Putting Policy into Practice

The United State’s educational system largely relies on today’s society, the governmental policies, and how schools and teachers put these policies into practice. Mrs. Nye states that some of the problems that we are seeing in today’s education system are rooted in the values that our society places on learning. However, this does not mean that our society and our education system are not moving in the right direction. Assessment, technology, classroom management, and physical activity and play all play a key role in a student’s education.  These things are all influenced by society and the educational leadership that we elect.

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Assessment allows teachers to measure student growth in order to inform their teaching. The question is, how do we do this effectively and efficiently.  Today, summative assessment is often times in the form of standardized testing, which as we have seen causes disparity between students of different race, social class, gender, etc. These state tests also are often given once or twice a year, so they do not truly help to inform teachers’ lessons or show how much a student has grown, due to the lack of considering factors that might affect student performance. Although there is no perfect fix as of yet, we do understand more about testing- both the positive and negative effects. We can still do more to better the situation, however, it is a work in progress.

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Another more recent change to the educational system is educational technology. Most states have now put into place a set of standards for technology based upon ideas put forth by the  International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). This is an important change, as society is moving towards an increased dependence upon technology, especially in terms of work- most jobs need a basic technology skill set. Technology does, however, have its flaws. There is a delicate balance between technology being engaging and helpful, and technology being a distraction. Another flaw of technology is its price. This high cost means that technology is often considered a privilege to have, which creates further disparity in our education system.

Classroom management is another area in which the education system traditionally sees disparity.  Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a classroom management system which has been implemented in order to decrease some of the disparities seen in punitive data. This management system was originally implemented in order to help students with special needs, however, it has also helped other students who have also traditionally been more frequently, and unfairly penalized- students of color, students living in poverty, etc. This system requires more documentation, but helps students succeed at a far greater rate.

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Physical activity and play is also plays a key aspect in education, as it not only provides educational opportunities, but provides relational learning experiences, as well as an outlet for students. Unfortunately, because of the increase in testing the time provided for free-play and constructed physical education is shrinking. This is another area in which the education system sees disparity. However, we have recently proven several of the benefits of play, and areas around the world are now incorporating more play time.

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Our educational leaders must be aware of the problems facing education today and must work to better the system we currently have. One of the things that they must take into consideration is the disparities within the education system and how we can change this to ensure that every child is receiving the best chance. Educational and governmental leaders have the power to change much about the education system, and with the children being the future of our country, this is not a job that they can take lightly. Therefore, we must inform ourselves about both those that we elect and the systemic problems that occur.