On the Numbers Game

In which a story is told and ranting occurs.


It's been a while since I've blogged, which has more to do with a lack of motivation than a lack of ideas¹. I'm actually working on a different blog post that I will hopefully get back to but conversations that I've had of late have led my mind in a different direction.

Those conversations have been about education.

They have not been encouraging.

Wednesday, right before I left work, I sat down and talked to the guidance counselor at the school that I work at. We started talking about students and how frustrating it can be to work with them at times. Nothing we said was really that shocking, it was more just about venting about the fact that those students who are farthest behind and most at risk of dropping out are in that position, not because of a lack of intelligence, but due to a lack of motivation. Most of them just don't care about school. Like I said, this wasn't new information, ask any educator and they will tell you the same thing, unmotivated students are terrible to work with. As we were talking the topic shifted slightly to a conversation that she had with our principal, and this is when things took a turn.

The counselor told me about a school, here in Indiana, that has a 97% graduation rate². This is an incredible rate, an unbelievable rate, especially when you consider the fact that this school is in a small rural community. Schools like that normally have trouble keeping students enrolled for the entire four years of high school. The fact that this school would have one of the best graduation rates in the state was...unreal. In fact, it was just that, not real. This school had found a loophole, for a lack of a better word, that allowed them to keep there graduation rate high.

If there was a student who was not going to graduate on time, or that didn't care about school any more, a meeting would be called. The counselor at this school would bring in the student and a parent and would hand them a form. This form is a withdraw to home schooling form, essentially a legal document that says the parent or guardian will be providing educational services for their child. Once this form is signed the student is no longer a drop out, instead they are a transfer, and no longer the responsibility of the school. The school keeps its high rate of graduation.

At first I couldn't believe it. But then, the more I thought about it the more I realized that I absolutely believed it. Here is the honest truth: education isn't about education anymore. We³ don't care if students receive a well rounded education that prepares them for life on their own, or for continued education after high school. We care about two things: standardized test scores and graduation rates. That's it, that's what it boils down to. How do you know if a school is going well? Well they have great test scores and a high graduation rate. So it should come to no surprise that schools look for ways to help themselves look better. It's just one big numbers game and everybody plays.

I've recently been watching The Wire, which was a show on HBO from 2002-2008. The show follows a group of police and a group of drug dealers in Baltimore, it is one of the best televisions shows I've ever seen. As I was watching the fourth season a couple of weeks ago there was one scene in particular that hit close to home. I've put the dialog from the scene below in a spoiler tag, just click the link and the words will appear. It doesn't give much away, but if you want to avoid everything you can.

Spoiler Alert

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL: So for the time being, all teachers will devote class time to teaching language arts sample questions. Now if you turn to page eleven, please, I have some things I want to go over with you.
ROLAND: I don’t get it, all this so we score higher on the state tests? If we’re teaching the kids the test questions, what is it assessing in them?
TEACHER: Nothing, it assesses us. The test scores go up, they can say the schools are improving. The scores stay down, they can’t.
ROLAND: Juking the stats.
TEACHER: Excuse me?
ROLAND: Making robberies into larcenies, making rapes disappear. You juke the stats, and major become colonels. I’ve been here before.
TEACHER: Wherever you go, there you are.

A big part of the police story line in The Wire is the department's never ending battle with crime statistics. Often the officers will change how they write up a crime, making them less serious, so they can say the felony rate dropped. They "juke" the stats. And it is no different in the educational world, that is exactly what this school was doing⁴. At first I was furious that they would do that to their students. As time went on I realized what I was really upset about was that we operate in a system that would make schools feel like that was something they had to do.

This is a very dangerous time of our educational system. Programs like "No Child Left Behind" and "Race to the Top" (don't let anyone fool you they are basically the same) force schools to focus on benchmarks based around standardized tests. But anyone that works with kids can tell you there is no standard, not for how kids learn, not for their social contexts, not for their life experiences. We teach kids to be individuals then test them in a way that is anything but. Add to all this the fact that money may be taken from public education and given to charter schools with little to no oversight, who, if they wanted to, could turn away students who are a risk not to graduate, or even to get high marks. And that doesn't even factor in merit based pay for teachers.

Imagine that you are an English teacher. You've got a family at home you need to support and your pay is based on how well your students do on a test. As the year goes on you come up with a new way to instruct your students that seems to be helping the majority of them prepare. Do you share that discovery with your fellow English teachers, knowing that if they classes do better than yours they will get paid more and you won't? And what about those three kids that you just can't seem too reach? Maybe you stop in at the guidance office and ask the counselor about getting them to withdraw to home schooling so they don't bring down the class, and school. average on the test.

I don't have any answers for these problems. I know that there are things that need to be fixed at schools. I know that there are teachers who probably need to be fired and that unions need to make some changes. But I also know that there are parents that need to do their job and help teach there kids. I know there are kids who need to pull their heads out of their asses and put forth some effort. I know that there are politicians who need to shut the hell up. And more than anything I know that the programs we have now, and the direction that we seem to be moving in, will only lead to disaster. If we don't do something soon it may be too late.

It's just one big numbers game and everybody loses.
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¹ Although the ideas haven't been flowing much lately.
² The graduation rate is determined by looking at how many students enter as ninth graders and then graduate as seniors.
³ This would be the collective, societal we.
⁴ This school sadly isn't the only one that does this, I've heard of other who have "clearing house days" where they pull in any sophomore or older who isn't on track to graduate and do the same thing. And this is at a large suburban school.

On a Somewhat Preposterous Solution to a Serious Problem

In which a problem is addressed, money is counted, and little people.

I don't know if you heard but we, as a country, are in a bit of a financial tight spot.  As a result school districts across the country are in pretty rough shape.  Many schools are facing massive cutbacks of services, materials, and teachers.  Teachers are being notified that they are going to be losing their jobs; some places are taking more...drastic measures.

Things here in Indiana are pretty terrible as well.  Schools are expected to make huge cutbacks.  Various ideas that I have heard considered include cutting back sports teams, eliminating busing, canceling summer school, not paying janitors through the summer, and, of course, firing teachers.  Mitch Daniels, our esteemed governor¹, suggested teachers forgo raises (which isn't a bad idea).  However, he followed up talking about cutbacks with a terrible quote, "Anyone who complains about that should be immediately asked, 'Which tax do you want to increase?' We have used all of the reserves that the state had."  Well Mr. Daniels just off the top of my head I would suggest: property, liquor, cigarette/tobacco, and/or sales.  You could also create a tax on soda.  Or how about we don't spend millions on I-69² and invest that in schools instead.  Just a thought.

Rather ironically, or sadly that would also be an appropriate adverb, Forbes.com released their list of billionaires.  I was intrigued by the list and decided to dig a little deeper in to it.  Here are some statistics:

• There are over 400 billionaires in the world today.
• Of that 294 live in the United States.
• The richest man in the world is from Mexico, he beat out Bill Gates by half a billion dollars.
• Various members of the Walton family³ took up 5 or 6 spots on the list.
• IU alum Mark Cuban was on the list, his favorite way to pass the time in Bloomington is to come to Husband&Wife shows and hit on the wives⁴.

Here is the most ridiculous statistic of the day.  When added up the US billionaires have a total net worth of 1,093.2 billion dollars.

That is over one trillion dollars. Or:

$1,093,200,000,000.00

That number is unfathomable to me.  I can't really wrap my head around it. That is how much these chill buds and dude chicks are worth.  And yes I did just call the richest people in America chill buds and dude chicks.  So what does this absurd number have to do with a collapsing educational system?  Simply put, I'm going to solve the problem.

I am proposing that these 294 people each give 1% of their net worth to schools across the country.  I think that money should be pooled and given, in equal chunks, to all of the school districts across the county.  According to my research (a combination of Google and Wikipedia) I discovered that there are approximately 16,000 school districts in the country.  If we take one percent of that huge number above and divide it equally amongst the districts it comes out to $683,250 each.  That is a large number, and while it may not fix all the problems it will certainly save some jobs.

Now I realize that we live in a capitalist society which means people are free to make as much money as they want and spend it on what they want.  I am not saying we should force these people to give this money, but I am suggesting that we create a way for them to help out.  And why should they help?  Because schools are our future.  We can have the best roads, the largest armies and can dump dollar after dollar at greedy investment firms that can't manage their money but if we don't have well educated students it is meaningless.  Not only should these individuals consider giving but businesses should as well.  They need to stop thinking only of a quick return on an investment and instead look at what a long term investment in the education of future employees could mean.  A healthy educational system is paramount our society, it is the most important issue that we are facing as a nation, and unfortunately it seems to fall by the way side all too often.

Okay, let's be honest here.  Just throwing money at problems is not a long term solution.  And this problem has a seemingly unending number of issues.  From broad issues like greed and ego, to specific problems like suburban sprawl.  I could go on and on.  But here is the biggest problem, as I see it.  If you ever hear a politician or a school administrator, or a teacher, or a community member talk about the educational system you will hear them all say the same thing.  "The students come first."

But when was the last time that was actually the case?  The students NEVER come first.  If the students came first I wouldn't be writing this post right now. I would be telling you about juggling baby geese⁵ or something like that.  The problems facing the educational system, especially the lack of money, wouldn't exist.  People wouldn't stand for closing schools, offering fewer opportunities at schools, overcrowded classrooms.  Parent's would get off their asses and be involved in their students lives, unions would allow ineffective teacher to be let go instead of younger excited teachers, and administrators would take some hard looks at the high salaries they receive.

So until we change this fundamental problem we need to get some billionaires to help out.  So pass the word along to all your mega-rich friends.  Let them know that if they give 1% of their worth so will I, what an offer!

And if they look at you like you are a crazy person, which is likely, and think that it is a terrible use for their money here is what you say.  Just tell them that it is a better option then starting a 'dwarf theme park'(you may need to double click that link) like a mega-rich guy in China did⁶.  Those people do some weird things⁷.

So that post got a lot more serious than I though it would.  Maybe I should stick to geese juggling.
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¹ I have many problems with Daniels, but that is neither here nor there.
² This road is such a waste of money, and will put many small southern Indiana towns in jeopardy.
³ As in relatives of Sam Walton of Walmart fame.
⁴ Cuban drunkenly stumbled into XRAfest last year and flirted it up with Carrie.
⁵ Goslings.
⁶ There you go Zim, sorry I didn't do more with it.
⁷ In addition to 'dwarf zoos' they also created a rocket system to attempt to change weather patterns.  Plus there is the fact that there are so many billionaires in a communist country.