Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/25821
Students in the school say they are just “doing school,” rather than learning and problem- solving. Is No Child Left Behind to blame? (Question submitted by Vince Rosato from New Haven Unified School District.) ABOVE: A student in Race to Nowhere says he has so much homework that it’s difficult to find time to sleep or spend time with his family. BELOW: A youngster looks out a window wistfully and says that he doesn’t have much time to play, because there is so much pressure to do well in school. for another five or six hours. We need to stop worrying about homework and start using school days efficiently. We need to look at how kids are spending their time in school, rather than focusing so much on homework. How do we start refocusing on “respect for the child” so we aren’t just producing achievers, but developing the uniqueness that exists in every child? (Question submitted by Kendall Vaught from Los Alamitos Unified School District.) Great question! That’s what I’m advocating for. There is no silver bullet; many things have to happen in our schools so the focus is on growing individuals, looking at the whole child, and helping to foster individual talent and life skills. We have to change our school culture so it isn’t focused on testing, competi- tion and the pressure to conform. A lot of it has to do with building good relationships be- tween educators and students. But teachers often see too many students in a day for this to be realistic. Some say class size doesn’t mat- ter, but that’s not true. How can we change the paradigm that one is “incompetent” or “incomplete” if he or she doesn’t get high grades or get accepted into a prestigious university? (Question submitted by Karla Davis from San Juan Unified School District.) Again, we’re talking about changing a culture. I think all of us as adults have to believe in young people, and we need a much broader definition of success. Why have unions been blamed for the problems in education — and what role can unions and teachers play in helping to improve teaching and learning? It’s not just teachers unions; there’s a lot of blame going around. My message is that we need to stop blaming each other and work- ing collaboratively to do what works for young people. Teachers and unions aren’t to blame. Teachers want to do a good job, but they are not supported. We have a system based on punishment rather than support- ing our educators as professionals, which we should do. Those in teachers unions need to mobilize members and add their voices to the discussion. It’s going to take work. It means going to school board meetings, spreading the word, and engaging in dia- logue about education outcomes to show the present system isn’t working. I think it’s a big contributor, but it’s not the on- ly thing. The bottom line is that there’s a lot of fear driving what is happening in our schools. There is fear that our kids won’t have opportu- nities we had growing up and that they won’t be able to compete in a global economy. NCLB and Race to the Top are in reaction to other countries outperforming us on tests. But now other countries like China are looking to move away from test-driven instruction. They are going back to the type of system we used to have in the U.S. because they have found that test-driven instruction has not resulted in a generation of independent and creative think- ers. It has had the opposite effect. RTN depicts the stress your own children experienced from a high-pressure school system. Have things improved for your children stresswise since you released this movie? If so, what can be attributed to these changes? When I set out to make this film, my family was never going to be in it. But a year into produc- tion, other people leaned on me to do this. As a parent I wanted to be careful about this; what kids agree to at age 11 is not always something they are comfortable with at ages 15 or 16. My kids are thriving today. I have shifted my mind- set so my kids are under a lot less pressure. They know they have the support of their family at home and that we value them. I protect their sleep at all costs. I am not afraid as a parent of what the future holds for my kids. My interest is in raising children with life skills who are resil- ient, happy and healthy people. What is next for you? I am committed to this campaign of social ac- tion and helping to support educational change at many levels. As screenings continue, we are still filming in schools to tell the story of what is happening in education. We are continuing to engage in conversation about the potential for change. We have power to create change. This film is just a tipping point. FEBRUARY 2011 | www.cta.org 19