Saturday, June 16, 2007

HO, HUM! IQ MATTERS IN AMERICA TOO

As in Britain, some researchers in America have just rediscovered some old truths -- that that race, gender and family income affect academic success. That poor people and blacks tend to be dumber makes that exactly what one must expect but we are not allowed to mention that, of course. It's "racism" that produces differences in educational achievement, I tell you!

The slight advantage that females have is also what is to be expected from the gross feminization of education that has happened in recent years. But we must never mention the obvious, of course


Huge gaps in academic success separate students in Milwaukee Public Schools not only by race, but by income and gender, according to an extensive analysis of standardized test scores released Wednesday.

Compared across several demographic features - for example, reading scores of African-American males from low-income homes vs. scores of white females from middle-income homes - some groups of students are, on average, years behind others at the 10th-grade level, the study says.

Conducted for the conservative-oriented Wisconsin Policy Research Institute, the study by University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee professor Sammis White calls for strong action by state officials to insist on better results from MPS, but it does not give detailed recommendations. "If measured against the average student in the state of Wisconsin, at eighth grade, the average African-American male in MPS is approximately two years behind in math and almost two years behind in reading," White wrote. "Those are huge gaps that should be totally unacceptable to the citizens of the state."

The analysis of test-score data also shows major gaps involving other groups. White males from low-income homes fared worse than white males from higher income homes by significant amounts, for example. "Low-income whites should be included in the target groups for new initiatives," White recommended.

In general, gaps by race and income, and to a lesser degree by gender, showed up clearly at third grade and increased as students got older. By 10th grade, some of the gaps represented several years of learning. Girls scored better than boys, overall. Whites scored better than Hispanics, whose scores were somewhat better than those of African-Americans, the analysis shows. White analyzed scores on the state's standardized tests in reading and math for more than 13,000 students in the Class of 2008 and the Class of 2011 in MPS as those students moved from grade to grade, starting at third grade.

White recommended steps such as creating more 3-year-old kindergarten programs, offering better training for principals, promoting more parental participation in education and using body-movement exercises every day in school. He called for a greater sense of accountability both within MPS and from outside the school system. "The state must step up and take greater responsibility for the outcomes," White wrote. He called it "irresponsible" that the state provides most of the annual funding for MPS and does not insist on better outcomes.

"The pressure to really succeed has not been sufficient to bring the degree of change and commitment that is necessary for success," White wrote. "The key is to focus on these gaps and take explicit actions to raise both test scores and graduation rates of all minorities." On the Web To read the full text of the study, go to www.wpri.org.

Source





Some realism comes to British High Schools

Coursework [take-home assignments] is to be scrapped from most GCSE examinations in response to fears that it has allowed students to copy from the internet or to get their teachers, siblings or parents to complete projects for them. It will be replaced by work supervised in strict conditions at school, to be known as "controlled assessments".

Pupils will still be able to consult the internet and other source material, but teachers will be on hand to ensure that all work is suitably referenced and not simply "cut and pasted" by students claiming it as their own, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority said yesterday.

The QCA said that traditional coursework completed by pupils at home will be scrapped in English literature, foreign languages, history, geography, classical subjects, religious studies, social sciences, business studies and economics for courses starting in 2009.

No final decision about English language and information technology has yet been made. Only practical subjects such as art, music, design and technology and home economics will retain a nonsupervised coursework element, which can be worth 20 to 60 per cent of the marks in certain subjects. Under the new regime controlled assessments will account for 25 per cent of marks in most subjects. [Only 25%? Why not 75%?]

Source





Merit pay for Australian teachers is coming

Schools should trial a new teacher salary system

In the face of near hysterical opposition from teacher unions and state Labor governments, the federal Education Minister Julie Bishop is pushing ahead with a plan to introduce merit-based pay for teachers, and so she should. As The Australian reported yesterday, Ms Bishop has asked teams of expert consultants to develop different models for merit-based pay. It may be that good teachers get a cash bonus for lifting the grades of an entire class; or that the principal recommends a pay rise for a particularly outstanding individual; or that parents and students push for a rise for a teacher who has tamed a particularly unruly bunch of students. With some luck, there will be a host of schools jostling to sign up to trial the new models before the system can be rolled out across the nation.

Merit-based pay is obviously good for teachers, but there is evidence it is good for students, too. In the US, where teachers can get a cash bonus if they lift their student's scores, literacy and numeracy has improved. Australian teacher unions say they would rather use any extra money to hire more teachers and reduce class sizes. But there is no evidence that smaller class sizes automatically or even necessarily lead to better results.

Unions are likewise wary of competition among staff, complaining that it could erode the pleasant, collegial atmosphere of a school. The argument does not make sense. In most workplaces, there are talented high flyers and flat-footed time-wasters. There are juniors, seniors, big bosses and trainees. They get paid on merit, and they are required to work towards common goals. They don't kill each other over the fact that some earn more than others. Also, it is standard practice in most professions that if you work hard, you can ask for a pay rise. If you don't get one, you can take your labour to a different workplace that will give your pay packet a boost.

Recent reports have proved beyond doubt that teaching no longer attracts as many bright students as it did in the 1980s, in part because women, who make up the bulk of teachers, have more career options. But the problem with teacher pay obviously has an impact. In NSW, a teacher reaches the peak salary after nine years, which usually means, by the age of 31 or 32, they are earning as much as they will ever earn. By the age of 50, their morale must be completely shot.

It is often said that nobody goes into teaching for the money. Some go in for the short days and the generous holidays, for a love of children, or to perform public service. But greater financial rewards will make teaching a more attractive profession for smart people, who might otherwise drift to economics, medicine or the law, or indeed any job where their performance is recognised with one thing we all need, money.

Source

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For greatest efficiency, lowest cost and maximum choice, ALL schools should be privately owned and run -- with government-paid vouchers for the poor and minimal regulation.

The NEA and similar unions worldwide believe that children should be thoroughly indoctrinated with Green/Left, feminist/homosexual ideology but the "3 R's" are something that kids should just be allowed to "discover"


For more postings from me, see TONGUE-TIED, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, DISSECTING LEFTISM, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN. My Home Pages are here or here or here. Email me (John Ray) here. For times when blogger.com is playing up, there are mirrors of this site here and here.

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1 comment:

al fin said...

Dysgenics affects the quality of students in government schools AND the quality of teachers and administration.

If the teachers are not bright enough or well enough read to detect when students are cutting and pasting their assignments from the internet, no amount of good intentions will serve.

In an Idiocracy, even the institutions are run by idiots.