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Sunset Ridge Families,
First, if you know someone who might be interested in working at Sunset Ridge, we have a substitute paraeducator position available from 2/22 - 4/8. Spread the word, and be in touch if you're interested!
In following the theme of the last couple of weeks, I thought I'd share this piece by the psychologist Todd Rose who argues that the idea of the "average" person is a harmful myth. Meaning, when we compare students' test scores to an average, we're fundamentally missing the point that each person is a unique individual.
I also share this because he, like so many others in our nation, has a solution in mind, and that solution depends on "the schools" and cites a professor saying that schools "basically fail about 80 percent of students." I don't know where that statistic comes from, but I think the tone of what I generally refer to as "teacher-bashing" is clear. I see and hear it too often in public discourse, and am on a mission to challenge it!
There has been a long-standing perception gap with schools; most Americans think most schools are "failing," but most think, effectively, "but not my school."
And I agree with Todd Rose's ideas, generally; if we could customize learning to match the needs of each individual, we could better maximize each individual's potential. Yup!
Where we might disagree is that this idea is absolutely bonkers when you realize that classes are of 20+ students. When we think about hosting a birthday party or coaching a sports team, I think most of us realize that, even in such a high-engagement setting, it would be exhausting to have 20 kids by yourself, and almost inconceivable for 7 hours.
So yes, each child is a unique individual with a jagged intellectual profile whose talents could best be developed in an educational environment that was customized to their interests and strengths. And yes, schools do have hallmarks of standardization throughout (grade-level curricula, lots of uniform seating, tight schedules, etc.).
But I would argue that the standardization is not, as Rose suggests, because of a lack of creativity on behalf of teachers, but is indicative of the outside pressures on schools (like State standards connected to standardized tests) and a side-effect of the heroic efforts of teachers who figure out a way to manage, and teach, and feed, and exercise, and attend to the unique behavioral needs, anxieties, quirks and daily relational dramas of 20 kids of a given age.
I'll get off my soapbox now :-). And I'll finish with an appreciation. Thank you, families, for your clear and strong support of our teachers! I know they feel it, and it's a really important counterbalance to some of the negative messages out there about schools. Thank you!
Brett Wilfrid
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