Reflecting On My Inquiries

The process of preparing the inquiry project that was assigned in the Public Purposes of Education class has led me to look at different avenues of research. I have done the more traditional research that I am more familiar with, as well as other forms like interviews and surveys. I suppose this is where the ‘inquiry’ aspect comes in. All of this research was to be done with a purpose. In my case, that purpose was to expose the long-term effects of No Child Left Behind.

Of the many things I have learned while looking at the subject, the first and most lasting impression is that this piece of legislation is highly debated and controversial. Another thing is how, still, many people, including teachers, are unaware of all of the principles and implications of NCLB. I understand that although the concept of NCLB stands in a good place as far as what it hopes to accomplish, it is still a work in progress and it is far from being close to its original objective. If this law is to remain as the blueprint for a system of educational accountability, it needs to be seriously revised.

For starters, the view that all children across the United States need to be in a similar state of accomplishment and development may be flawed. It has been proven that even children of similar backgrounds and geographic locations develop in different ways. Also, the notion that we MUST achieve 100% achievement in test scores might be just too ambitious. While it would certainly be wrong for me to underestimate the capabilities of children across the country, I, as well as others that I mention in my report, am aware that it is a goal that leaves out the unforeseen variables that are present in the formation and development of students throughout their educational history. Test scores are no exception to this. If you consider the fact that not all students are natural and “good” test takers. Looking at all these things, it might not seem fair to base a student’s entire educational history on weather or not he or she can pass one test.
Perhaps the biggest thing that I have learned is that the area of education is a ‘touchy’ subject. In reference to NCLB, there seems to be more questions than answers, and no one is willing to step up and propose something that might remotely challenge the preconceived notions of what should be the purpose of education in our democracy.

Teaching Citizens, not "Idiots"

One of the things discussed in my Public Purposes of Education class was the word, or concept of “Idiocy”, as explained by Walter C. Parker, a professor of education at the University of Washington. In his article, Parker introduced the concept of idiocy as a means to describe our collective ‘self-centered’ and egocentric ways.

According to Parker, “an idiot is one whose self-centeredness undermines his or her citizen identity.”[1] What he refers to is the fact that, in our society, most of us live our lives trying to strive for self-fulfillment and the betterment of our own lives. Seldom do we think about how we can better the lives of others around us as well. Parker stresses that through unity and awareness of the problems plaguing our society we can take action, and collectively change our world for the better.

This concept of ‘idiocy’ connects with the essential ways in which we teach kids to become responsible, active, and involved citizens who take control over their world to preserve their rights and liberties. Parker also stressed the importance of teaching kids the importance of and the preservation of our great democracy. He presented three keys, or actions we can take to diminish, or eliminate the idiocy that plagues our society. The first one was the increase in interactions between racially and, or ethnically different students. Through the increased frequency in interactions, these kids can find commonalities among them, and eventually think of these interactions as a more common place occurrence, rather than an imposed situation that would not likely be repeated afterwards. The second key was the encouragement of teachers to make these students engage in discourse, or what he calls “competent public talk”. Parker described the third key as establishing the distinction between open and closed deliberation. (3) Through the awareness of these things, teachers can plan a social and academic curriculum that teaches students to become better educated citizens in our democracy.

[1] Walter C. Parker. “Teaching Against Idiocy”. (January, 2005) Retrieved October 27, 2008. Phi Delta
Kappa International. http://www.pdkintl.org/kappan/k_v86/k0501par.htm

Inquiry Project

Since the founding of our great nation, the question of how to structure an educational system that is equally attainable to the masses has been the topic of great debates. Countless presidential administrations have attempted to find an answer that would revolutionize the educational system and raise the standards of achievement for our students. The most recent approach by the federal government was to implement the piece of legislation known to the public as the “No Child Left Behind Act of 2001”. This law is divided into 10 different titles, and it attempts to give greater control of the schools to the individual school districts, while ensuring greater accountability and teaching methods that are ‘proven’ through scientific research.

Through this inquiry report, I plan to bring to light the complexity that is No Child Left Behind, and how it has fallen short of its original aim. Not only how the measure is failing to achieve its goal of attaining 100% of student achievement on standardized tests, but how some would say that it is also hindering the everyday process of classroom learning. In order to prove this, I plan on looking into the findings from previous research that have been published in major educational journals, as well as other printed materials from known publications in the area of education. I also expect to introduce inquiries made during my field experience into the body of my research.