something new and different

The first two lines of narration in a video on "Learning Cultures" by Jackson Loo and Devon Puglia:

PRINCIPAL: The mentality in education right now in America is that teachers are responsible for everything. If someone is successful, it’s because of the teacher. If someone fails, it’s because of the teacher.

NARRATOR (with enthusiasm): So what if students became their own teachers? That’s what’s happening at 10 schools across New York City under a radical new pilot curriculum called Learning Cultures.

“Giving Voice to Learning” by Noreen O’Donnell
The Daily | Monday, June 11, 2012

You have to wonder what was going on in Loo and Puglia's unconscious minds when they chose this hook for the video: that the reason to have constructivist classrooms is to relieve teachers of responsibility.

AND SEE:
Has Constructivism Increased Special Education Enrollment in Public Schools? By Nakonia (Niki) Hayes
Mathematics Education: Outwitted by Stupidity by Barry Garelick
Growth of Special Education Spending and Enrollment in New York since 2000-01

informed consent

I am not a fan of "innovation" as defined by edu-folk.

Innovation as defined by edu-folk: "letting schools and teachers try things" without informed consent from parents.

I'm against it.


here's an innovation

My district, a few years back, purchased Open Court, one of three Scientifically-Based Reading Research (SBRR) curricula that qualified for Reading First funding (pdf file).

Next year we're dumping Open Court and buying Fountas & Pinnell, a curriculum that did not qualify for Reading First funding and is deemed "Not Acceptable" by the National Council on Teacher Quality (pdf file).

Any particular reason why we're doing this? Any data or evidence that Fountas & Pinnell produces better results than Open Court?

Don't know.

Hasn't come up.



These 19 curricular projects have essentially been experiments.
Westchester schools & their curricula