2019-03-16
The College Admissions\rScandal
This week we added another crisis or\rscandal to the news feed. The news is disturbing and disheartening, and\rfor a number or reasons. At the same time, it’s important to reflect on\rsome of the root causes for this newest expose.
First,\rparents always want what’s best for their children. They should -\rthat’s what it means to be a parent. One of the problems with this\rlatest series of accusations is the scale or extent of parental oversight\rand overindulgence. When fantastically rich parents can afford to\rmanipulate the system of college acceptance, they engage in far more than\rjust illegal activities - they fundamentally undermine their children’s\rability to find real success.
Now of course, our current\rnational social situation provides far too few examples of good leadership\rfor either parents or for students. We are currently living in a selfish,\r“me first and me only” society where so many of our leaders exemplify\rthe antithesis of the Enlightenment social principles of our founding\rfathers - and mothers. But that is for another essay.
And\rperhaps the real tragedy in all of this is the plight of the children..\rWhen a parent buys access, they disable their own children - the very\rpeople they care about most. What does a child really learn from this?\rThat everything is for sale? That they really can’t compete on their\rown? That they are exempt from normal processes and procedures? That they\rreally are not able to make it without parental financial\rintercession?
What happens to the child’s sense of\raccomplishment and self-efficacy when letters of acceptance are really\rreceipts?
But, underneath all is is another pernicious practice.\rWhen college acceptances are based on high-stakes static assessments -\rlike SAT tests, single issue transcripts, and glorified extra-curricular\rdescriptions - the pressure and the temptation to lie, cheat, and bribe is\rramped up to the breaking point. After all, for many there is only one\rchance to show expertise in this high-states static assessment\rsystem.
Instead, schools and colleges should adopt a\rmulti-faceted approach toward assessment that does include testing, but\ralso includes examples of work done and work in progress, of\rmulti-dimensional transcripts that reflect both grades and achievement on\racademic standards, and of extra-curricular and community\rinvolvement.
This is the world of e-portfolios and the\rAssessment and Learning Profile System which we advocate at\rGryphondale.
And for some extra reading\r-
Admissions scandal highlights divide over class in\rAmerica
ABC News
Let\'s talk about the real\rcollege admissions problem
The Hill
The College Admissions Scandal\rMakes It Clear We’ll Need Affirmative Action For As Long As There’s\rStill White Privilege
BET News
The College\rAdmissions Scandal Is Peak White Privilege — & It\'s Nothing\rNew
Refinery29
Fallout from college admission\rscandal worsening for accused parents, schools
Los Angeles\rTimes
An Idiot’s Guide to Bribing\rand Cheating Your Way Into College
The Wall Street\rJournal
2019-02-25 -\r
Stone Walls and Assessment II
This\rthing about assessment keeps me focused over seasons of\rthought.
Building or re-building the stone wall was an\rinteresting exercise - and it provided exercise as\rwell.
As teachers we make some assumptions - and these\rassumptions may lake life-verifiable truth. We can not assume that all\rchildren, all students are alike - or - that they can do the same\ractivities in the same way. Or, that they can or should pass the same test\rin the same way.
All those neurons, all so connected in\rso many different ways - and reforming connections throughout\rlife.
Perhaps the only way to know what a student “knows and is\rable to do” is by gathering examples of achievements along the course of\rlearning.
If I were a professional stone wall builder,\rthen I would want to gather a portfolio of accomplishments and evidence to\rshow my skills and abilities. I show what I can do by showing what I have\rdone.
No test is ever the only tool to be used in\rassessment. Tests are tools, but only one of many. A screwdriver does not\rpound a nail.