11
March
March
Every year at this time the news, blogs and conversations I am exposed to are centered around standardized testing, most specifically in Colorado, they are centered around CSAP.
Do people really ask the question: What is the value or point of standardized testing?
The obvious answer of course is: so we can measure what students know, and therefore, we can fill in and teach them what they don’t know yet.
This is based on the assumption that the test is really designed to assess what students NEED to know for their future. This is an assumption that I am not convinced is true but I will save that blog for another day.
The point that is less obvious is this:
Hiring in the business and the adult world is based on a person’s best qualities not their worst. When a business hires someone, they are interested in whether or not that person is good at—. They are much less concerned with what they aren’t good at. The opposite is true in education. We are constantly concerned with what kids are not good at and many times ignore what they ARE good at.
One of the joys of my job as a music teacher is to see students from a totally different point of view than other staff.
One of the most memorable students I’ve had was named Alvin – and he was just like Alvin from the Chipmunks! I remember the first day I met him. He came into my kindergarten music class like a tornado and proceeded to explore the room just like the wild animal his name reminds me of. I found myself calling his name louder and louder as he continued to ignore me – just like Alvin of the chipmunks! This student was so very talented in both art and music and yet by the time he was in 5th grade he was such a discipline problem that he was falling behind in most of the other subjects. His self esteem was so low that he was already looking forward to being at an age where he could drop out of school. I made a pact with Alvin that if he could make it through the week without getting into trouble and get his assignments done he could come to my room on Fridays and we would do whatever he wanted to do in the music room. How I wish we would have had LISA (Loveland area Integrated School of the Arts) in place back then!
Students like Alvin can be productive and quite successful in the “real” world if they capitalize on their strengths. Colorado is 5th in the nation in hiring for the creative industries. This is one of the biggest and fastest growing industries in the nation. Unfortunately, most the employees they hire in these creative industries come from out of state! Think about it. Where are many of the jobs with satisfaction and good income? Sports and arts! Kids figure this out much sooner that we give them credit.
What is the value of arts in education? On the surface, people will concede that arts provide enjoyment and a “break” from the other subjects. The unspoken part is that the other subjects are certainly more important and will surely contribute more to the success of students as productive members of society. Really? Is that true?
It tickles me that innovation and creativity are the two most important qualities that will assure career success. The new Bloom’s Taxonomy (2004) has placed creativity at the very top. (Creativity wasn’t even mentioned in the old taxonomy) Technology has changed the value of fact-based education. Knowledge is cheap. Most anything a person needs to know how to do can be learned through the internet. What IS valuable is what a person does with that knowledge. Can a student determine if what they are finding on the internet is true? Can they use that information in new and creative ways? Can they put that information with other knowledge and create something new with it? These are the qualities students really need.
Here is an example that illustrates this: Everybody needs a toilet bowl brush. That item has already been invented. What will be valuable is how can you improve on it. Can you design a prettier one? (creativity) Can you design one that works better or cheaper? (innovation) Can you convince the public to purchase YOUR toilet bowl brush instead of someone else’s? We can outsource the production of the brushes to other countries. Don’t we want to keep the innovation and design here in America? Isn’t that what we should be educating students toward? How is that measured on a standardized test? Where does a student learn to develop those skills needed for innovation and creation?
It isn’t rocket science – it’s the arts!
7 Responses
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As a Newbie, I am always searching online for articles that can help me. Thank you
January 27, 2011 at 2:11 am -
i probably would not have concluded this had been great a handful of years ago however it is funny the way in which age adjusts the manner you comprehend quite a few ideas, many thanks regarding the piece of writing it is enjoyable to browse through something intelligent occasionally instead of the standard garbage mascarading as blogs and forums on the net
January 29, 2011 at 10:48 pm -
Continuing the Discussion
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Music Education Blog Carnival | Be A Techie:)
[...] Cochran presents Why I love the arts! posted at Integrated art, music and technology, oh [...]
April 4, 20106:51 pm
Great points Marcy!
March 11, 2010 at 3:23 pm