Big Brother is destroying American education

George Orwell's 1984 is a cautionary tale about a government that polices everything citizens do, including how they think. The term "Big Brother is watching" was popularized by this classic dystopian novel. Big Brother is the party leader, who does everything possible to eliminate individuality.

Recent comments here at ROLE Reversal, on Twitter, Google+ and other articles and blogs got me to thinking that Orwell's Big Brother and our current government may not be so different. One might argue that the notion that we're being controlled by thought police is absurd, but consider the government's role in education and its impact on educators.

The comment below, left on a blog post about the negative effects of homework, is a perfect example of the thought control that our government is creating with standardized testing:

"Sounds good, but my state says we Must finish x amount of concepts in the year, and be prepared for an end of course exam that determines if they graduate. I need every second of class time and the students need practice to get the ideas into long-term memory."

I hear similar complaints daily in my own school, from colleagues scared senseless that their students won't pass the test, subjecting the teachers to all sorts of state-mandated wrath. Don't standardized tests force teachers to behave like thoughtless automatons, handing out practice test worksheets and homework day after day, as they spout "You must pass, you must pass," mantras at their students? Or do they?

Most readers of Orwell thought his novel was, in fact, cautionary and that his plot was far too outlandish to ever come to fruition.

As we gaze into today's classrooms and see one mind-controlled teacher after another, we must wonder if Big Brother isn't alive and well today, controlling the thoughts and actions of teachers and destroying American education and the futures of our children along with it.

New Year's Challenge: stop teaching to the test

I've been reading plenty of education reform blog posts and articles recently. Not that they aren't well-written or insightful; it's just that most reiterate the same refrain: achievement tests place a stranglehold on teachers, inhibiting their effectiveness.

This may be surprising, coming from someone who is well-known for railing against standardized testing, but it's time for teachers to stop complaining that they can't be effective because they have to teach to the test!

If we stop preparing students for the test and simply teach them to be efficient learners, they will perform well on the test without additional test practice. Sounds easy enough, right? Trust me, it is.

I do no test preparation of any kind in my results-only classroom. In fact, we never take any quizzes or tests. My students read daily. They discuss real-world situations that take place in both fiction and nonfiction, and they complete remarkable projects that encompass all of our learning outcomes. They ask lots of questions and we discover the answers together.

One day prior to our state-mandated achievement test, I review what they can expect. We discuss the tricks that are on the test. Apart from this, I simply remind them that they are well prepared, because throughout the school year, they have learned everything they will need to answer the questions on the test.

If we all approach the test this way, I believe the scores will increase exponentially. Maybe if students nationwide start scoring well on these insipid tests, eventually the bureaucrats will see that there is no longer any need for them.

Punished for not participating

While browsing YouTube, I came across this video by a student, enlightening us on the problems with grading participation in class. Sounds about right to me. What do you think?

Merry Christmas, now do your homework

My son started his winter break by walking into the house and announcing that he had homework to complete. As much as I hate homework, I thought, How much homework would teachers really assign over our two-week holiday break? Some light reading and maybe a few math worksheets won't be too damaging.

Then, my son produced two packets, one for reading and one for math, and I realized just how wrong I was.

These collections of worksheets totaled over 40 pages. If my son does some homework every day during our two-week break, including weekends and Christmas eve, Christmas day, New Year's eve and New Year's day, he'd have to complete just under three pages of homework daily.

Of course, the likelihood of him working on homework on the holidays is, well, unlikely. If he does homework for, let's say, eight days, that's five pages daily -- five pages of this homework madness on our holiday break! That's homework in place of reading, games, time with friends and family fun.

My son is a wonderful student, who completes all activities and homework, even though he admittedly doesn't like it, so he'll probably get it done. As a father, teacher and researcher who knows the negative effects of homework, I won't encourage him to complete it.

This may upset his teachers, but they should have considered this, before they sent him packing with a gleeful, "Merry Christmas. Now do your homework!"

How would you spend 71 billion dollars?

Congress recently approved more than $71 billion for education for the fiscal year ending September of 2012. Of course, hundreds of millions are set aside for Race to the Top and other useless organizations like Teach for America.

I did some quick math and learned that if the government simply divided the money equally by the number of public school students, it would mean schools would have roughly $1,400 per student. Granted, this isn't a huge amount, but if we knew there would be at least this much yearly, imagine what schools could do to improve education.

Just spitballing, my first thought was to put an iPad, loaded with powerful applications, in the hands of every student. These would last a long time, so in subsequent years, the $1,400 per student could go for other useful education materials.

Keep in mind, this is in addition to the millions districts get each year from tax dollars and existing government funds.

The way this gigantic pile of cash is currently dispersed, though, most of the nearly 50 million K-12 public school students are left penniless.

So, how would you spend 71 billions dollars?

It's time to put a square peg into a round hole

Photo via Flickriver.com

In a brilliant article, posted on Valerie Strauss's The Answer Sheet, San Francisco State professor emeritus Mark Phillips shares the following anecdote:

"Edwin Abbott’s classic book, Flatland, tells the story of a square that falls into a world of three dimensions. Returning to his two-dimensional world, he tries to explain his incredible experience. But how do you explain a cube to someone who can only conceptualize two dimensions? Ultimately he’s branded a heretic and jailed."

This got me thinking about my own attempts at education reform. As I share with colleagues the results-only strategies I use, I'm often greeted with skepticism. Fortunately, I've yet to be branded a heretic, but some of the dissenters have recently become vocal. Still, it seems that many of today's teachers struggle with change.

As Phillips writes, "Most teachers and administrators, dealing with the daily challenges of teaching, don’t have the luxury of thinking beyond the present paradigm."

Some, however, simply don't know when it's time to put a square peg into a round hole.

Project based learning prepares students for life

While preparing a presentation for the ASCD Annual Conference and Exhibit Show, I came across this remarkable video, produced by Edutopia.org on project-based learning.

What a marvelous example of how project-based learning and assessment can prepare students for life, while helping them perform well on standardized tests -- a bonus that will keep administrators happy. The powerful quotes from great minds, like Howard Gardner, enhance a very insightful production.

Exposing bad homework research

A heartfelt email from a new teacher prompted yet another post on the deleterious effects of homework.

Robert Marzano

Tony says that his school district is big into the teachings of Robert Marzano, specifically his book, Classroom Instruction that Works. 

"In the book," Tony writes, "they end up saying the research shows deliberate moderate amounts of practice homework are recommended (with caveats of grading and informative feedback), so is this research wrong?  Or are there exceptions to the homework idea?"

Unravelling Marzano
With all due respect, Marzano's evaluation of the research is inaccurate. In an article in Educational Leadership, Special Topic / The Case For and Against Homework (2007), Marzano and Debra Pickering cling mainly to the work of Harris Cooper, whose homework research spans decades. Marzano and Pickering carefully extract quotes from the mountains of research Cooper produced from the 1980s to the mid 2000s. Of course, they take what supports their argument and ignore some of Cooper's own admissions about the ineffectiveness of homework.

Marzano and Pickering rail against Alfie Kohn, who offers a much clearer interpretation of Cooper and dozens of others in his 2006 book, The Homework Myth. What Marzano and Pickering fail to mention, that Kohn so eloquently reveals, is that Cooper's research incessantly relates the effectiveness of homework to grades -- which are subjective measures of a student's achievement. (If I assign homework, my student doesn't do it, and I give her an F, this will easily bear out the supposition that not doing homework hurts achievement. The same scenario will obviously work in reverse.)

In a very telling study in 1998, which Marzano and Pickering conveniently omit, Cooper states that he found no significant relationship between homework and grades or between homework and scores on standardized test results for younger students. The study found only a moderate increase in grades for older students doing homework (Kohn, p. 33) and, as previously stated, connecting homework to grades is a pointless endeavor.

Marzano and Pickering also dwell on the statistics of several meta-analyses on homework by Cooper, John Hattie and others. Again, the problem with all of these, which Kohn dutifully explains, is that the proponents of homework measure it against grades and test scores. This, alone, is enough to discredit all of these researchers, because grades and tests are poor ways to evaluate learning. Continuing to evaluate the merits of homework against these useless measures only acknowledges that grades and tests are okay, in the first place.

What Marzano and Pickering offer that is useful for teachers working at schools which mandate homework is the section of the EL article that supplies guidelines for homework. For example, they suggest that it should be purposeful and involve parents in appropriate ways. If you are assigning homework, which you shouldn't, this is certainly good advice.

Summarizing
So, back to Tony. "Is the research wrong?" I'd say, as far as Marzano evaluates it, definitely. "Are there exceptions to the homework idea?" This depends on how you look at the word.

I'm fine with students working outside of class, as long as they choose when and how to do so. Reading, as evidenced here, is really the best thing students can do outside of school. This too, though, should be their choice, and it should never be connected to any grade or test. I wouldn't call these activities homework.


References

Kohn, A. (2006). The homework myth: Why our kids get too much of a bad thing.
     Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Press
Marzano, R. Pickering, D. (2007). Special topic/The case for and against homework. Educational Leadership. 64, 6. pp. 74-79.

Wait a minute; grades being used for good!

I have been inspired by the work of Nancie Atwell, Stephen Krashen and Donalyn Miller -- all educators and researchers who believe that the best way to improve literacy is through voluminous reading, both in and out of classroom.

A couple of years ago, after reading Miller's The Book Whisperer then Atwell's The Reading Zone, I created the Reading All Year (RAY) project, around which my entire school year is built. My 8th grade students are challenged to read 25 books by the end of the year (most will read 30-60), and mini lessons on book structure, figurative language and writing are built into the reading.

Overcoming the naysayers
While most of my 112 students have completely bought into this program, a few students still fight it because, in  most cases, they have been conditioned by bad reading systems in earlier grades to hate reading. They don't see value in it.

To fight this negativity, I meet with these kids individually throughout the school year. We discuss their interests, and I guide them to books I think they'll like and that are on their reading levels.

One more approach I use is to share data that demonstrates a connection between reading and success in school.

This is a double-edged sword, because I use report card grades as part of the data, and my students know how against grades I am. However, since they are still conditioned to think of grades as the true measure of their success in other classes, some brief research becomes very useful. I consider this a way to put the devil to good use.

The data
After our first marking period, I counted students who have read two or fewer books over the course of a 9-week quarter. I then reviewed their report card grades, and I totaled the D's and F's for all of these reluctant readers.

Then, I repeated this process for the most avid readers. For this research, I located students who had read nine or more books in the first quarter (I chose 9 books, because the total number of students who read 9 was 14, which was very similar to the number of students who read 2 or less). Then, I totaled the number of A's these students received.

When I shared the results on my Smart Board, the room fell silent.

Thirteen students who read 2 or fewer books combined to receive 39 grades of D or F -- an average of three low marks per student.

Conversely, the 14 voluminous readers combined to receive 59 A's -- an average of 4.2 per student.

Summarizing
Once the impact of the numbers settled on all of my students, I carefully make the connection between reading and success in school. "As long as schools use grades to measure achievement," I told them, "it's clear that A's demonstrate more success than D's and F's. I will never measure your learning with a letter, but if you want to be successful in the system our school has, it seems clear that reading is the way to do it."

Readers develop good habits. Readers learn more words. Readers write well. Readers perform well on most forms of assessment. Readers enjoy life.

This data exemplifies the only time there is any good use for grades; in this case, they may convince my reluctant readers to embrace our program. If this is what transforms them into voluminous readers, then this is one time I'm willing to say anything positive about grades.

What vision do grades provide?

I found this cartoon interesting. It got me wondering how any student might answer a question about vision, based on grades.

Good use of a bad tool

As a ROLE teacher, I am not in favor of worksheets, workbooks and the like. Very few of these tools offer any freedom to the learner. However, our students are provided with a vocabulary book, which is part of student fees, so I am obligated to make use of it. 

There are many ways I could justify use of the workbook and remain true to my results-only philosophy, but I want to be sure that using the book is neither a waste of time for students nor a waste of money for parents. So, I have learned to take the best parts of the workbook and create the autonomy that my students enjoy so much. 

We simply ignore the mundane multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank items and apply the lessons to real learning. One such activity involves reviewing strategies for using context clues – a valuable skill for all readers. Instead of completing the worksheets that follow the strategies, I ask my students to return to the novels they’ve selected as part of our independent reading program and apply the strategies there. 

After 15 minutes of reading, they identified previously unknown words in small groups, sharing the strategies they used to learn them. Later, they look up the words on their Smart phones to verify their meanings. This activity provides good use of a bad tool.

Angering the traditionalists

It seems that I inadvertently upset a colleague. In fact, angered is a more appropriate word.

While the teacher was making students copy nightly homework into an agenda book (yawn), a frustrated student who also has me for a teacher, announced that "Mr. Barnes says homework has no value." Uh-oh.

Now, just to be clear, I do tell students when they ask why I don't assign homework that I don't see the value in it and that they'd be better off reading for pleasure. I always add that other teachers do what they believe is best, and the students should honor that.

My colleague responded with a rather pointed e-mail, suggesting that my philosophy was hurting the entire building.

My initial reaction was to reply with a cyber dart of my own, but I refrained. After further consideration, I decided that the word is finally getting out. Before today, I thought my colleagues weren't listening to my pleas for reason on homework and grades. This was the first signal that they are taking notice.

Hmm, I wonder what I can do next to anger the traditionalists.

The debate over methods continues

Joanne Jacobs' blog post on Direct Instruction (DI) ignited a spirited debate. The conversation there encouraged me to post a response here.

Jacobs posted a new blog, Progressives vs. traditionalists, and that conversation, too, has snowballed.

So, is there a winner?

Are we losing the fight?

An education blogger I read often, Joanne Jacobs, recently posted a link to a traditional teaching program, called DI (Direct Instruction), created by someone from the private sector.

Although I had heard of this, I only knew that it embraces everything I'm against in education: scripted lessons, rules, worksheets and tests, so I had previously dismissed it without further research. The eBook Jacobs linked to on her blog about DI confirmed my suspicions -- that DI is one more in a long line of traditional systems that provide crutches for bad teachers and turn students into mindless automatons.

I decided to share my opinion about DI in the comment section on the post; I was the first. A few days later, I returned to Jacobs' blog to find dozens of comments. I was not surprised by the opinions, most of which were directly opposite of mine. Some outraged fans of Direct Instruction thought I was crazy and defended DI and other oft-used weak practices, like lions fighting for their young.

I was not angered by the comments; after all, these people were only defending what they believe in.

Rather, I began considering how difficult it is going to be to overcome these outdated teaching methods, so we can reform American education. If programs like DI and other scripted, basal-type systems can so easily influence parents and educators, how will modern, more progressive teaching methods, like results-only learning, compete?

I wonder, are we losing the fight with traditional teaching?

Unlocking the little things

I had an interesting experience today, when I taught a student how to open her combination lock. It sounds strange that four months into a school year, a 13-year-old is still struggling with a basic motor skill, but if you've ever taught middle school, you know it happens.

She had asked me to help her before, and I have always just opened the lock and returned to my classroom (you see, she's not my student, so it wasn't worth my time to do much more than open the lock).

Today, I decided to pause for a moment to see what was wrong. I asked her to attempt to open the lock, and I watched. "Your technique is flawed," I said. She looked puzzled. She was attempting to open the lock, while holding it in one hand and using the thumb on that same hand; she wasn't using her other hand at all. I asked her to hold the lock in her strong hand (the right). "Now, with your left hand, turn the knob on the lock, rather than trying to use just your thumb on the flat part of the lock."

I modeled the practice and opened the lock. Then I relocked it. She sighed. "You try," I said. "You have to do it, if you are going to learn it."

Three turns later, the lock sprang open. "You'll never need my help again," I called, as I  headed back to my empty classroom. She smiled and scurried away.

In a day filled with research, web-based tools, cooperative groups, reading and many more one-on-one conversations with students, it hit me that this might have been one of the best moments of the day.

How results-only learning transforms schools

This video, posted to Edutopia.org, is a remarkable example of how ROLE strategies can transform any school into a remarkable learning community.

Although the people at Cochrane Collegiate Academy, featured in the video, don't call their school a ROLE, watch and listen for the results-only concepts shared by staff and students: collaboration, rapport-building, caring, hands-on, engaged and empowered students.

What you don't hear is anything about homework and grades.

All I wonder is with a model like Cochrane, why aren't more school administrators taking notice?

Does this remind you of anything?

New York state education department representatives, training principals on a new teacher evaluation system, explained that they don't understand the new evaluation method themselves.

To make the point, they showed the video below. Not surprisingly, according to the New York Times, not many people in attendance thought it was funny.

What do you think?

Which pictures apply to you?

Found these pictures while browsing Google Images. Got me to thinking how they define some teachers and classrooms.

So, which of these apply to you?

Do you use traditional grades

An interesting #edchat on Twitter about the impact of homework on education quickly turned to grades. I'm surprised by how many participants not only disdain homework but say that grades are unimportant.

So, what is your take on grades?

The anatomy of a year-long project

In a recent post about the year-long project, I introduced MAD, or Make a Difference. It's easy to view the classroom web page about the project and understand the basics behind it. Understanding just how the project works throughout the school year can be a bit more elusive, so please allow me to clarify.

Introduction
I introduce the project to my students by showing them a trailer from the movie, Pay It Forward, which is about a teenager who comes up with a remarkable project that impacts the lives of thousands of people. I believe video is a wonderful way to launch any project, as students relate to it more readily than other methods of instruction. After the trailer, we discuss how it relates to a project called Make a Difference. At this point, I lead students to the MAD overview web page, which contains a myriad of ideas that get them talking and thinking. It's remarkable how excited students get, because they have an opportunity to do something that is entirely their own and that can impact lives.

Research
A major unit of study for 8th-grade language arts is research. Before teaching in a ROLE, this was the time of year I hated most, because I could never figure out how to get students to embrace this complex and often monotonous task. With our MAD project, research became easy and fun. Students begin the project by researching their ideas. Unlike previous years, when students agonized over gathering information about a "famous" person they likely had never heard of, they now enjoy searching for knowledge about a subject they're invested in. They complete a research proposal and rarely even consider that they're learning how to conduct research and properly add citations to an essay.

Learning outcomes
Once the research is finished, students begin creating their projects. Along the way, I mix in activities that they apply to the project, which meets curriculum objectives without making students feel like they are meeting objectives. This can feel a lot like school, which often equates to boredom. For example, one of our standards is to write explanatory texts in order to convey complex ideas. All of the ideas for our MAD project include this sort of writing, either in the research proposal or other examples of writing that are necessary to make the project a success. The presidential campaign project, for instance, calls for speeches and commercials that explain the candidates platform. Each idea includes collaboration, discussion, persuasion, and speaking -- all speaking and listening objectives that will be covered in mini lessons throughout the course of the year.

Pacing
The year-long project eliminates the need for a pacing chart -- an archaic tool that only chains teachers to traditional methods that bore students. Instead of teaching units off of a pacing chart, we operate daily in a workshop environment. Even with a small amount of time (46-minute periods), the day is broken into project work increments. If we're focusing on MAD, we'll read for 8-10 minutes (Reading All Year project), get a mini lesson, which may be a video, for 5-8 minutes, collaborate for 25 minutes with coaching from me then close. When our focus is on RAY, the collaboration time becomes independent reading and book chat, with 8-10 minutes dedicated to MAD. This system works beautifully, and you can always take a day off the schedule, if you have to work in something you feel needs more attention -- preparing for a state test, for example.

Thirst for learning
The most important aspect of results-only learning is the thirst for learning that it develops in students. A year-long project like MAD fans the intrinsic motivation that starts this amazing thirst. Students have autonomy and see the end result as something they can take pride in. Boredom is eliminated.

Learning becomes fun.

The ROLE is enveloped in the year-long project

Photo credit: egiconsulting.com

The year-long project is part of a successful results-only classroom and a piece that confounds many people. "How do year-long projects work?" is a popular question among colleagues and friends.

We are in the midst of my favorite year-long project. I call it MAD, or Make a Difference. The MAD project is an extension of a three-day project I started last year called, FedEX -- a name borrowed from Dan Pink's Drive. That project gave students two days to create anything they wanted to with very little restriction. On the third day, they delivered the project in class (a la FedEX).

The FedEX project was such a hit that I decided to convert it into a year-long event that would give me a chance to teach most of our curriculum objectives while allowing students to demonstrate their skills and to create something special. You can view the basic guidelines and some project choices at this link. It may not look like much, but I cover most of our learning outcomes with this project.

More on the specifics of how I do this later.

Meanwhile, think of one project that your students can work on all year that they'll love and that will create a fantastic avenue for you to teach most of your objectives. I dare you not to drive yourself nuts, considering the possibilities.

Are you building bridges with your students?

A key ingredient to the success of the Results Only Learning Environment is the sidebar, a one-to-one conversation with a student.

Skillful communicators use the sidebar to build bridges that create a student-teacher bond, which also fans the intrinsic motivation that helps students develop a thirst for learning. Kids who like and respect their teacher are always more willing to take on the learning challenges that the ROLE presents.

As a results-only teacher, I like to consider myself highly-efficient when it comes to using the sidebar. A recent issue with a student made me realize that you are never an expert at this complex part of student-teacher relationships.

I had an argument with a student in the classroom that became a disruption. It hit me later that our verbal sparring didn't settle the problem. In fact, the student wound up accomplishing nothing that day, so important project work time was lost. Even worse, our relationship was damaged.

After much consideration of what sparked the issue, I spoke to the student a few days later in a crucial sidebar. While others worked out of earshot, I whispered to her that I undestood her problems -- some pretty big ones that extend outside of school. I admitted that personal issues often get in the way of school and can ignite anxiety and frustration that can easily lead to disagreements with teachers, who are focused on their lessons.

She was somber and understanding. I asked her to do me a favor and to stop and think about this conversation the next time I did or said something that might upset her. This way, we would avoid disagreements. She promised that she would and, I believe, we built a bridge that didn't exist previously.

I left that conversation wondering what other students I could talk to in a sidebar and potentially build bridges like this one. Sidebars are time-consuming and challenging but one of the most worthwhile parts of creating a learning community.

The next time a student is frustrating you or being disruptive, ask yourself if you can build a bridge instead of tearing one down.

K12 online conference

Don't miss the K12 online conference, kicking off with Angela Maiers' preconference keynote today.

Access all of the conference information here.

Texting and teachable moments

This video from WRAL.com got my attention. The teachable moment comments are spot on. State educators getting involved scares me, though.

How are you using texting and other forms of social media in your class?

My first mobile post. Conferences going well.

Parent-teacher conferences are not so bad

The first parent-teacher conferences of the year are tonight. Believe it or not, I'm looking forward to them.

I think this is another advantage of teaching in the results-only classroom. I love talking about the freedom my students get and all of the amazing things they're doing in our workshop setting.

Mostly, I enjoy talking about stamping out traditional education and grades.

Perhaps I'll have some interesting debates.

I'll keep you posted.

ASCD Express recognizes narrative feedback

Thanks to ASCD for publishing my article on narrative feedback instead of number and letter grades.

Hope you'll give some feedback of  your own, by commenting at the ASCD Express article site or on this blog post.

Can you commit to the grading moratorium?

I'm proud that I am part of Joe Bower's grading moratorium.

Take a look at Bower's work. Can you commit to your own grading moratorium?

What stumbling blocks do you see?

Do we owe students a good test score?

While students remained home on election day, we teachers worked. As usual, our day without students consisted mainly of ubiquitous discussions of standardized tests and test preparation.

"As long as we have the test," one colleague announced, "we owe it to the kids to help them do well on it."

I pondered this briefly.

If standardized tests limit instruction, hinder learning and make students dislike school, as much research indicates, don't teachers owe students the opposite of a good score on the test?

Don't we owe them a hard-fought battle against standardized testing?

But Wait, You Didn't Tell Me I Wasn't A Disappointment

Powerful, ROLE-type stuff from Pernille Ripp. Have you had any moments like the one she had?

But Wait, You Didn't Tell Me I Wasn't A Disappointment

Staying the course in the ROLE

This is another installment from guest blogger and ROLE teacher, Justin Vail, a junior high social studies teacher in Indiana.

Easy Doesn’t Mean Best

Photo credit: NitroJam.com

I think it is important for people to understand the frustrations that come with a ROLE classroom.   I know a ROLE classroom is better than a traditional classroom, but better doesn’t mean easier.  And ROLE or PBL (project-based learning) is not a magic spell that turns an apathetic student into an intrinsic learner.  Here are my main frustrations in my ROLE classroom:

• Most students choose not to "dig in” to research--they are satisfied with the information in the first few sentences, which meets the requirements, but begins to resemble the traditional transfer from textbook to worksheet
• As with most education settings, so many of my students are not motivated to learn anything related to content.  My district is about 70% free and reduced (lunch), and with poverty comes different priorities and survival methods.
• Students will spend more time adjusting their font style, text color, slide animations, and a number of other things that don’t matter—and spend a relatively small amount of time reading and evaluating content. 

I am finding and experimenting with ways to address my frustrations.  I accept that some things I can’t completely change, but most things can be adjusted.  Can I change my students’ culture in a 50-minute class?  No.  But, I can change my procedures, expectations, norms, and the structure of my class to challenge and motivate my kids.  

Full disclosure—some days I want to get out the textbooks, slap a worksheet on their desks, and order them to be quiet and get to work.  It is OK to have these feelings, it comes with the territory, but most of us have learned that what is easy is rarely what is best. 

Students trust the ROLE teacher

We are always telling students that honesty is the best policy. Sometimes it's hard for teachers to be completely honest with students, though.

When I felt like I betrayed my students, because I created a project that detracted from a quarter's-worth of reading, I was forced to tell them that I had made a mistake.

"We will not continue our reading project, as I had planned," I announced at the end of the quarter.

"But, why?" they called, in an almost choral response.

"It's a mistake," I shared, as honestly as I knew how. "I want more reading, more sharing, more reflection and more book talks. The project just gets in the way of what's most important."

A few minutes later, they were back on their computers, updating their reading plans, browsing the shelves for new books and reading, as if nothing had changed.

I pondered their reaction momentarily, and it was clear to me that they trusted my judgement, because I was honest.

Are you this honest with your students?

Betraying my students with standards

I just read Nancie Atwell's, The Reading Zone, a brilliant treatise on leading all students to the joys of voluminous reading.

Atwell, arguably education's top expert on teaching reading, smacked me in the face, figuratively speaking, when she explained the dangers of removing students from "the zone," by creating activities that, at best, serve only to interrupt reading. Most of these interruptions -- summaries, book reports and, yes, even projects -- are often included because teachers feel compelled to meet standards and to prepare students for high stakes testing.

Atwell's sobering words on the subject sent me scurrying off to my classroom web site, where I quickly eliminated the posted learning outcomes (standards). As a results-only learning teacher, who vilifies standards and high stakes tests as often as possible, I am ashamed that I included these in my teaching in the first quarter.

I was shocked at myself for being seduced by the inclusion of standards into project-based learning.

Next came the reading project. As a ROLE teacher, I advocate the use of year-long projects to capture objectives, in order to engage students in learning and to create autonomy. I'm still a big believer in this. Atwell, however, reminded me that reading is best taught without this sort of interruption. So, I had more work to do, the kind that would take more damage control than simply removing a project.

At the end of the grading period, my students completed self-evaluations and assigned themselves a report card grade. Much of their decisions were based on a project I assigned that involved integrating learned book structure into various web tools. (Sounds cool, I know, but after reading Atwell's book and revisiting my own goals as a ROLE teacher, I realized the project was a huge mistake.)

Now, I need to have a long heart-to-heart talk with my students and explain my error. I'll then ask them to re-evaluate their performance. You see, many students had a fine 9 weeks, filled with many completed books, excellent collaborative work and insightful in-class activities. Some of these, though, performed poorly on the reading project, for one reason or another. Based on that result, they assigned a low grade for the quarter.

I'm sure some teachers would say I should live with my error and just move on without bringing it up. Results-only learning depends on self-reflection and integrity, though, so this has to be dealt with.

I'll let you know how it goes.

The power of "Really?"

Knee-deep into the second day of self-evaluation and discussion about report card grades, I realized just how powerful a word can be.

As I wrote in Trust your students to evaluate themselves, most of my students choose the grade I would have, if I were assigning the grade, instead of asking them to do it. A very small percentage of students initially ask for a grade that seems too high, based on their production. When this happens, I respond with, "Really?" Then, I pause and silence fills the air.

This pause is important, because it sends the student back to reflection and self-evaluation. A moment later, most say, "Well, maybe the grade should be lower."

It's important to note here that I'm in no way trying to manipulate students into selecting a lower grade. In fact, I tell them that I will give them whatever grade they choose. "I want you to give an honest evaluation," I say. "When that report card arrives in the mail, you need to be satisfied that you were honest with yourself."

This honest self-evaluation is one of the most important elements of the Results Only Learning Environment.

Trust your students to evaluate themselves

With our first quarter officially ending this week, it is time for reflection, self-evaluation and final report card grades. Since my students have had no points or letter grades on any activities or projects throughout the grading period, they review their production, my narrative feedback and, together, we decide on an appropriate letter grade for the report card.

My first year using this method in a Results Only Learning Environment, I was a bit nervous about this process, wondering if the students would "get it right." Subsequent school years, including this one, have been no different; I enter with trepidation. As is usually the case, my students quickly allayed my fears.

One after another, they paraded up to my desk, and we discussed the quarter. At the end of each discussion, I say, "Okay, you play teacher, and based on our discussion, tell me the letter grade."

Seventy-five percent of the students land on the exact letter I would assign, if I were grading without their input. Roughly five percent assign a grade higher than what they deserve, based on their production and how they handled my feedback. Remarkably, about 15 percent of my students assign themselves a report card grade lower than I believe they deserve. Some do it with tears in their eyes, saying their parents will be disappointed.

And, yes, students do give themselves failing grades.

I am always amazed by the honesty of these 13- and 14-year-old students. One girl in an honors-level class, who had not completed a project but had done most of the other work, quickly announced that she should have an F. "Definitely," she said, when I questioned it. "I need to do better."

This is the power of the results-only learning.

Can you inspire like Mr. Holland?

This is one of my all-time favorite movie scenes about inspiration. I find myself always searching for my own "Play the sunset" phrase that will inspire a student like Mr. Holland inspires Miss Lang.

So, do you have an inspirational phrase?

Are your students this smart?

Here is a kid who has obviously learned a lot more than can be demonstrated in simple multiple choice tests.

Feedback and mastery learning

This is a guest post by Justin Vail. A junior high social studies teacher in Indiana, where fellow guest blogger, Joey Till, works, Vail, like his colleague, has committed to results-only learning this year.

How Self-evaluation Drives Students to Mastery Learning

All of my activities are either simple completion assignments or projects.  The completion assignments are essentially deconstructed parts of the project.  

When I grade a completion activity I sit down with the student and we scan the various parts of the document.  If the basic requirements are met, the student moves on to the next activity and I put a 10/10 in the grade book.  If the basic requirements are not met, we identify the problem areas and the student makes a second attempt---this is repeated until the student meets the basic requirements.  

When I grade the project (most recently a Regional Geography Video Podcast over the major physical features of 8 different regions), I sit down with each student individually for a more in-depth evaluation of their work.  We listen/watch the podcast together.  Afterwards, I ask the student some or all of the following questions:

• What do you think is the best part of your final product?
• What parts of the building process will you do again (reviewing how they worked)? What worked?
• What is the biggest weakness of the product?
• What parts of the building process do need to change next time? 
• What did you learn from this whole process?
• If you were to grade yourself from A+ to F, what grade did you earn?
• How can I change the project to make it better?

The self-evaluation process is difficult for some kids.  I sometime have to prod the students to express themselves, but eventually they are very honest about their work and their work ethic.  In fact, students are often harder on themselves, than I would be.   I have evaluated nearly 200 projects this year, and less than 5 times have student's suggested a "grade" higher than what I thought. 

A funny look at cheating in school

Love this video about how kids conspire to cheat. Anything to be learned here?

Some students need more autonomy

I teach five sections of language arts to 8th graders. This year, I have one group that struggles more with independent work than the other four classes.

Recently, we were working on a reading strategy, which required some individual commitment, coupled with small-group discussion. The concept was new, and some students struggled to see the value in it. This was not one of our finest days, and I spent about five minutes explaining how we needed to improve in this area. The day ended in frustration.

The next day, we were right back to our full workshop setting. The students had all of the class time to choose what they wanted to do. This was one of our best days of the school year to date.

When I reflected on this at the end of the day, it occurred to me that some students just relish the autonomy more than others. I knew at that moment that more workshop days were ahead for this particular group.

Innovation at work

The Innovation Lab at a school district in Loveland, Colorado is a remarkable place where students are deciding what school should look like. You can learn more about this very cool project at the Lab Connections blog.

The video below is an amazing look at the genesis of this project. The music alone makes the video worth watching.

New look, same thought-provoking content

You may have noticed an overhaul in our appearance, right down to the subtitle, "The results-only learning blog."

Don't let the new look confuse you. ROLE Reversal will continue to bring thought-provoking content about a Results Only Learning Environment and the progressive methods that make education all that it should be.

We've got some big ideas, and a new look was in order.

Please feel free to tell us what you think by leaving a comment.

The impact of self-evaluation

This is a guest post by Joey Till, who teaches math to 7th graders in Indiana. With a large amount of students on free and reduced lunch, Till is dealing with reluctant learners on a daily basis. Till has made the conversion to a Results Only Learning Environment this year. 

Giving Grades. . . Without Really Giving Grades

Each student and I have a quick 2 - 4 minute conversation about what they learned from the project and how they contributed to their group (if it was a group project).  The student and I talk about their grade and what they deserve. We together come to an agreement on what they deserve, (and) with the exceptions of a few cases the kids are usually dead on.

It has been amazing to see the positive things from these conversations, as opposed to handing back a piece of paper with a grade on it.

When kids have to look you in the face and say they did poorly because they didn’t do their best, you can really see the disappointment in their face. Almost every kid has shown improvement. In some cases, major improvements.

On the other hand, it is so nice to see the grin when you tell a student how great they did, especially kids that have struggled with Math in the past. I have really seen the confidence growing in many of my students, which in a Math class is always an issue.

These short conversations have been invaluable with my students. I really feel like I have a better handle on what they know and don't know through these conversations. I also feel like I know the students much better than I ever have at this point in the year. 

You never know where autonomy may lead

Indiana teachers Joey Till and Justin Vail are taking the ROLE Challenge. They have transformed their classrooms into Results Only Learning Environments, and the experiences are remarkable. They are sharing anecdotes periodically about the effects of going to a ROLE. Joey writes:

"Had a student not working in class. Instead of taking him in the hallway and threatening him with punishment and being confrontational and forcing him to work, I simply let him know that he could use his class time wisely or he would be doing this on his time. With the fumes coming out of his ears, I walked away and helped a couple other kids, not worrying if he was going to get busy or waste the day. . . .The next time I walked by, he was busy and ended up doing extra work that he didn't even need to do.  It is enjoyable to put the responsibility on them instead of me feeling it is my responsibility."

Try giving your students this kind of choice. You never know where autonomy may lead.