Education Soapbox

*upfront disclaimer* Nothing said here in anyway is intended to put blame on teachers. My quarrel is with the system. Teachers are asked to do the impossible everyday. I have nothing but respect for those in the trenches.

We just had standardized testing the last two day, so this has got me thinking. Since we homeschool, I have chosen not to follow the standards. When I first told people this, I think they were somewhat shocked. Afterall, the STANDARDS are kind of worshipped here in California. I think the idea of standards is O.K. or at least a list of what you want a student to learn while under your tutorship is a good idea, but I don't necessarily agree with the order and timing.

The two I specifically DO NOT follow are science and history. My theory on history is that it is a story and as such, you should start at the beginning. I don't care about the history of Long Beach or even California (I know, that's heresy). ALL history is World History and when we get into the 1500's, we'll begin our study of American History. When we hit 1849, we'll talk about California... a little. But we'll also continue to talk about what is going on in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America. Unfortunately the way our current standards are set up, students focus on American History for 9 out of 12 years I believe, maybe 10. They get very little understanding of the thousands of years that preceeded "America". And, according to every poll ever taked in the last 20 years, they know very little American History for all that time spent on it.

Also, for science, I am very hands on. I can't stand reading a few paragraphs and answering the questions. I don't think anyone ever learned science that way. Science is all about experimentation. If you can't do it, you will have a hard time learning it. And if your experiment is edible, all the better.

But onto my real complaint. One subject which our nation is particularly bad at passing onto the youth is math. The educational system has COMPLETELY failed in this respect. Up to 60% of college students in 4-year universities have to take remedial math. These are our best and brightest! Remedial math!!! But we continue to plug away doing it the same way we have always done it and in fact, piling on more. The kids aren't getting it. What makes someone think that if they can't get long division, push them into algebra. And if they fail algebra, do it again.

Do you know, until the 1900's students did not take formal math sometimes until college?!? They focused on learning how to think - Latin, Logic, Writing, Rhetoric, Reading, Memorization, Speaking. Imagine that? I read a book that recommended not starting formal math education until age 10 at the earliest and wait even until age 13 if the child's brain has not matured to the point of readiness. AGE 10! This would never fly! I had to go back and reread that about 5 times to make sure I read it right.

But I did it. Regan and I have struggled with math her entire life. So starting in June, we went back to the beginning. We started in a "1st grade" book and proceeded to finish 4 grades in 9 months. What led to this decision was that after doing the 5th grade book with her, and each of us ready to kill each other, I just could not face doing it all over again in 6th grade. So we flew through 4 grades (It's amazing how much easier it is to borrow and carry when you are 10 rather than 7!!!) We skipped the 5th grade book because she had already done it and I know it gets reviewed in 6th grade. We are now a month into our 6th grade book and it is CAKE! No tears, no fights, no "how many times do I have to explain this?". I actually enjoy doing math with her.

So why do we teach math the way we do when it has been a montrous failure? Assembly lines. During the early 1900's when technology made men believe they were finally smarter than God (remember the Titanic - "God Himself could not sink this ship"), people began to see the beauty of assembly lines. Incremental changes over time results in a bolt becoming a car. Kids were thought to be no different. Instead of teaching a child at the level they were able to learn, parents were told, "All 6-year-olds will learn to read. All 8-year-olds will learn multiplication. All 10-year-olds will learn... whatever" What does being 8 have to do with being able to multiply? What if you can't? What if your brain has not matured enough? What if you are like a friend of mine whose child learned to multiply at 3? Too bad.

Has assembly line education worked? Judge for yourself. Many American cities have a 50% drop-out rate. Of the ones left, many barely graduate. Some go onto junior college and relearn everything. Some go on to universities and STILL have to relearn much.

Now back to my original point - the standardized test. Even though I don't teach the standards, I still look forward to the results of these tests. Every homeschool parents worries about failing their child, about not teaching them anything. I really try to discount the value of these tests, but I can't. Well yesterday they took the CST math test. Even the proctor said most of the material had probably not been covered! What!?! Chandler had full-on algebra on her test (she's taking pre-algebra and I'm not even happy about that). What's she supposed to do with algebra questions? Regan - in 6th - had stuff Chandler - in 7th - hasn't even gotten to yet. What's going on? Our students are failing math so we push them even farther. Take a breath people. Maybe we need a math time-out. Maybe we need time for the students brains to catch up to our demands. Maybe we need to sit down with a lot of students in the late elementary years and reteach borrowing and carrying, because I don't think some of them got it the first time through. What's wrong with moving on when they have mastered the material rather than when some arbitrary timetable says to move on? The joy we have sucked out of some subjects makes me sad. Show of hands - how many of you hate math?... See.

Now you know why my blog is called, "Michelle's Ramblings". But now I'm rambling...