt
NYC
I am a math teacher from india. There is no harm in having selfpaced curriculum but I am of the view that there is a need to help bright students to know more skills. From my experience I can say a K-10 child has enormous energy and capacity to learn new things and not putting him or her into harder problems will make them incapable or slower and fearful too. I had been doing online tutoring for US kids and I can tell you that a grade9 US student can not compete with a grade6 indian student who has been enriched with extra efforts.
Cheers !
GN Singh
Ludhiana
Punjab India
In fourth grade, my teacher "bent the rules" a bit, and began to give me tests she created herself, and teach me new things of her own decision, so I could step outside of boredom. She wanted to present an actual challenge to me, and she did so without anyone else knowing about it. Needless to say, it was the best learning experience I have ever had, which is one of the reasons I began to become homeschooled. I had my own way of thinking about problems, and I had my own pace to work at. I think every student does, but it's hard, if not impossible, to teach thirty students successfully at the same time without being able to go at their pace.
Thanks for posting this!