Submitted by Mark Heinze (not verified) on September 30, 2007 - 20:31.
After having taught for 21 years and also putting my own kids through middle school and hosting quite a few German exchange students, I am convinced that our attempt to include all ability levels in one classroom is dumbing down our curriculum.
In Germany they basically track students. This word "track" has become a bad word in the United States as it is associated with a rigid system in which students are trapped and cannot move out of. In Germany this is not the case and their students are better prepared than I find ours are.
"Differentiation" is a difficult process to adhere to in daily lessons and most teachers don't want to leave children behind and therefore, teach to the middle or lower end of the classroom spectrum. The best and the brightest are frequently left to their own devices rather than having a daily challenge and enriching classroom atmosphere.
We also teach a mile wide and one inch deep. We hit on many concepts but spend in depth study on few.
IN European classses, if you fail one, you fail the entire year. This may seem harsh however it does force students to try and as we all see, many American students fail and are still passed on to the next grade.
I hope we can look to other models and stop this endless focus on standardized testing.
Improvement of Middle Schools
Submitted by Mark Heinze (not verified) on September 30, 2007 - 20:31.
After having taught for 21 years and also putting my own kids through middle school and hosting quite a few German exchange students, I am convinced that our attempt to include all ability levels in one classroom is dumbing down our curriculum.
In Germany they basically track students. This word "track" has become a bad word in the United States as it is associated with a rigid system in which students are trapped and cannot move out of. In Germany this is not the case and their students are better prepared than I find ours are.
"Differentiation" is a difficult process to adhere to in daily lessons and most teachers don't want to leave children behind and therefore, teach to the middle or lower end of the classroom spectrum. The best and the brightest are frequently left to their own devices rather than having a daily challenge and enriching classroom atmosphere.
We also teach a mile wide and one inch deep. We hit on many concepts but spend in depth study on few.
IN European classses, if you fail one, you fail the entire year. This may seem harsh however it does force students to try and as we all see, many American students fail and are still passed on to the next grade.
I hope we can look to other models and stop this endless focus on standardized testing.