Teaching Math to the Talented

The following are my comments on the recent article

Review of Teaching Math to the Talented published by Hanushek, Peterson and Woessmann

http://educationnext.org/teaching-math-to-the-talented/comment-page-1/#comment-40213

The authors have made a compelling argument. They have convincingly argued that we are sorely lagging in the percentage of students with advanced math skills. As a father of a second grader I am concerned about the math education my daughter is receiving when I read articles like this and when I hear how frustrated friends who have recently moved from Germany, India and Russia complain loudly about the low expectations for math achievement set in U.S. schools. Both my wife and I did well in math and were science majors in college. Math success was directly related to our academic success and I know that at least some of the math comes in handy in our daily lives. We would hate to forsake our daughter a high quality math education that we consider to be a key part to being a well rounded person. However, this article does not address how math success relates to other areas of her success or vice versa. Will raising a nation of mathematicians or engineers, as some countries do, continue to keep us as a nation at the top? Should we be thinking about math education in a vacuum as this article suggests or instead should we consider it in relation to other areas of academic performance? Should we perceive math to be an important complement to education in other areas - science, music, philosophy, history, literature, sports? The article does not address how much math ability we need to be a successful nation? When I say how much I mean how many people performing at a advanced level and what level of math does the average person need to acquire? How are we deciding how much is enough? This article needs to be placed into a context against our achievements as a nation in other areas. Unfortunately, too often educational policy is driven by reports that while very thoughtful about one area of educational planning set in motion educational planning for raising math test scores at the expense of all the ways that our children and our nation need to grow. Finally, this article does not address how in this age where things have become more global our industries' current heavy reliance on foreign born and educated engineers is unsustainable. Maybe one of the many reasons for our success as a nation over the years has been to create a environment in which innovators in science and math can thrive? A prudent national education strategy might include strengthening education in general as well as continuing to create a welcome place for world's best and brightest.

Teen Suicide in Massachucetts and School Climate

I just read the article in the NY Times about the nine teens being charged for the suicide of a fellow student. The students are charged with bullying the teen into committing suicide. Reading the article reminded me of a book I had reviewed by Ralph Larkin on the Columbine shootings. What seems similar about the two cases is how the school administration was ineffective in preventing the bullying. It seemed that the school administration in the Columbine case had even been in collusion with the students in creating a climate that permitted bullying. According to Larkin there seemed to be a culture of Christian conservatism and intolerance for difference that led to the bullying of Harris and Klebold and ultimately their rampage. According to the NY Times article it was the fact that the girl in the Massachucetts school had recently moved from a small town in Ireland that led to her being singled out. What seems worth noting is the effect that school climate has in shaping how students are treated. Maybe what is needed is to rethink how schools become social institutions that create their own norms at times leading to abusive behavior. Importantly we need to determine whether schools are an extension of society or alternatively whether they are unique social phenomenon created by the congregating of thousands of teenagers in one spot. Where we stand on this point may determine how we act to prevent future bullying. If schools are an extension of society it would seem that this gives weight to the perspective that bullying is an individual problem and should confront individuals for their errant behavior. However, if schools are considered unique social entities which the state creates the state, the administrators needed to be held accountable for any bullying that goes on more so than the kids themselves.

The Columbine shootings suggest that schools are unique social institutions that create a closed and self perpetuating system. Kids must enter this other world that seems at times disconnected and alien to the norms and expectations of society at large. We require kids to sink or swim in this not only academic but social environment. The social and academic are interrelated contrary to the emphasis we put solely on academic achievement. Afterall is it not the ability of a school's administrative to set the school climate that is key to making a school thrive ultimately? Can we blame individual teachers and students without considering the role that the administration of education in this country plays?

In considering the Portland high school reform (aka High School System Design) effort it is important to note that the aim is to create schools that are better integrated into the community and better track and support the needs of every student. The high school system design seeks to improve student engagement, achievement and graduation. The emphasis on engagement seems to be significant in light of the above considerations. Clearly engagement is a concern but are there any concerns about bullying in Portland high schools? The Portland Tribune reports the following:

"...according to the Oregon Department of Human Service’s 2008 Oregon Teen Health Survey, 41 percent of Oregon eighth graders and 31 percent of eleventh graders reported being harassed within the previous month.

Those numbers have declined since 2005 when the Public Health Division of the Oregon Department of Human Services published a report that used teen health survey data to correlate bullying with suicide attempts and depression. Thirty-three percent of eighth graders who reported severe bullying also reported thoughts of suicide, compared to 6.5 percent among those who reported no bullying.

Suicide isn’t the only concern either. A key finding of a 2002 Secret Service report on violence in schools noted that 75 percent of school shooters had been bullied."

http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=126945270177155100

In reviewing the Portland high school reform online materials I am concerned that engagement seems to be narrowly defined as what gets students to focus more on their academics. While the goal is improving the graduation rate to what extent has preventing bullying been considered in this reform? For example, to increase engagement the plan proposes more conselors. How would more counselors reduce bullying? If so how will Portland high schools after the redesign facilitate openness, tolerance and respect in Portland high schools? Where does desire to increase engagement fall in their priority in relation to their effort to improve achievement and graduation?