[ProgressiveEd] Fwd: [rsct] Fw: [ocpeace-research] Must read: 20 Years Of School Bashing
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Thu, 8 May 2003 10:09:00 EDT
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This is an interesting article. Unfortunately, we all are aware that schools
do need to be improved. That is why we are working so hard to build effective
networks and get decent instructional leaders to work with us. Carol
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Subject: [rsct] Fw: [ocpeace-research] Must read: 20 Years Of School Bashing
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washingtonpost.com: 20 Years Of School Bashing
----- Original Message -----=20
From: lynne=20
To: [email protected] ; Michael Sussman=20
Sent: Wednesday, May 07, 2003 12:34 AM
Subject: [ocpeace-research] Must read: 20 Years Of School Bashing
=20
washingtonpost.com=20
20 Years Of School Bashing=20
By Gerald W. Bracey
Friday, April 25, 2003; Page A23=20
In the spring of 1983 the National Commission on Excellence in Education pro=
duced a report titled "A Nation at Risk" deploring the state of American edu=
cation. Although there was argument among President Ronald Reagan's advisers=
as to whether the report should even be accepted (the arguments centering m=
ostly on whether it would be of political benefit), it was, on April 26.
The 36-page report soon became known as the "paper Sputnik," recalling the 1=
957 launch by the Soviets of the first man-made satellite. That small globe=20=
riveted attention on American schools, which took the blame for letting the=20=
Russians get into space first (an absurd charge). "Risk" also captured the n=
ation's attention. And it restored to popularity the sport of pummeling the=20=
public schools.
The problem with the report, though, was that it was all wrong -- then and n=
ow. Written in stentorian Cold War rhetoric, it declared that "our nation is=
at risk . . . [from] a rising tide of mediocrity that threatens our very fu=
ture as a Nation and a people. . . . If an unfriendly foreign power had atte=
mpted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists=20=
today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war." Whew.
The report followed these rhetorical flourishes with a list of indicators th=
at illustrated the risk. A larger treasury of selected, spun and distorted s=
tatistics is hard to imagine. For instance, the booklet declared, "There was=
a steady decline in science achievement scores of U.S. 17-year-olds as meas=
ured by national assessments of science in 1969, 1973, and 1977."
True? Maybe, maybe not. The numbers for 1969 and 1973 didn't really exist. T=
hey were extrapolations from the 1977 assessment. Their accuracy was not ver=
ifiable. But even if the trend was true for 17-year-olds, it was not true fo=
r 13-year-olds or 9-year-olds, the other two ages assessed. Nor was it true=20=
for any of the three ages tested in reading or math. Those scores were stabl=
e or inching up. The commissioners thus had nine trend lines to look at (thr=
ee ages by three subjects), only one of which could be used to support crisi=
s rhetoric, and that was the only one they used.
Similarly, "A Nation at Risk" reported: "The College Board's Scholastic Apti=
tude Tests demonstrated a virtually unbroken decline from 1963 to 1980." Thi=
s was true. But the College Board's own panel assembled to analyze the decli=
ne did not see it as a failure of schools. The fall occurred because of chan=
ges in who was taking the SAT and therefore aspiring to go to colleges that=20=
required it: more blacks, more women, more students from low-income families=
, more students with average high school records. All of these changes are a=
ssociated with lower test scores.
And what, exactly, were we at risk of? According to the report, the danger n=
ow was not that the Red Menace might blow us off the globe but that our frie=
nds, especially Germany, Japan and Korea, whose students had high test score=
s, would outsmart us and end our dominance of the world economy: "If only to=
keep and improve on the slim competitive edge we still retain in world mark=
ets, we must dedicate ourselves to the reform of our educational system."
One must admire the sheer audacity of the commissioners for writing such hok=
um. But this snake oil served school critics well when they blamed our "lous=
y" schools for the recession of the 1980s. The economy came roaring back, of=
course, while those of high-scoring "Asian Tiger" nations faltered. Japan's=
students continue to ace tests, but the country has languished in recession=
for 12 years. By contrast, the World Economic Forum's Global Competitivenes=
s Report 2002 ranked average-scoring America No. 2 overall (behind Finland)=20=
and No. 1 in innovative competitiveness.
Blaming public schools for social ills has a long and dishonorable history,=20=
of which the 1983 report is only one particularly egregious example. Yet in=20=
the international reading study released this month (and ignored by most med=
ia), American students finished ninth among 35 nations. White American stude=
nts outscored top-ranked Sweden 565 to 561. Americans attending schools with=
less than 10 percent of the students in poverty (13 percent of all students=
) scored a whopping 589, and only those attending schools with more than 75=20=
percent of the students in poverty (20 percent of all students) scored below=
the international average.
These statistics tell us how wealth and poverty affect achievement, and wher=
e we need to allocate resources. We don't need to spend billions to test eve=
ry child every year in reading, math and science, as the No Child Left Behin=
d legislation requires, to find out.
Overall, "A Nation at Risk" was a grand April Fools' joke. No Child Left Beh=
ind shows we haven't learned a thing in 20 years.
The writer is a research psychologist.
=A9 2003 The Washington Post Company=20
=20
Yahoo! Groups Sponsor=20
=20
=20
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[email protected]
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.=20
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<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>washingtonpost.com: 20 Years Of School Bashing</TITLE>
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<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>----- Original Message -----=20
<DIV><B>From:</B> <A href=3D"mailto:[email protected]" title=3Dlymp@pione=
eris.net>lynne</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A href=3D"mailto:[email protected]" title=3D=
[email protected]>[email protected]</A> ; <A =20=
href=3D"mailto:[email protected]" title=[email protected]>Michael=20
Sussman</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, May 07, 2003 12:34 AM</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> [ocpeace-research] Must read: 20 Years Of School=20
Bashing</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 face=3Dhelvetica,arial size=3D-1><B>washingtonp=
ost<FONT color=3D#cc0000>.com</FONT></B> </FONT></DIV>
<P><FONT size=3D+2><B>20 Years Of School Bashing</B></FONT> <BR>
<P><FONT size=3D-1>By Gerald W. Bracey<BR><BR>Friday, April 25, 2003; Page A=
23=20
</FONT>
<P>
<P>In the spring of 1983 the National Commission on Excellence in Education=20
produced a report titled "A Nation at Risk" deploring the state of American=20
education. Although there was argument among President Ronald Reagan's advis=
ers=20
as to whether the report should even be accepted (the arguments centering mo=
stly=20
on whether it would be of political benefit), it was, on April 26.</P>
<P>The 36-page report soon became known as the "paper Sputnik," recalling th=
e=20
1957 launch by the Soviets of the first man-made satellite. That small globe=
=20
riveted attention on American schools, which took the blame for letting the=20
Russians get into space first (an absurd charge). "Risk" also captured the=20
nation's attention. And it restored to popularity the sport of pummeling the=
=20
public schools.</P>
<P>The problem with the report, though, was that it was all wrong -- then an=
d=20
now. Written in stentorian Cold War rhetoric, it declared that "our nation i=
s at=20
risk . . . [from] a rising tide of mediocrity that threatens our very future=
as=20
a Nation and a people. . . . If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted to=
=20
impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we=
=20
might well have viewed it as an act of war." Whew.</P>
<P>The report followed these rhetorical flourishes with a list of indicators=
=20
that illustrated the risk. A larger treasury of selected, spun and distorted=
=20
statistics is hard to imagine. For instance, the booklet declared, "There wa=
s a=20
steady decline in science achievement scores of U.S. 17-year-olds as measure=
d by=20
national assessments of science in 1969, 1973, and 1977."</P>
<P>True? Maybe, maybe not. The numbers for 1969 and 1973 didn't really exist=
.=20
They were extrapolations from the 1977 assessment. Their accuracy was not=20
verifiable. But even if the trend was true for 17-year-olds, it was not true=
for=20
13-year-olds or 9-year-olds, the other two ages assessed. Nor was it true fo=
r=20
any of the three ages tested in reading or math. Those scores were stable or=
=20
inching up. The commissioners thus had nine trend lines to look at (three ag=
es=20
by three subjects), only one of which could be used to support crisis rhetor=
ic,=20
and that was the only one they used.</P>
<P>Similarly, "A Nation at Risk" reported: "The College Board's Scholastic=20
Aptitude Tests demonstrated a virtually unbroken decline from 1963 to 1980."=
=20
This was true. But the College Board's own panel assembled to analyze the=20
decline did not see it as a failure of schools. The fall occurred because of=
=20
changes in who was taking the SAT and therefore aspiring to go to colleges t=
hat=20
required it: more blacks, more women, more students from low-income families=
,=20
more students with average high school records. All of these changes are=20
associated with lower test scores.</P>
<P>And what, exactly, were we at risk of? According to the report, the dange=
r=20
now was not that the Red Menace might blow us off the globe but that our=20
friends, especially Germany, Japan and Korea, whose students had high test=20
scores, would outsmart us and end our dominance of the world economy: "If on=
ly=20
to keep and improve on the slim competitive edge we still retain in world=20
markets, we must dedicate ourselves to the reform of our educational=20
system."</P>
<P>One must admire the sheer audacity of the commissioners for writing such=20
hokum. But this snake oil served school critics well when they blamed our=20
"lousy" schools for the recession of the 1980s. The economy came roaring bac=
k,=20
of course, while those of high-scoring "Asian Tiger" nations faltered. Japan=
's=20
students continue to ace tests, but the country has languished in recession=20=
for=20
12 years. By contrast, the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Rep=
ort=20
2002 ranked average-scoring America No. 2 overall (behind Finland) and No. 1=
in=20
innovative competitiveness.</P>
<P>Blaming public schools for social ills has a long and dishonorable histor=
y,=20
of which the 1983 report is only one particularly egregious example. Yet in=20=
the=20
international reading study released this month (and ignored by most media),=
=20
American students finished ninth among 35 nations. White American students=20
outscored top-ranked Sweden 565 to 561. Americans attending schools with les=
s=20
than 10 percent of the students in poverty (13 percent of all students) scor=
ed a=20
whopping 589, and only those attending schools with more than 75 percent of=20=
the=20
students in poverty (20 percent of all students) scored below the internatio=
nal=20
average.</P>
<P>These statistics tell us how wealth and poverty affect achievement, and w=
here=20
we need to allocate resources. We don't need to spend billions to test every=
=20
child every year in reading, math and science, as the No Child Left Behind=20
legislation requires, to find out.</P>
<P>Overall, "A Nation at Risk" was a grand April Fools' joke. No Child Left=20
Behind shows we haven't learned a thing in 20 years.</P>
<P><EM>The writer is a research psychologist.</EM></P>
<P></P>
<P></P>
<P>
<CENTER>=A9 2003 The Washington Post Company </CENTER>
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