Sophomore I: Joining the Conversation

Annotate for Claim, Annotate for Evidence, Sophomore I: Joining the Conversation New Vocab; Interpretation Appeals to (Analysis), Exit, THE DEBATE/CONVERSATION: Logos, Pathos, Counterclaim, WHY DOES THE SAT ENDURE? Ethos; and Your Rebuttal Questions.

← INTRODUCTION OF DEBATE: Twenty students in New York have been accused of cheating on the SAT. Meanwhile, courses, books and tutoring to help students improve their scores on college-entrance exams are more popular than ever.

If, as critics claim, the test can be gamed, why are the scores still so meaningful to college admissions officials, and does the SAT put students who can’t afford to take prep classes at a disadvantage?

DEBATER #1:

Alan T. Paynter is an assistant director of admissions and the coordinator of multicultural recruitment for Dickinson College in Carlisle, Penn., which makes test score submissions optional.

One Piece in the Process

December 4, 2011

Test scores are merely one piece of a student’s record that college admissions officers consider when reviewing applications. For some students, the focus and pressure placed on them to perform well on the test is so great that they miss out on highlighting the other areas we consider -- the things that help build our campus communities and not just our profile.

Highlight those aspects of your record in which you are not at a disadvantage, like extracurricular activities and class performance.

Students should not have to feel at a disadvantage because they cannot afford test prep services and therefore drive themselves crazy trying to figure out how they will ace this test that appears to be holding their dreams hostage. Or worse, these students choose to not apply to the colleges at the top of their list because of test scores alone. I’ve even seen some students not apply to colleges at all, which is truly heartbreaking.

I would much rather see students highlight those aspects of their record in which they are not at a disadvantage, like their extracurricular activities and performances in class. They also should focus on protecting their grade point average. In as much as students try to impress a college or university, they also want to distinguish themselves in the pool of applicants.

Twenty years ago, it was rare to find a low-income student or a student of color with an 1100+ SAT score (out of 1600). Today, it’s common to find sharp students from those same backgrounds with middle 1200's and higher. This process is about highlighting your strengths and finding your right fit. So what else are you bringing

Delacruz 1 Sophomore I: Joining the Conversation

Annotate for to the table? Or as a colleague of mine always says, “show us the person you are, and Annotate for C, E, I, Ex, CC, will be, not just the test taker you were, and don’t need to be.” New Vocab; R Appeals to DEBATER #2: Logos, Pathos, Ethos; and Your Questions. DEBATER: ______DEBATER’S CLAIM: (PARAPHRASE) ______

David Z. Hambrick is an associate professor of psychology at Michigan State University. His research concerns individual differences in cognitive abilities and complex skills.

A Good Intelligence Test

UPDATED DECEMBER 16, 2011, 2:31 PM

The SAT works for its intended purpose — predicting success in college. This isn’t to say that the SAT is perfect. You can probably think of someone who did poorly on the SAT and yet graduated summa cum laude from college. You can probably also think of someone who did spectacularly well on the SAT but who flunked out of college after a semester. Many factors not captured by the SAT — like personality, motivation and discipline — contribute to success in college. But, relatively speaking, the SAT works well.

SAT preparation courses appear to work, but the gains are small — on average, no more than about 20 points per section. The SAT captures more than a narrow range of skills, important only in the first year or two of college. Large-scale meta-analyses by researchers at the University of Minnesota have found that SAT performance is as good of a predictor of overall college grade point average as it is of freshman grade point average, and Vanderbilt researchers David Lubinski and Camilla Benbow have documented that the SAT predicts life outcomes well beyond the college years, including income and occupational achievements.

Furthermore, the SAT is largely a measure of general intelligence. Scores on the SAT correlate very highly with scores on standardized tests of intelligence, and like IQ scores, are stable across time and not easily increased through training, coaching or practice. SAT preparation courses appear to work, but the gains are small — on average, no more than about 20 points per section.

Annotate for This debate is ultimately about intelligence and its modifiability — and the question Annotate for C, E, I, Ex, CC, of whether it is fair to use people’s scores on what is essentially an intelligence test to New Vocab; R make decisions that profoundly affect their lives. If that makes us all uncomfortable, Appeals to that’s just too bad. Logos, Pathos, Ethos; and Your Questions.

DEBATER: ______DEBATER’S CLAIM: (PARAPHRASE) ______

DEBATER #3:

Paul Siemens is the director of Advantage Testing of Los Angeles. He has tutored hundreds of students in New York City and Los Angeles in many academic subjects and standardized tests.

Not an I.Q. Test

UPDATED DECEMBER 5, 2011, 11:46 AM

Thoughtfully constructed tests represent powerful opportunities for learning. Any test, by definition, asks students to demonstrate what they know. College entrance examinations are no different. By asking applicants to take these tests, colleges and universities encourage prospective students to prepare themselves more fully for the college experience.

Students of means continue to have greater access to educational resources and opportunities, but that is a societal issue. Both the SAT and ACT assess knowledge of vocabulary, grammar and math, while exercising a student’s reading and problem-solving abilities. Such skills are not merely helpful in high school academics but critical for success in college and in life. There are no "tricks" or "shortcuts" a tutor can impart that will circumvent the difficulty of the questions. The only way to prepare successfully for these tests is to apply the hard work that is at root in any successful academic endeavor.

In the case of college entrance exams, such long-term rigorous preparation includes expanding vocabulary; understanding sentence structure; mastering fundamental arithmetic, geometric and algebraic concepts and definitions; and becoming a more critical reader and a more creative problem-solver. A student who fully engages in this process will undoubtedly improve her test scores and gain invaluable, practical

Annotate for knowledge that will make her a better college student. Annotate for C, E, I, Ex, CC, New Vocab; Appeals to R University-level entrance exams are not intended as intelligence tests, and for good Logos, Pathos, reason: to the extent it can be measured, intelligence is a limited predictor of Ethos; and Your academic success at that level. Colleges aren’t simply looking to enroll the smartest Questions. students; rather they are seeking mature, talented, well-rounded, motivated, service- oriented and accomplished students of every background. Standardized tests provide a reasonably reliable barometer of the extent to which a student has been able to master the general high school curriculum in a way that will prepare her well for college.

It is true that students of means continue to have greater access to educational resources and opportunities. That is a societal issue. In response, college admissions departments have always sought to evaluate a student’s credentials and achievements against that student's perceived opportunities. They maintain rigorous expectations of a student who has grown up with many privileges, and reasonably modified expectations of students who have overcome perceived disadvantages. At Advantage Testing, we are committed to providing financial aid and pro-bono tutoring to economically disadvantaged students and those who have historically been underrepresented in fields of higher learning.

DEBATER: ______DEBATER’S CLAIM: (PARAPHRASE) ______THE DEBATE/CONVERSATION: SHOULD THE SCHOOL DAY BE LONGER? ← INTRODUCTION OF DEBATE:

A student in the Bronx takes a nap before the start of the school day earlier this month.

Many education reform advocates are pushing to lengthen the school day, not only as a way to increase teaching time and offer extra instruction and enrichment, but also to accommodate working parents. Charter programs like the KIPP schools have promoted the longer day, and it is being accepted by some urban public schools, notably in Chicago.

When and where does it make sense to institute a longer school day, and how should it be designed? While this change may benefit children from disadvantaged backgrounds, providing a social support system, would it help other American students if they had to spend more time in school, given what we know about how they learn?

DEBATER #1:

Delacruz 4 Sophomore I: Joining the Conversation Annotate for Annotate for C, E, I, Ex, CC, New Vocab, Appeals to R Logos, Pathos, Ethos, and Your Questions. Geoffrey Canada is president and chief executive officer of the Harlem Children’s Zone and president of the Harlem Children’s Zone Promise Academy Charter Schools.

Help for Parents and Society

UPDATED JANUARY 4, 2013, 1:51 PM

The evidence keeps mounting that America is no longer a leader when it comes to educating its children. The perilous situation is exposed with each new report on the data. The National Assessment of Educational Progress shows little improvement over the decades. The black-white achievement gap is as wide as ever. SAT scores are declining. I am convinced that one of the reasons is that the school day and year are too short. Without additional time, it is virtually impossible for students behind grade level -- particularly poor and minority students -- to catch up.

Longer school days can lead to fewer crimes committed by young people and a decline in teen pregnancy. An extended school day gives administrators the ability to ensure children get a well- rounded education. Many schools today are sacrificing social studies, the arts and physical education so children can cover basic subjects like math, English and science. This is hurting children across America, depriving them of the chance to find discipline and self-expression through the arts; and we should be ashamed to cut physical education while our children face an obesity epidemic.

Extending the school day would also help families. In two-parent households, women have increasingly entered the workplace, and in single-parent households, there is even more of a need for the adults to work. That means parents do not fully control their own schedule and have to scramble to find high-quality after-school options.

What happens when children are not engaged in enriching activities is well- documented: crimes committed by youth in the hours immediately after school soar, as do teen pregnancies. These hours can either provide an opportunity for children to grow or to get bored and drift into self-destructive behavior.

Meanwhile, our global competitors are keeping students in school longer, giving them a better shot at success. Failing to do our best to educate all of America’s children is a mistake that will hurt this country for years to come.

DEBATER: ______DEBATER’S CLAIM: (PARAPHRASE) ______Delacruz 5 ______Sophomore I: Joining the Conversation Annotate for Annotate for C,Annotate E, I, Ex, CC,for DEBATER #2: New Vocab; C, E, I, Ex, CC, Appeals to R Logos, Pathos, R Ethos; and Your Questions.

Vicki Abeles is a filmmaker, lawyer and mother of three. She is the co-director and producer of the documentary “Race to Nowhere: The Dark Side of America’s Achievement Culture.”

Quality vs. Time in the Classroom

UPDATED SEPTEMBER 27, 2011, 1:51 PM

High school students heading to classes in Louisa County, Va. Many of our children are already stretched to unhealthy breaking points, loaded down with excessive homework, extracurricular activities and outside tutoring because they’re led to believe high test scores, a slew of Advanced Placement classes and a packed résumé are their ticket to college and success. This has led to an epidemic of anxious, unhealthy, sleep-deprived, burned-out, disengaged, unprepared children -- and overwhelmed and discouraged teachers.

I have found no compelling research that supports the proposition that a longer school day improves educational outcomes. One only has to look at countries like Finland, where students achieve higher test scores with less instruction time and less homework than in our country. The real issue is the quality of the education we’re providing, not the amount of hours spent in a classroom.

We need healthier, more balanced, more engaging and effective school days, not longer ones. Young people need time outside of school to develop as whole people. They need time to grow creatively, physically, socially and emotionally, not just academically. A large part of a child’s learning occurs outside the classroom, through play, reading, family dinnertime interaction, community participation, volunteering and working part-time jobs. Instead of lengthening the school day, we should invest resources so that children in every community have access to opportunities for after- school programs offering arts, sports and other activities that support the growth of the whole child, as well as working parents.

Further, by ensuring that school work is completed at school where there are teachers to support learning -- alleviating the “second shift” for children and working parents created by homework -- we can enhance the education of our children and the well-being of children and families. The key is creating a healthier, more balanced, more engaging and effective school day, not a longer one.

DEBATER: ______DEBATER’S CLAIM: (PARAPHRASE) ______Delacruz 6 Sophomore I: Joining the Conversation

Annotate for THE DEBATE/CONVERSATION: DOES TENURE PROTECT BAD Annotate for C, E, I, Ex, CC, TEACHERS OR GOOD SCHOOLS? New Vocab; Appeals to R Logos, Pathos, INTRODUCTION TO THE DEBATE: Ethos; and Your Questions. Teacher tenure laws deprive public school students of their right to an education by making it difficult to remove bad teachers, a California judge ruled on Tuesday. The case, Vergara v. California, pressed by parents backed by a Silicon Valley millionaire, David Welch, is expected to be the first of many around the country to take on tenure. Do tenure’s job protections prevent bad teachers from being fired or do they provide for greater stability for low-paid faculty?

DEBATER #1: Eric Hanushek is an economist and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution of Stanford University. He is co-author of "Endangering Prosperity: A Global View of the American School." He testified for the plaintiffs in the Vergarra case.

Ending Tenure to More Easily Fire Bad Teachers Helps Everyone

JUNE 11, 2014

Teacher tenure discussions often suggest that what is in the best interest of teachers is also in the best interest of students. But the groundbreaking decision in the Vergara case makes it clear that early, and effectively irreversible, decisions about teacher tenure have real costs for students and ultimately all of society.

Teacher tenure, and the related onerous and costly requirements for dismissing an ineffective teacher, have evolved into a system that almost completely insulates teachers from review, evaluation, or personnel decisions that would threaten their lifetime employment. Research shows that this results in serious harm both to individual students and to society, because a small number of grossly ineffective teachers are retained in our schools.

The California court, noting that education is a fundamental right of California youth, struck down the law that requires administrators to make essentially lifetime decisions after a teacher has been in the classroom for just 16 months and has yet to complete an induction program. Similarly rejected were statutes that make requirements for removing a tenured teacher so onerous and costly that it is seldom attempted.

Legislatures will likely respond to the court decision by lessening (but not eliminating completely) the burden of dismissing an ineffective teacher. The teachers unions will undoubtedly claim that is an attack on teachers. It is not. It is simply an attempt to restore some balance in the system.

AnnotateAnnotate forforfor A small percentage of teachers inflicts disproportionate harm on children. Each year AnnotateAnnotate forfor C,C, E,E,E, I,I,I, Ex,Ex,Ex, CC,CC,CC, a grossly ineffective teacher continues in the classroom reduces the future earnings NewNew Vocab;Vocab; RR of the class by thousands of dollars by dramatically lowering the college chances AppealsAppeals to and employment opportunities of students. There is also a national impact. The Logos,Logos, Pathos,Pathos, future economic well being of the United States is entirely dependent on the skills of Ethos;Ethos; andand YourYour Questions.Questions. our population. Replacing the poorest performing 5 to 8 percent of teachers with an average teacher would, by my calculations, yield improved productivity and growth that amounts to trillions of dollars.The teachers unions have an opportunity to participate in crafting a more balanced system that promotes world-class schools. By not collaborating, they face the very real possibility that courts and state legislatures will continue to disregard their voices in attempting to improve schooling opportunities. The stakes in getting it right are extraordinarily high.

DEBATER #2: Brian Jones, a former New York City public school teacher, is the Green Party's candidate for lieutenant governor of New York. He blogs at "No Struggle, No Progress." He is on Twitter.

UPDATED JUNE 12, 2014, 12:55 PM America is the land of misdirected anger. This time, teachers in California are on the receiving end. That is not to say that public school parents in the state shouldn't be angry. In the last decade, billions have been cut from California’s K-12 budget. A public school system that used to be the envy of the nation has been starved to death. Budget cuts have meant canceled after-school and summer programs. It has meant rising student-teacher ratios, and in some Los Angeles classrooms, for example, overcrowding that has forced students to find seats atop file cabinets.

Now, thanks to the super-sized bank account of Silicon Valley mogul David Welch, who founded the parent group behind the Vergara case and funded the legal team, the court has come to see that students’ rights were not violated by overcrowded classes or budget cuts, but by the rights afforded to the teachers.

The court is wrong — and so is Welch. If teacher tenure is an important obstacle to achievement, Mississippi (with no teacher tenure) should have stellar schools and Massachusetts (with teacher tenure) should have failing ones. Instead, it’s the other way around. Correlation is not causation, of course, but across the country the states without tenure are at the bottom of performance rankings. States with the highest- achieving public schools have tenure (and teacher unions).

K-12 teachers with tenure do not have a job for life. What “tenure” means, for them, is due-process procedures for dismissals with cause, instead of capricious or at-will dismissal from their duties. I've spoken to countless teachers from Southern states

Delacruz 8 Sophomore I: Joining the Conversation who are afraid to do the things that New York City teachers do all the time – write blogs, write letters to the editor, even show up to a rally – because they could lose their jobs for speaking out. All working people should have such protections. If anything, teacher tenure laws need to be strengthened because the country is bleeding teachers — especially in large urban districts. Between 40 and 50 percent of teachers nationwide leave the job within five years. If 40 percent of all doctors or lawyers quit within five years, I’m guessing we wouldn’t be asking why they have it so good. We certainly wouldn’t be trying to figure out what we can do to make their terms of employment less favorable.

Can we do a better job of training and developing teachers? Sure, but removing tenure doesn’t do anything to get us closer to that goal. In the meantime, teachers’ rights are a convenient scapegoat. It goes something like this: Angry at the conditions in your local public school? Don’t ask how they got that way. Don’t ask who set the budget priorities. Don’t ask who is in charge of hiring teachers and guiding their development. Don’t ask who’s in charge of making sure the conditions of school are optimal for teaching and for learning. Whatever you do, do not look at the million-dollar man behind the curtain of the lawsuit.

Just blame the teacher.

Delacruz 9 Annotate for Sophomore I: Joining the Conversation New Vocab; Appeals to Annotate for THE DEBATE/CONVERSATION: Are Charter Schools Cherry-Picking Logos,Annotate Pathos, for C, E, I, Ex, CC, Students? Ethos;New and Vocab; Your Questions.Appeals to R Logos, Pathos, INTRODUCTION OF DEBATE: Many charter schools have embraced strict Ethos; and Your disciplinary measures that lead to much higher rates of suspensions and expulsions Questions. than traditional public schools. Critics say this lets charter schools siphon off the best students and, in the process, inflate their test scores. What does this trend mean for students and public education?

DEBATER #1: Carol Burris, a principal at South Side High School in Rockville Centre, N.Y., is the author of "On the Same Track: How Schools Can Join the Twenty-First-Century Struggle against Resegregation" and co-author of "Detracking for Excellence and Equity."

Charter School Cherry-Picking From Admission to Expulsion DECEMBER 10, 2014 Many charter schools enroll a neighborhood’s strongest and most motivated students, making the job of the local public school even more difficult. Families who apply to charters are often seeking a highly disciplined learning environment, with a longer school day and year. Few students with significant learning, emotional or behavioral challenges, or English language learners, even apply. As stronger students enter charters, those who struggle are left behind in increased concentrations in the public school.

Charter schools often cherry-pick through attrition. When students leave because the schools are too demanding, the charters are not obligated to fill the empty seats. New York’s Harlem Success 1 Academy had 127 first graders in 2009. When those students arrived in grade six last year, only 82 remained. As students moved through the grades, Success 1 lost over 35 percent of the cohort. In comparison, a nearby neighborhood school, P.S. 191 Amsterdam, saw its 2008-09 first grade cohort increase from 39 students to 55 by grade six. We who teach in open- enrollment public schools must take every student that moves in – regardless of their age, learning disability, the time of entrance or when they last attended school.

What accounts for the high attrition rates at charters? Their strict discipline codes and higher rates of suspension, retention and expulsion are well documented. In 2013, the SUNY Charter Institute, which authorizes charters, reported problems with disciplinary practices, including suspensions, at several Harlem Success Academies. When students are pushed out or leave their charter school, they enter the public schools discouraged and further behind.

Finally, charter schools are accelerating the resegregation of our schools. A recent A.C.L.U. complaint alleges that the charters of Wilmington, Del., have distinct patterns of racial segregation, due in part to entrance criteria.

Charters were designed to spur innovation and competition, not to stratify our schools or have selective student entrance. Although some students may thrive in charters, the price of the current approach has become too high.

Annotate for DEBATER #2: Tim King is the founder and chief executive of Urban Annotate for C, E, I, Ex, CC, Prep Academies, a nonprofit organization operating the country’s first New Vocab; network of public charter high schools for boys. Appeals to R Logos, Pathos, Ethos; and Your Charter Schools Can Get Results by Inspiring Students Questions. DECEMBER 10, 2014 At Urban Prep Academies, we have found that if we take the time to get to know the kids in our care, instead of doling out discipline, even our most at-risk students can succeed. We opened Urban Prep's first school in 2006 with a single focus to increase the number of black males that earn college degrees. We knew that this would require more than excellent teaching; we’d also have to inculcate resilience in our students and show them how to deal with roadblocks and obstacles placed in their paths. As a result, all of our graduates — all African-American males and 85 percent from low-income families — have been admitted to college. Still, because Urban Prep operates public charter schools where students wear jackets and ties every day, we are often accused of having zero-tolerance discipline policies and weeding-out students. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our students succeed in part because we promote a school culture based on respect and responsibility — not retribution. We rely on celebration more than punishment. When a student is admitted to college, for example, we exchange his red uniform tie for a red and gold striped tie, in a ceremony in front of the entire school. Weekly, students’ outstanding classroom efforts are rewarded with gold ties, also given in front of the student body. Such public affirmations encourage our students and counteract society's negative images of black men. We also have to teach our students that actions have consequences — especially because for black males, certain decisions can mean life or death. So we do have detentions, suspensions and even expulsions. Though our expulsion rate is low, we can't keep students who engage in conduct that prevents the rest of our students from learning. Still, we believe in looking for the students’ needs in and beyond their behavior. Last year, when we discovered an unloaded weapon in a student’s bag, the zero tolerance response would have been to have the student arrested and expelled. But after talking to the young man and his family, we learned that he had the weapon because he had been threatened by gangbangers on his way to and from school. In the end, we worked to support the student, not dismiss him.

Of course, every charter school is different, but the broad implication that charters manufacture academic achievement, keep test scores high by cherry-picking students, and have draconian discipline policies is wrong. Many charters, like Urban Prep, inspire students to excel in a rigorous and rewarding culture far more often with a carrot than a stick.

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