Whatisschool April 9, 2015

High Stakes Assessment GLOBAL SMACKDOWN!

#whatisschool  April 9, 2015, 7PM EDT

There are over 700,000,000 million students in elementary and secondary schools around the world.

Before the break, parents and teachers in my district engaged in in-depth, sometimes animated, discussions about high stakes assessments and the classroom.  Parents were urged to opt out of tests but with little promise that classroom time would be re-devoted to activities that encourage critical thinking, collaboration or the building of modern skill sets.  Teachers likewise were frustrated. The students became political footballs, confused about why they worked hard all year to prepare for a test they weren’t obligated to take and in some people’s mind has no value.  So how do we get our classrooms back and return to the business of growing student skills for a new generation of 21^st century learners, leaders, thinkers, creators and doers?

In our first ever GLOBAL SMACKDOWN #whatisschool is asking YOU to send your thoughts about balancing classroom time with assessments to laurahillbooks@gmail.com or DM @candylandcaper between now and Thursday, April 9.  Your ideas will be posted as graphics during the chat while heavyweight global educators Mark Weston @ShiftParadigm and Brett Salakas @MRsalakas man the helm and moderate this week’s #whatisschool Q&A.

After the chat you can download the SMACKDOWN at www.whatisschool.org.  Make a difference, join us as we re-imagine education #whatisschool!

High Stakes Assessment GLOBAL SMACKDOWN!

Questions #whatisschool April 9, 2015, 7PM EDT

1) How do you balance preparation for high stakes assessments with teaching and learning in your classroom?  

2) What value do high stakes assessments bring to your students, how does it affect their future?

3) How do you motivate students who are aware at a very young age of their scholastic rank and academic measure against their peers?

4) What can administrators and districts do to create balance in the classroom and refocus education on nurturing student’s skills.

5) How can parents and educators work together to change high stakes assessments without bringing students into the political arena?

6) Smackdown! With high stakes assessments still in the mix, what can you do to make a change in your classroom?