Literacy & Social Life

Just wanted to share an idea on promoting literacy – organize a book swap.

Yesterday we hosted over two dozen friends and family for a potluck dinner, and asked everybody to bring some books they were done reading to trade. The response was positive and we had a great time with the social interactions, but especially pleasing was the chance to promote literacy.

An obvious benefit was the opportunity to pick up new (to you) books for free, while clearing out shelf space at home. But you also have the advantage of being able to ask about a particular book before selecting it – a more in-depth way of making a judgment than relying on the cover.

Having an event like this makes it clear that you value reading, and want others to share your values. What a great message for kids! Hosting a sleepover? . . . bring books to trade as the ‘cost’ of attending.

Even if you can’t hold an event, it would not take much effort nor space in a workplace or classroom to create a book swap area for all to enjoy. Celebrating and modeling literacy are great promotional tools.

West Coast Opinions

Education continues to be regular fodder for the editorial pages. Yesterday’s Philadelphia Inquirer carried an opinion piece by Walt Gardner, a long-time teacher in the Los Angeles School District. It is validating to hear from others who believe that a one-size-fits-all education does an injustice to our communities and to our students.

Certainly, many kids are well-served by their education, but there are also many who are under-served - gifted children who are bored by scripted, lock-step reading programs as well as artistically talented ones who attend schools where one art teacher or one music teacher serve over 500 students.

It would be wonderful to see a focus on multiple intelligences take its rightful place among educational policies. Nurturing students’ gifts and affinities will provide benefits long after the school year has ended. Instead, we (the collective we) have accepted the existence of an assembly-line model that seeks to turn students out like so many identical widgets. The skills required for success in many schools are not the skills required for post-graduate success – Ready or Not, Here Life Comes is an interesting read on this subject.

A Virtual Revolution

Well, it may not yet qualify as a revolution, but virtual learning is an increasing part of the educational landscape.

A Reuters article from last month describes the efforts of an urban middle school in Boston that has implemented a digital curriculum. Students no longer have textbooks, but use electronic materials, maintain blogs, and submit assignments using laptops that are checked out each morning and returned at the end of the day.

There is, naturally, a large start-up cost involved in an endeavor like this. Over time though, it seems like it may be more economical to maintain.

What I find most interesting is that the article provides a glimpse of the possibilities available when we combine digital, online learning with the social and activity-related benefits associated with a bricks-and-mortar school. Critics may say that moving to an online educational model would isolate students, though, in fact, it may be exactly the opposite. By having students work at an appropriately productive pace, they may have more opportunities for collaboration with peers and teachers. Engagement could increase because the pacing would be matched to the needs of each student, and students might feel a greater sense of autonomy and ownership.

There will certainly be bumps in the road, but online learning is a 21st century skill that will become increasingly prevalent. Why not have students begin to acquire this literacy while in school?

SAT Left in the Wake?

About a month ago, Wake Forest University announced that it was moving to an SAT-optional admissions process. To date, it is the highest ranked (by US News & World Report) national university to do so.

Among the reasons given for the move was the concern that research shows the SAT favors students from higher socio-economic classes, partly through the practice of expensive SAT-prep courses. No doubt though, Wake will have to face backlash from people who will accuse them of 'dumbing down' to diversify.

To that I say, "Oy vey".

I can't argue about the correlation between SAT and SES because I haven't read the research on it. But I don't have to because it would not change my thinking - the SAT is but one tool of many, and should not be used a s sole determinant of college admission.

In its announcement about the admissions change, Wake indicated that it would base decisions on high school curriculum and grades, essays, extracurriculars, and personal interviews with admissions staff - a far more qualitative process than SAT cutoffs. Students will still have the option to submit their SAT scores as a way to build their admissions resume.

A recent editorial by Dan K. Thomasson, former editor of the Scripps Howard News Service, supported Wake Forest's decision by suggesting that qualities like resilience and motivation, critical to college success, cannot be measured on an assessment device, but should be viewed through a long-range lens on a student's life and academic career.

Out of curiosity, I looked at the list of schools that offer SAT-optional admissions, over 700 of them, according to Fairtest.org. While a good number of schools on the list are specialty schools that focus on areas like art & religion, there are many reputable universities as well. Some quality private colleges in Pennsylvania are there, schools like Dickinson, Franklin & Marshall, Gettysburg and Muhlenberg. Somehow these schools have managed to maintain their standards.

As to the charge of 'dumbing down' . . . some folks have a hard time recognizing that changes to the status quo can actually create progress. A generation from now we'll wonder what the hubbub was.