EricHoefler.com

Mike Petrilli, in a recent post on the Flypaper blog, comments on a study in Philadelphia that measured the impact of a “healthy-eating” initiative in schools. Petrilli’s argument is that, since the study found that school intervention in students’ diets measurably decreased the incidence of obesity in those students, schools can have a “big impact on kids’ lives” despite the limited amount of time students actually spend in school. The last bit of that comment made me curious, so I did some basic math.

Time in School

From birth until the age of 18 …¹

• Total conscious hours = 118,260²
• Total conscious hours in school = 16,380³

That’s 14% … and the percentage drops to 10% if we add sleep time to the total hours.

• Total conscious hours with one teacher (elementary) = 1,260, or almost 1.5%
• Total conscious hours with one teacher (middle/high) = 180, or 0.15%

Petrilli’s argument is undoubtedly correct: schools have the ability to significantly impact students despite the relatively small amount of time that schools actually have to do so.

On the other hand, it seems to me that we should remember these numbers when having discussions about what schools can and can’t or should and shouldn’t do, particularly when discussing students’ values and habits of mind.

This isn’t a defense of lazy teachers or poorly-functioning schools (if you’ve been following me at all, you know I vehemently oppose both), but when we assess an 18-year-old, a good portion of the praise or blame resulting from that assessment belongs somewhere other than the schools. This doesn’t let schools off the hook of accountability for teaching students (because a good portion of that praise or blame does belong to the schools), but it does put that accountability in a more appropriate context.

And when we assess a teacher’s value based on the performance of hi/r students, we might also keep in mind that those students have spent a very small percentage of their time with that individual teacher.

So What?

For one, this points to the need for more cooperation between the 14% and the 86%, which means (again) more community involvement. As Kelly Christopherson notes on his blog:

… work with our communities in order to create a dialogue about people being accountable for what they do. The reason I say communities and not individual parents is because some parents will not join the conversation. However, if there is a community understanding of issues, there is a greater likelihood that there will be a congruence between the school and the community.

So even if we round up dramatically for the potential influence of schools, it is at best a 50/50 effort. Rather than passing more legislation about testing, perhaps we could create and fund more programs to help develop this type of cooperation. Schools have enough to worry about without having to do that, too.

Second, a revised approach to teacher assessment — based on the teachers’ actions and performance, not just the students’ — would also be helpful. Eduwonkette discusses some thoughts about this approach in a recent post.

My own experiences outside the classroom so far persuade me that a more comprehensive approach to school and teacher assessment is necessary, but I’ll have to wait until I’ve had more time to collect those thoughts.

Finally, I hope we can move beyond the polarizing arguments around teacher accountability.

• Schools and teachers are, almost exclusively, responsible for the progress of students and therefore teachers need threats and/or incentives to make them work harder; therefore, performance-based pay, no unions, no tenure, no sympathy or patience.

… or …

• Schools and teachers can’t combat the other influences in students’ lives and therefore, given the limited amount of time, resources, and other support, teachers need to be defended and protected from the angry mobs; therefore, unions, tenure, sympathy and patience.

Of course, neither side is categorically wrong, thus the debate continues. For me, the first step in this is to acknowledge the truths in each position, and, with those truths in mind, attempt to find solutions that address those truths.

I want to say clearly, though, that in neither scenario is the student to bear the brunt of the blame: students are raised, for better or worse, by their communities, of which schools are a part.

1. On average, and rounding for convenience [back]
2. Total hours minus sleep time, assuming an average of 6 hours per night: 157,680 – 39,420 = 118,260 [back]
3. Assuming an average of 7 hours per school day, 180 days per year; and assuming no sleeping in class [back]