Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Low reading scores: The obvious solution

Sent to US News and World Report, March 29, 2016
Hispanic students did not score well in reading on a national test in 2015 ("Gains in Reading for Hispanic Students Overshadowed by Achievement Gap." March 28). The obvious reason: Poverty.  The obvious immediate solution: More support for school libraries and librarians.
The only way to get better in reading is by reading a lot.  A high percentage of Hispanic students live in poverty, which means few sources of reading material at home, in their neighborhoods, and at school. For these students,  the school library is often the only source of reading material. School librarians are a tremendous help making sure good reading is available and in connecting students with reading that is right for them.

Research consistently shows that better school libraries are associated with better reading scores, as is the presence of a credentialed school librarian. 

Stephen Krashen
original article: http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/data-mine/2016/03/28/hispanic-students-gains-overshadowed-by-achievement-gaps

Sunday, March 27, 2016

Take a closer look at competency-based education.

Sent to the Tampa Bay Times, March 27, 2016

The Times reports that "competency-based education" will be tested in several counties, and describes it only as a program that allows students to "advance through school if they can prove they've mastered what they should be learning."

Competency-based education is not just a testing program.  It is a radical and expensive innovation that replaces regular instruction with computer "modules" that students work through on their own. It is limited to what can be easily taught and tested by computer, and is being pushed by computer and publishing companies that will make substantial profits from it. 

The state government and the Times need to take a closer look.

Stephen Krashen

 Original article: Re: "Competency-based education pilot program, other education measures signed into law," March 25.  http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/competency-based-education-pilot-program-other-education-measures-signed/2270784

Saturday, March 26, 2016

Pearson's Plan to Close the Achievement Gap


S. Krashen

Pearson claims that its artificial intelligence machines will help reduce the achievement gap. Their solution: super-early intervention in learning "basic skills" (Luckin et. al. 42) to ensure "school readiness" and "advise (parents) about strategies for talking to their child, sharing songs, and enjoying books." 
The first is not a good idea: skill-training does not lead to real competence, only better performance on skills tests: eg heavy phonics instruction only helps children pronounce words presented in isolation – it does not contribute to performance on tests of reading comprehension. 
The second does not require expensive technology; see, for example, the Reach Out and Read program, which has produced excellent results by modeling read alouds for parents in waiting rooms during well-child visits, and providing the family with one free book each visit.
The Pearson scheme does not address the major cause of the achievement gap, poverty.  It may even increase poverty by pushing expensive equipment that nobody needs, enriching Pearson, and resulting in less money for services that children of poverty really do need, e.g. food programs, health care (school nurses) and school libraries.

Luckin, R., Holmes, W., Griffiths, M. and Forcier, L. 2016. Intelligence Unleashed: An Argument for AI in Education. London: Pearson.

Skills-oriented programs: Garan, E. 2001. Beyond the smoke and mirrors: A critique of the National Reading Panel report on phonics. Phi Delta Kappan 82, no. 7 (March), 500-509. Krashen, S. 2009. Does intensive decoding instruction contribute to reading comprehension? Knowledge Quest 37 (4): 72-74.
Reach out and Read: Krashen, S. 2011. Reach Out and Read (Aloud): An Inexpensive, Simple Approach to Closing the Equity Gap in Literacy
 Language Magazine 10 (12): 17-19.

Services children of poverty need: Berliner, D. 2009. Poverty and Potential:  Out-of-School Factors and School Success.  Boulder and Tempe: Education and the Public Interest Center & Education Policy Research Unit. http://epicpolicy.org/publication/poverty-and-potential;  
Krashen, S. 2004. The Power of Reading. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, and Westport, CONN: Libraries Unlimited (second edition).



The Most Intrusive Technology of All Time


S. Krashen

The Pearson Publishing Company has suggested that technology not only be used to teach content, as in competency-based programs, but should, at the same time, evaluate students' emotional states (Luckin et. al., p. 25). This is without question the most intrusive idea I have ever seen, not only in education but anywhere.

Pearson provides no details about what aspects of emotion will be monitored, except for these hints: "For example, AIEd (artificial intelligence in education) will enable learning analytics to identify changes in learner confidence and motivation while learning a foreign language, say, or a tricky equation" (page 35) and "AIEd analysis might also identify if and when a student is confused, bored, or frustrated, to help teachers understand and enhance a learner’s emotional readiness for learning."

Pearson has assured us that with their programs, students can go at their own pace and use alternative learning styles: Thus, confusion, boredom and frustration should be nearly non-existent. But what if students do not display what Pearson thinks is the proper "emotional readiness for learning"? If students insist of being bored despite the brave new programs, or if their minds occasionally wander (which could mean that new ideas and understandings are "incubating"), will stimulants be administered? If students are confused and frustrated despite programmers' efforts, will anti-anxiety medication be given?

This is quite possible. Educational "reformers" have already demonstrated that they will stop at nothing to boost test scores and already engage in child abuse in doing so, turning schools into dry test-preparation factories (Horn, 2016).

Horn, J. 2016. Work Hard, Be Hard: Journeys Through "No Excuses" Teaching. Rowman & Littlefield.

Luckin, R., Holmes, W., Griffiths, M. and Forcier, L. 2016. Intelligence Unleashed: An Argument for AI in Education. London: Pearson.

How Pearson plans to force student participation and hurt creativity


S. Krashen

Pearson (Luckin et. al., 2016) has announced that they are developing programs that will monitor students as they participate in group work, showing how well each student is participating (p. 27), using, for example "voice recognition (to identify who is doing and saying what in a team activity." (p.34). This is designed to make sure students are participating according to the programmers' ideas of what optimal participation is. 

This and other intrusions are designed to make sure students are focused on just the task in front them right now, and are participating in exactly the way the Pearson wants them to participate.  This strengthens an error nearly all schooling makes and makes true creative thinking and learning impossible.

Studies in creativity have revealed that "incubation" is a crucial aspect in the development of new ideas and understandings. After a period of intellectual struggling, of "wrestling" with a problem, progress, deeper understanding, often comes after a short period of intellectual rest, “an interval free from conscious thought” to allow the free working of the subconscious mind (Wallas, 1926, p. 95). 

The mathematician Poincare (1924) noted that when reaching a block in his work, after a "preliminary period of conscious work which also precedes all fruitful unconscious labor," he would get up from his desk and do something relatively mindless, such as putting more wood on the fire.  Returning to  his work only minutes later, the solution would often appear.

School work rarely allows this to happen.  Pearson's programs make sure incubation will never happen.

Luckin, R., Holmes, W., Griffiths, M. and Forcier, L. 2016. Intelligence Unleashed: An Argument for AI in Education. London: Pearson.
Poincare, H. 1924. Mathematical creation. Excerpts reprinted in Creativity, P.E. Vernon (Ed.). Middlesex, England: Penguin. pp. 77-88, 1970.
Wallas, G. 1926. The Art of Thought. Excerpts reprinted in Creativity, P.E. Vernon (Ed.). Middlesex, England: Penguin. pp. 91-97, 1970.

Children should not be allowed to behave like children.

Sent to the Los Angeles Times, March 26, 2016

   How are we going to maintain our economic and military superiority if preschool and kindergarten children are allowed to waste time "learning about being a member of a community" and "how to get along with others"?  Contrary to June Sholnit Sale's assertion (letters, March 25), the problem is that we are not dedicating more of preschool and kindergarten to academics.
   And we need to start academics even earlier: We need preschool readiness testing to ensure that parents follow strict, sequential standards in teaching their toddlers to count and develop pre-phonics skills to prepare them for preschool.  I have recommended that we consider even earlier intervention: See my paper,  "Phonemic awareness training for prelinguistic children: Do we need prenatal PA?" published in Reading Improvement 35: 167-171, 1998.
   The unfortunate tendency of children to want to play and enjoy themselves must stop, despite the claims of mushy-minded "experts" who claim that play improves "social and emotional development," whatever that is.
   Children should not be allowed to behave like children.
Stephen Krashen
President, Kindergarten Kalculus Association

Friday, March 25, 2016

Pearson: Competency-based education will replace standardized testing


S. Krashen
Competency-based education (CBE) is a radical and expensive innovation that replaces regular instruction with computer "modules" that students work through on their own. After completing a module, students take a test; if they pass, they continue on to the next one. Computer-based education is being pushed by computer companies without consulting educators and without a proper research base.
The Pearson Publishing Company has explicitly stated that their new competency-based programs, now in development, will replace standardized testing. "With ongoing AIEd (Artificial Intelligence Education) analysis of a student’s learning activities, there will be no need for the stop-and-test approach that characterizes many current assessments. Instead of traditional assessments that rely upon evaluating small samples of what a student has been taught, AIEd-driven assessments … will assess all of the learning and teaching that takes place, as it happens" (p. 36). 
This statement confirms suspicions that recent statements calling for a ceiling on standardized testing were designed to make way for a far more intrusive (and profitable) program, while giving the impression that they were a reaction to the successful opt-out movement.
Pearson also predicts that we won't need international tests such as PISA and PIRLS anymore; analysis of progress from their programs will tell us all we need to know (p. 48). Imagine: real time data always available from every classroom on the planet.
This will make testing fever worse than ever. We can expect daily reports about schools, school districts, states and countries announced on radio, television, newspapers, and on dedicated internet websites, just like sports news, announcing how much progress has been made in mastering modules. This will result it even more testing pressure on the schools. We can look forward to daily reporting like this:
"Fourth graders in Thailand have completed an average of 43 programs this month, compared to Spain's 42, moving Thailand into 39rd place internationally.  Spain did not improve its rankings because of poor performance in several classrooms in Madrid, especially one taught by Estela Garcia at the Academica Arriba in which children completed only six programs this month."
Luckin, R., Holmes, W., Griffiths, M. and Forcier, L. 2016. Intelligence Unleashed: An Argument for AI in Education. London: Pearson.

Follow the money

Sent to US News. March 25

The decline in support for school nurses  ("Many school districts don't have enough school nurses, March 23) has been accompanied by a decline in support for school libraries, despite clear evidence that school nurses and libraries have a positive impact on school achievement.
As US News points out,  the school nurse is often the only source of accessible health care for children of poverty. Similarly, the school library is often their only source of books.
Schools seem to have plenty of money for chrome books and other expensive technology, but according to a major report by the Organization of Economic Cooperation Development, this has not been shown to be of use to students. Schools also seem to be eager to spend even more on untested new hi-tech teaching machines (competency-based education). 
Why this discrepancy? The ruling class, sometimes known as the .01%, makes big profits on new technology, but makes very little when we provide adequate health care and access to books. 

Stephen Krashen

original article:http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-03-23/the-school-nurse-scourge

Sources:

value of school nurses: Berliner, D. 2009. Poverty and Potential:  Out-of-School Factors and School Success.  Boulder and Tempe: Education and the Public Interest Center & Education Policy Research Unit. http://epicpolicy.org/publication/poverty-and-potential;  
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/lb/schoollibrstats08.asp

value of school libraries: Krashen, S. 2004. The Power of Reading. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, and Westport, CONN: Libraries Unlimited (second edition).

lack of impact of technology: OECD. 2015. Students, Computers and Learning: Making the Connection  Organization for Economic Coordination and Development. Oecd.org

Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Help Wanted


Evil greedy genius seeks teachers and scholars who are eager to sacrifice their current careers for substantial but temporary financial gains.  Must have no hesitation in promoting teaching machines and tests that do not help children learn, but will result in enormous short-term profits for the testing and publishing industries.  

Two kinds of minions are especially needed:
1.    Researchers who can write long and dense scholarly papers that obscure serous errors in statistical analysis and logic.
2.    Classroom teachers who can represent my company to the public and speak convincingly as the voice of experience. A background in acting is a definite asset. 

Perfect for those who intend to leave academic research and classroom teaching and move up to more lucrative positions in administration and private consulting.

CALL: 1-111-MWAH-HAHA

Unz wrong about effects of bilingual education

Published in the Daily News (Los Angeles), April 1 2016


Re “Senate race to replace Barbara Boxer just got more interesting” (Thomas Elias, March 21):

Ron Unz thinks that because of Proposition 227, which dismantled bilingual education in California, children are learning English better and faster ("Senate race to replace Barbara Boxer just got more interesting," March 21).  This is not true for California, nor is it true for other states in which bilingual education was eliminated.  Also, study after study has shown that children in bilingual programs do better in English reading than similar students in all-English "immersion" programs.
In a recent analysis, Cal State San Marcos Professors Grace and David McField examined all available studies comparing bilingual education and English immersion. They concluded that when both program quality and research quality are considered, the superiority of bilingual education was considerably larger than previously reported.

Bilingual programs, when set up and evaluated correctly, do not prevent the acquisition of English – they facilitate it.

Stephen Krashen

Sources
Children not learning English faster: Crawford, J. and Krashen, S. 2015. English Learners in American Classrooms. Portland: DiversitylearningK12)
A recent analysis: McField, G. and McField, D.  2014. "The consistent outcome of bilingual education programs: A meta-analysis of meta-analyses." In: The Miseducation of English Learners, edited by Grace McField, and published by Information Age Publishing.


http://www.dailynews.com/opinion/20160401/bilingual-education-is-effective-way-to-teach-english-letters

Thursday, March 17, 2016

nominations welcomed for Kent Brockman award



Let's establish the Kent Brockman award. Kent Brockman was the newscaster on the Simpson's 1994 "Deep Space Homer" episode who thought the Earth was going to be taken over by giant space ants.
His reaction: “One thing is for certain: there is no stopping them; the ants will soon be here. And I for one welcome our new insect overlords. I’d like to remind them that as a trusted TV personality, I can be helpful in rounding up others to toil in their underground sugar caves.”
The award is for individuals and organizations who, for their own personal gain, collaborate with forces aiming to destroy American education.

More evidence supporting bilingual education than ever

Sent to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Re: Republican Ron Unz joins race for Boxer's US Senate seat (March 16, 2016)
In 1997, Ron Unz sponsored Proposition 227, which effectively dismantled bilingual education in California. State Senator Ricardo Lara has sponsored a measure that would overturn 227 and restore bilingual education. Unz has announced his candidacy for the US Senate, and plans to use his candidacy as a platform to opposite Lara's measure.
   Proposition 227 passed even though evidence in favor of bilingual education was strong. There is now more evidence that bilingual education does a better job of helping children acquire English than do all-English programs.
   In a recent analysis, Cal State San Marcos Professors Grace and David McField examined all available studies comparing bilingual education and English immersion. They concluded that when both program quality and research quality are considered, the superiority of bilingual education was considerably larger than previously reported.
   Bilingual programs, when set up and evaluated correctly, do not prevent the acquisition of English – they facilitate it.
Stephen Krashen

Original article: http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2016/mar/16/republican-ron-unz-joins-race-for-boxers-us/
Source: McField, G. and McField, D.  2014. "The consistent outcome of bilingual education programs: A meta-analysis of meta-analyses." In: The Miseducation of English Learners, edited by Grace McField, and published by Information Age Publishing in 2014.

Saturday, March 12, 2016

Get the evidence before you pass the law, not afterward.


Sent to the Orlando Sentinel, March 12, 2015

The picture accompanying "Florida Senate passes competency-based education bill," (March 10) contains this description: "Windy Hill Middle School is piloting a competency-based education format for the Lake County School District and the State of Florida." 
Shouldn't the Florida Senate wait to see the results of this study before they pass a bill approving competency-based education?

Stephen Krashen

original article: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/education/school-zone/os-florida-senate-competency-based-education-20160310-story.html

Friday, March 11, 2016

Testing All The Time?



McDermott, M., Robertson. P., and Krashen, S. 2016. Language Magazine, January 16. http://languagemagazine.com/?page_id=125014

The new education law, the "Every Student Succeeds Act," appears to us to be part of movement that may increase testing far more than ever and drastically narrow the curriculum: this will come in the form of Competency-Based Education (CBE). As described in a recent paper from the National Governor's Association, CBE is course-work based on the common core, provided  by and designed by commercial publishers, and delivered online to schools. Students work individually on computers, and are allowed to move from module to module only when they have "mastered" the current module. Mastery is determined by passing a test, also delivered online. 

CBE modules present skills and content knowledge as objectives that are "clear" and "measurable" (p. 3), that is, the modules only cover material that lends itself to straight-forward testing. This severely limits what can be included.  Students take the tests when they feel they are ready.
Demonstrated competence via these online courses will determine student success, teacher ratings and the ranking of the school. Thus, students will be in a perpetual cycle of working through packaged programs and being tested on their content. This could translate into test prep and testing all the time, with end-of-module tests perhaps even daily.

The new education law and CBE

The new education law is an important part of making all this happen. Sections 1201 and 1204  announce grants to for "innovative assessments" and explicitly mention competency-based education. Section 1204 discusses "computer-adaptive" assessments "that emphasize the mastery of standards and aligned competencies in a competency-based education model...".   To show that CBE is not just a supplement but is core, applicants for grants are required to include a plan "to transition to full statewide use of the innovative assessment system."

The lack of research

The following statement about CBE is from the National Governor's Association's paper, a document that aggressively promotes CBE: "Although an emerging research base suggests that CBE is a promising model, it includes only a few rigorous evaluations and analyses of current and ongoing CBE pilots and similar programs" (p. 6). Despite this admitted gap, "Efforts to start transitioning to CBE systems have begun in both K-12 and higher education through discussions at the federal, state, and local levels" (p. 4). And, we might add, these efforts are supported by the new education law.

Coincidence?

President Obama's recent call for a limit on standardized testing may simply be a convenient first step toward something much worse than end-of-the-year testing: testing all the time, which makes end-of-the-year testing obsolete. It is interesting that the President's announcement took place on October 25, 2015, the National Governor's Association's position paper on CBE is dated October, 2015, and the new education law was signed by the President December 10, 2015, all very close in time.

Paying for the new technology
It has not escaped our notice that CBE will reduce the role of teachers. This might be deliberate, freeing up funds for more spending on technology and greater profits for the technology industry, the industry that will supply the computers, the software, the hardware, the content of the modules, and, of course, the tests.
Conclusion
The new education law greatly facilitates the introduction of CBE, a move that will limit what is taught to easily testable facts and concepts. The new law is considered by many to signal a reduction in testing, but its support for competency-based education promises to make the current testing burden, already the heaviest in the history of the planet, much much worse, as well as making corporate profits much much higher.



Women In TESOL: Introductory Remarks


Stephen Krashen
Presented at Women in TESOL Conference. March 11, 2016,  Clark, Philippines

I am deeply honored to be among the few males present at the "Women in TESOL conference," and also invited to give these opening remarks. But I am also uniquely qualified: You may not know this about me, but half of my ancestors were women.
In addition, some of these ancestors played a very powerful role in my upbringing.  I am, without question, my mother's son as well as my aunt's nephew (Mom and Aunt Sadie were best friends as well as sisters).
Table one shows how mom and I are similar in several important ways.
Table 1: Dad, Mom, and me

Dad
Mom
me
circadian rhythm
morning person
yè māo zi
yè māo zi
addiction
none
Coffee
coffee
Nature
loved it
hated it
hate it

Before discussing table one I must, of course, say that my dad was wonderful. Our differences are not value judgements.
Dad was a classic morning person, with all the beliefs that go with it.  He never said this, but I think he thought that sleeping after 7 am was just not right. But he brought Mom coffee in bed every morning, and let me sleep late whenever I could.  Mom was a night owl ("Yè māo zi" in Mandarin) and I am too: I generally don't wake up until the sun goes down, no matter how much sleep I had the night before. Sleep only seems to help me when it is during the day. Mom never got enough sleep because she felt that it was moral to get up on time; as a result she spent her days trying to stay awake, and her nights trying to fall asleep.
Dad had no addictions. As a night person, Mom was seriously addicted to coffee. I resisted this – in those days we thought coffee was bad for you -  but I gave in when I was 25 years old and teaching in Ethiopia.  My life changed completely, for the better: "So this is how everybody else feels?"  And mom and I had many happy hours drinking the drink made from the magic beans.
Dad loved the great outdoors: Mom and I never saw the point of pretending it is the year 1291, without modern facilitities.
Some case histories from another field
Now that I have established my credentials, let's talk about women.  It might give us more perspective if we look at cases not from education but from another field: mathematics. I will describe the careers and obstacles experienced by two female mathematicians and then discuss education in modern times very briefly, and draw some conclusions. Both achieved great success in their work, both were able to pursue their interests, but both had help, and neither overcame all barriers to woemn present in their times.
Mary Somerville was born in the late 1700's in Scotland, a time when girls were not usually schooled. Her mother taught her basic reading so she could read the bible, but at age 10 Sommerville "could scarcely read" (Osen, 1974). At this time, her father decided to end her life of indolence and sent her to a "fashionable" and very strict girls' boarding school.  She lasted only one year. On returning home, she started reading light fiction for pleasure, dispite family disapproval.

When she was 14 years old, Somerville overheard some math lessons given to her brother, and developed an interest in algebra and geometry.  She managed to get a copy of Euclid's Elements of Geometry and studied it every night: "Her mother was appalled and shamed by such aberrant behavior, and the servants were instructed to confiscate Mary's supply of candles so that she could not study at night. However, by this time Mary had gone through the first six books of Euclid …" (Osen, 1974, p. 56).  This was followed by years of independent study, until, when she was 27, she entered a mathematics contest held by a mathematics journal, and submitted the winning solution to a problem posted in the journal. The editor of the journal became her mentor, and guided her stunning career and math and science. An inheritance from her first husband who passed away at a young age allowed her to pursue her interests in science and mathematics.
Mary Somerville became one of the best-known scientists and mathematicians in England. Her work led to the eventual discovery of the planet Neptune, and she published texts in mathematics, as well as Physical Geography and  Molecular Science. She continued to work until she was 89 years old.
Amalie Noether (pronounced NER-ter) lived from1882-to 1934.  There is no question that she was one of the great mathematicians of all time. She worked in abstract algebra and ring theory, and her contributions, according to Harvard physicit Lisa Randall, are "critical" to modern physics, some saying they were as important as relativity.  Another physicist, Ransom Stephens, has said that "You can make a strong case that her theorem ("Noether's theorem") is the backbone on which all of modern physics is built”  (both citations from Ander, 2012).
Her work, however, is not well-known. Ander (2012) quotes David Goldberg, who conducuted a  "Noether poll" of physicists:  “Surprisingly few could say exactly who she was or why she was important. A few others knew her name but couldn’t recall what she’d done, and the majority had never heard of her.”
Noether was born in Germany and was part of a "mathematical family": Her father and brother were mathematicians. At this time, German universities did not allow women students, and she could only audit university courses. But she was able to take the examinations, and eventually earned a Ph.D. summa cum laude.
She met prominent mathematicians, such as David Hilbert, who argued in favor of her being appointed a professor at the University of Göttingen, despite opposition because of her gender: “I do not see that the sex of the candidate is an argument against her.  After all, we are a university, not a bathhouse” (from Anders, 2012).   Hilbert failed to make his case, so instead hired her himself as a "guest lecturer."
Noether, who was Jewish,  had to leave Germany in 1933 because of Hitler's rise to power.  Albert Einstein helped her get a job at Bryn Mawr College.  She died in 1934 after surgery, at age 53.
Despite the obstacles they faced, both Somerville and Noehter were able to follow their interests, their passion for math and science.  Somerville found a mentor, the journal editor who helped her, and had financial resources, and Noether had the advantage of being part of a family of mathematicians, and had influential friends.
Somerville's case also adds to the considerable evidence showing that an "early start" in school is not essential (Krashen, 2014),  and that "light reading" provides a helpful preparation for "heavier reading" (Krashen, 2012).
Anders, N. 2012. The mighty mathematician you've never heard of. New York Times,
Krashen, S. 2014. Literacy education: Need we start early?  Language and Language Teaching (Azim Premji University and the Vidya Bhawan Society), 3(2)(9): 1-7. (available at www.sdkrashen.com).
Krashen, S. 2012. Developing academic proficiency: Some hypotheses. International Journal of Foreign Langauge Teaching, (2): 8-15. (available at ijflt.com)
Osen, M. (1974). Women in mathematics. Cambridge: MIT Press.