Nation at Risk

EDU 7371: Education ReformFall 2014

Webex #1

History of Reform• 1889 - Jane Addams and her college friend Ellen Gates Starr found Hull House in a Chicago, Illinois neighborhood of recent

European immigrants. It is the first settlement house in the U.S. Included among its many services are a kindergarten and a night school for adults. Hull House continues to this day to offer educational services to children and families.

• 1890 - The Second Morrill Act is enacted. It provides for the "more complete endowment and support of the colleges" through the sale of public lands, Part of this funding leads to the creation of 16 historically black land-grant colleges.

• 1892 - Formed by the National Education Association to establish a standard secondary school curriculum, the Committee of Ten, recommends a college-oriented high school curriculum.

• 1896 - Homer Plessy, a 30-year-old African American, challenges the state of Louisiana's "Separate Car Act," arguing that requiring Blacks to ride in separate railroad cars violates the 13th and 14th Amendments. The U.S. Supreme Court upholds the Louisiana law stating in the majority opinion that the intent of the 14th Amendment "had not been intended to abolish distinctions based on color." Thus, the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Plessy v. Ferguson makes "separate but equal" policies legal. It becomes a legal precedent used to justify many other segregation laws, including "separate but equal" education.

• 1898 - The Spanish American War makes Theodore Roosevelt a hero, and the United States becomes an international power.

• 1900 - The Association of American Universities is founded to promote higher standards and put U.S. universities on an equal footing with their European counterparts.

• 1901 - Joliet Junior College, in Joliet, Illinois, opens. It is the first public community college in the U.S.

1892 Committee of Ten • Appointed by National Education Association

• It is considered the early approach to standardization of curriculum.

• Twelve years of education were recommended, with eight years of elementary education followed by four years of high school. The committee was explicitly asked to address tracking, or course differentiation based upon postsecondary pursuit. The committee responded unanimously that "...every subject which is taught at all in a secondary school should be taught in the same way and to the same extent to every pupil so long as he pursues it, no matter what the probable destination of the pupil may be, or at what point his education is to cease."

Teacher Training-1893

• In addition to promoting equality in instruction, they stated that by unifying courses of study, school instruction and the training of new teachers could be greatly simplified.

• These recommendations were generally interpreted as a call to teach English, mathematics, and history or civics to every student every academic year in high school. The recommendations also formed the basis of the practice of teaching biology, chemistry, and physics, respectively, in ascending high school academic years.

• However, these recommendations were found to have had modest impact on direct instruction after ten years' time.

History of Reform• 1905- The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching is founded. It is charted by an act of Congress

in 1906, the same year the Foundation encouraged the adoption of a standard system for equating "seat time" (the amount of time spent in a class) to high school credits. Still in use today, this system came to be called the "Carnegie Unit."

• 1913 - Edward Lee Thorndike's book, Educational Psychology: The Psychology of Learning, is published. It describes his theory that human learning involves habit formation, or connections between stimuli (or situations as Thorndike preferred to call them) and responses (Connectionism). He believes that such connections are strengthened by repetition ("Law of Exercise") and achieving satisfying consequences ("Law of Effect"). These ideas, which contradict traditional faculty psychology and mental discipline, come to dominate American educational psychology for much of the Twentieth Century and greatly influence American educational practice. (RESEARCH DRIVING REFORM)

• 1916 - Louis M. Terman and his team of Stanford University graduate students complete an American version of the Binet-Simon Scale. The Stanford Revision of the Binet-Simon Scale becomes a widely-used individual intelligence test, and along with it, the concept of the intelligence quotient (or IQ) is born. The Fifth Edition of the Stanford-Binet Scales is among the most popular individual intelligence tests today.

• 1916 - John Dewey's Democracy and Education. An Introduction to the Philosophy of Education is published. Dewey's views help advance the ideas of the "progressive education movement." An outgrowth of the progressive political movement, progressive education seeks to make schools more effective agents of democracy. (AMERICAN MORALITY DRIVING REFORM)

History…(cont’d)

• 1917 - The Smith-Hughes Act passes, providing federal funding for agricultural and vocational education. It is repealed in 1997.

• 1919 - The Progressive Education Association is founded with the goal of reforming American education.

• 1919 - All states have laws providing funds for transporting children to school . • 1921 - Louis Terman launches a longitudinal study of "intellectually superior" children at Stanford University. The study continues

into the 21st Century!

• 1922 - The International Council for Exceptional Children is founded at Columbia University Teachers College.

• 1922 - Abigail Adams Eliot, with help from Mrs. Henry Greenleaf Pearson, establishes the Ruggles Street Nursery School in Roxbury, MA, one of the first educational nursery schools in the U.S. It becomes the Eliot-Pearson Children's School and is now affiliated with the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development at Tufts University.

• 1924 - Max Wertheimer describes the principles of Gestalt Theory to the Kant Society in Berlin. Gestalt Theory, with its emphasis on learning through insight and grasping the whole concept, becomes important later in the 20th Century in the development of cognitive views of learning and teaching.

• 1925 - Tennessee vs. John Scopes ("the Monkey Trial") captures national attention as John Scopes, a high school biology teacher, is charged with the heinous crime of teaching evolution. The trial ends in Scopes' conviction. The evolution versus creationism controversy persists to this day. 1968 - The "Monkey Trial" revisited! In the case of Epperson et al. v. Arkansas, the U.S. supreme Court finds the state of Arkansas' law prohibiting the teaching of evolution in a public school or university unconstitutional.

• 1926 - The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is first administered.

History …(cont’d)• 1938 - Ladislas Biro and his brother Georg patent the ballpoint pen. • 1939 - Frank W. Cyr, a professor at Columbia University's Teachers College, organizes a national

conference on student transportation. It results in the adoption of standards for the nation's school buses, including the shade of yellow.

• 1939 - The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (first called the Wechsler- Bellevue Intelligence Scale) is developed by David Wechsler. It introduces the concept of the "deviation IQ," which calculates IQ scores based on how far subjects' scores differ (or deviate) from the average (mean) score of others who are the same age, rather than calculating them with the ratio (MA/CA multiplied by 100) system. Wechsler intelligence tests, particularly the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, are still widely used in U.S. schools to help identify students needing special education.

• 1941 - The U.S. enters World War II after the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor on December 7. Education is put on the back burner as many young men quit school to enlist; schools are faced with personnel problems as teachers and other employees enlist, are drafted, or leave to work in defense plants; school construction is put on hold.

• 1944 - The G.I. Bill of Rights officially known as the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, is signed by FDR on June 22. Some 7.8 million World War II veterans take advantage of the GI Bill during the seven years benefits are offered. More than two-million attend colleges or universities, nearly doubling the college population. About 238,000 become teachers. Because the law provides the same opportunity to every veteran, regardless of background, the long-standing tradition that a college education was only for the wealthy is broken.

• 1945 - World War II ends on August 15 (VJ Day) with victory over Japan. International dominance of US!

(Cont’d)

• 1946 - At one minute after midnight on January 1st, Kathleen Casey-Kirschling is born, the first of nearly 78-million baby boomers, beginning a generation that results in unprecedented school population growth and massive social change. She becomes a teacher!

• 1946 - In the landmark court case of Mendez vs. Westminster and the California Board of Education, the U. S. District Court in Los Angeles rules that educating children of Mexican descent in separate facilities is unconstitutional, thus prohibiting segregation in California schools and setting an important precedent for Brown vs. Board of Education.

• 1946 - The computer age begins as the Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer (ENIAC), the first vacuum-tube computer, is built for the U.S. military by Presper Eckert and John Mauchly.

• 1946 - With thousands of veterans returning to college, The President's Commission on Higher Education is given the task of reexamining the role of colleges and universities in post-war America. The first volume of its report, often referred to as the Truman Commission Report, is issued in 1947 and recommends sweeping changes in higher education, including doubling college enrollments by 1960 and extending free public education through the establishment of a network of community colleges. This latter recommendation comes to fruition in the 1960s, during which community college enrollment more than triples.

• 1946 - Recognizing "the need for a permanent legislative basis for a school lunch program," the 79th Congress approves the National School Lunch Act.

(Cont’d)

• 1947 - In the case of Everson v. Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme Court rules by a 5-4 vote that a New Jersey law which allowed reimbursements of transportation costs to parents of children who rode public transportation to school, even if their children attended Catholic schools, did NOT violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.

• 1948 - In the case of McCollum v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court rules that schools cannot allow "released time" during the school day which allows students to participate in religious education in their public school classrooms.

• 1950 - Public Law 81-740 grants a federal charter to the FFA and recognizes it as an integral part of the program of vocational agriculture. The law is revised in 1998 and becomes Public Law 105-225.

• 1954 - On May 17th, the U.S. Supreme Court announces its decision in the case of Brown v. Board. of Education of Topeka, ruling that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal," thus overturning its previous ruling in the 1896 case of Plessy v. Ferguson. Brown v. Board of Education is actually a combination of five cases from different parts of the country. It is a historic first step in the long and still unfinished journey toward equality in U.S. education.

• 1955 - Rosa Parks, a Montgomery, Alabama seamstress, refuses to give up her seat on the bus to a Caucasian passenger and is subsequently arrested and fined. The Montgomery bus boycott follows, giving impetus to the Civil Rights Movement. A year later, in the case of Browder v. Gale, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that segregated seating on buses unconstitutional.

• 1956 – The Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals; Handbook I: Cognitive Domain is published. Often referred to simply as “Bloom’s Taxonomy” because of its primary author, Benjamin S. Bloom, the document actually has four coauthors (M.D. Engelhart, E.J. Furst, W.H. Hill, and David Krathwohl).

(cont’d)

• 1957 - The Civil Rights Act of 1957 is voted into law in spite of Strom Thurmond's filibuster. Essentially a voting-rights bill, it is the first civil rights legislation since reconstruction and is a precursor to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

• 1957 - Federal troops enforce integration in Little Rock, Arkansas as the Little Rock 9 enroll at Central High School. •

• 1957 - The Soviet Union launches Sputnik, the first satellite to orbit the Earth. Occurring in the midst of the Cold War, it represents both a potential threat to American national security as well as a blow to national pride.

• 1958 - At least partially because of Sputnik, science and science education become important concerns in the U.S., resulting in the passage of the National Defense Education Act (NDEA) which authorizes increased funding for scientific research as well as science, mathematics, and foreign language education.

• 1959 - The ACT Test is first administered.

• 1960 -First grader Ruby Bridges is the first African American to attend William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans. She becomes a class of one as parents remove all Caucasian students from the school.

• 1962 - First published in 1934, Lev Vygotsky's book, Thought and Language is introduced to the English-speaking world. Though he lives to be only 38, Vygotsky's ideas regarding the social nature of learning provide important foundational principles for contemporary social constructivist theories. He is perhaps best known for his concept of "Zone of Proximal Development."

• 1962 - In the case of Engel v. Vitale, the U. S. Supreme Court rules that the state of New York's Regents prayer violates the First Amendment. The ruling specifies that "state officials may not compose an official state prayer and require that it be recited in the public schools of the State at the beginning of each school day. . . "

Historical Events Drive Reform

• 1963 - In response to the large number of Cuban immigrant children arriving in Miami after the Cuban Revolution, Coral Way Elementary School starts the first bilingual and bicultural public school in the United States.

Morality/Ethics Drive Reform

• 1965 - The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) is passed on April 9. Part of Lyndon Johnson's "War on Poverty," it provides federal funds to help low-income students, which results in the initiation of educational programs such as Title I and bilingual education.

Legal Rulings Drive Reform

• 1971• Pennsylvania Association for Retarded

Children (PARC) v. Pennsylvania, • federal court rules that students with mental

retardation are entitled to a free public education.

Law Drives Reform

• 1972 - Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 becomes law.

• Though many people associate this law only with girl's and women's participation in sports, Title IX prohibits discrimination based on sex in all aspects of education.

Politics Drive Reform: Power Struggle?

• After Nation at Risk, education reform became one of the most politically popular agendas for governors, regardless of political leanings.

• Bill Clinton of Arkansas, Jim Hunt of North Carolina, and Richard Riley of South Carolina accepted the challenge of reforming education and led the country.

• President Reagan, who was (R) believed in the responsibility of education as a states’ right, embraced the new energy of the governors.

Politics

• National Governors' Association (NGA), released its own report on the state of education.

• The NGA report reaffirmed the NCEE position that without reforming education the nation would not continue to be economically competitive on a global level.

• This theme was especially noticed by American business leaders, who began to call for improvement in the schools.

History of Reform: 1983

• A Nation-at-risk. • Are we still at risk? According to whom? Indicators?

– What were the goals of this reform? Did they work? – How do you know? Are we still working on them?– What motivates the reforms that were recommended? – How has the vision of this reform- A Nation at Risk-

changed American education?• From your study of the Nation at Risk initiative, how

might this reform serve to inform your leadership of educational reform?

Power Struggle• Secretary Bell proposed the creation of a independent presidential commission to investigate the

state of education in the United States in a fair and balanced manner. • Reagan, who saw little value in presidential commissions, turned down Bell's proposal. As a result, in

1981 Bell commissioned his own cabinet-level panel, to be called the National Commission on Excellence in Education (NCEE), to review education.

• The eighteen-member panel was composed of representatives from a wide spectrum of political perspectives.

• The panel produced the report A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Education Reform, which stands as perhaps the most important document in the late twentieth century's history of education reform. A Nation at Risk became the impetus for two decades of standards-based reform. Ironically, once the report's themes became known at the White House, Reagan adopted the report as his own.

• The seminal report came in the form of an open letter to the American people and President Reagan in April 1983. The report was a serious indictment of education in the United States.

• It stated, "Our nation is at risk…. If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre education performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war" (p. 5).

Goals

• What were the goals of this reform? Did they work? • Everyone in the US deserved, was capable of,

and should be required to receive academic instruction through high school regardless of race, economic status, or post–high school plans.

• Second, academic standards needed to be raised considerably for all students.

How do you know? Are we still working on them?

• (1) that "five new basics" be added to the curriculum of America's schools. The basics included four years of English, three years of mathematics, three years of science, three years of social studies, and half a year of computer science in high school; DRIVER: a desire for American superiority;

• (2) that more rigorous and measurable standards be adopted; DRIVER: perception of mediocrity;

• (3) that the school year be extended in order to make more time for learning the "New Basics"; DRIVER: a desire for American superiority

• (4) that the teaching be improved with enhanced preparation and professionalization; DRIVER: globalization and economic competitiveness; jobs

• (5) that accountability be added to education. DRIVER: globalization

What drove these recommendations?

• Power struggle- Reagan and Bell• Sputnik• America on international stage• Accountability-economics and costs of

schooling

How has the vision of this reform- A Nation at Risk-changed American education?

Change Indicator Challenges that continue

Successes to celebrate

4 yrs of English, 3 yrs of math, three years of science, three years of social studies, and half a year of computer science in high school;

HS grad requirements indicate these standards +;

RIGOR in these subjects;

Access to new and adequate TECHNOLOGIES

Embed technologies across curriculum

Teacher quality as it relates to technologies

Infrastructure of technology

Exceeded recommendation of NAR

Nation at Risk Goal 2

Change Indicator Challenges that Continue

Successes to Celebrate

that the school year be extended in order to make more time for learning the "New Basics”

School calendars;Very little change—5 days added; Extended school day in many cases—extended hours;

Less summer programs –budget cuts;Board decisions about use of schools;

Grants with technology? Extend time for learning beyond “school” day;Personalized education—able to diagnose and prescribe learning more specifically-efficient with our focus; time is no longer fixed variable-personalized curriculum;

standards are the constant; time and support are the variables.

Nation at Risk Goal 3Change Indicator Challenges that

ContinueSuccesses to Celebrate

that more rigorous and measurable standards be adopted

Testing more using measurable standards-based assessments;Lots of $$ spent on testing; Standards from all national organizations; ISTE; Psychometricians are employees of school districts;

Defining rigor; Balanced scorecards;Mediocrity ensues when we teach to tests; Well-designed assessments; Knowing why we give tests;

Helps us see children as individuals, or at least subgroups;Get to see how ALL subgroups are performing; greater accountability;Have identified or are trying to identify indicators of performance;

Nation at Risk Goal 4Change Indicator Challenges that

ContinueSuccesses to Celebrate

that the teaching be improved with enhanced preparation and professionalization;

NC Teaching Standards; Protected planning time for teachers; some duty-free schools; Using instructional coaches now to impact teacher growth; EC teachers with double certification better prepared to teach; practices in higher training programs have changed to include more student teaching experiences;Student Teachers have classroom experience much earlier on; EVAAS to track Teacher ED grads;

placing student teachers with effective/strong teachers is CRITICAL; Elimination of programs/incentives to attract top HS grads to the teaching profession – teaching fellows;

New Teacher PLC; Success: New pay incentive for new teachers;

Nation at Risk Goal 5Change Indicator Challenges that

ContinueSuccesses to Celebrate

that accountability be added to education

EVAAS/ standard 6 & 8;Grad rates;Test scores; attendance and discipline;

Hard to quantify “high quality;”Understanding data and USING data to make change; Data directed, rather than data driven; People operate from fear; Cheating; innovation requires risk taking that acct discourages;

can more easily coach ineffective teachers out; know where your holes are and try to fix them in systems thinking approach; makes ed more like other professions;Provides a way of advocacy for new initiatives;

30 years Later

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=R9WMI703WrA• Are we still at risk? • According to whom? • Indicators?• Let’s listen to Bill Bennett, Commissioner of

Education in 2009 address Nation at Risk..• 30 years later

Where are we headed?

• the School in the Cloud, a learning lab in India, where children can explore and learn from each other — http://video.ted.com/talk/podcast/2013/None/SugataMitra_2013-480p.mp4

Reflection

• From your study of Nation at Risk, how might this reform serve to inform your leadership of educational reform?