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An Education Policy to Get Things Started

I've had this problem lately. After coming of age in the middle of Republican dominance, having to read about GOP legislative victories over bad policy, the trampling of civil liberties, and the prosecution of inept wars, the political events of 2008 and 2009 still seem like something of a dream to me. This week, as I was reading the Youngstown Vindicator, a regional newspaper covering my hometown, I saw another surprise -- an education policy that is innovative and progressive!

The governor wants to expand the school year by 20 days to an average of 200 days over the next 10 years.

Strickland ... is also calling for the end of “the outdated practice of giving our most impressionable students only a half-day of learning. Ohio will now require universal all-day kindergarten.” The governor also called for the end of the Ohio graduation test and replace it with the ACT college entrance test and “three additional measures.”

Those measures are: statewide ‘end of course’ exams, complete a service learning project, and submit a senior project.

“Students will, of course, continue to learn the timeless core subjects like math and science that are critical to their success,” he said at today’s State of the State address. “But we will also add new topics including global awareness and life skills to the curriculum. And we will use teaching methods that foster creativity and innovation, critical thinking and problem solving, communication and collaboration, media literacy, leadership and productivity, cultural awareness, adaptability and accountability.”

Strickland said his proposed two-year budget will increase the state’s share of the cost of school funding and reduce the reliance on property tax.

Governor Strickland is also aiming to improve the quality of teachers in the classroom in Ohio with an innovative residency program.

...“Just as future doctors begin their careers under the watchful eye of an experienced colleague, we will give our new teachers the benefit of thoughtful guidance from an accomplished senior teacher. After a four-year residency, successful candidates will earn their professional teaching license.”

Since August, I've been discussing the need for elementary and high school curriculum to go beyond the trendy math and hard sciences that not-so-qualified teachers try to teach. And now here comes Strickland with policy that would educate students as if they're -- surprise! -- future citizens of a country that is facing sustained competition. Understanding global languages and culture is going to be more important than ever as we move forward. It's not just about jobs, and Strickland seems to recognize that here.

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January 31st, 2009 12:21pm
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Service-Learning

Submitted by Molly McGravey on Sun, 2009-02-01 11:57.

Hey Craig,
What do you think about mandatory/required Service-Learning? Do you think this is the best way to develop citizenship? Just curious!

Molly

Yes

Submitted by Craig Berger on Sun, 2009-02-01 13:12.

Thanks for the comment and question.

The benefits of service-learning are widespread. This paper from Campus Compact details all of the research done on service-learning, listing the various benefits it provides to students. We know that service-learning positively impacts a student's moral development, improves multicultural understanding, forms a stronger connection between the student and his/her civic responsibilities, and strengthens the bond between the school/institution and the student, among many other things.

While service-learning is not the be-all, end-all approach to fostering civic responsibility among youth, it's certainly a start. As Dr. King noted, "Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve." The universality of service makes service-learning -- service and an added reflection component -- an excellent entry-level tool for those young citizens looking to get more involved.

An overlooked aspect to service-learning is providing more opportunities to serve at the end of the initial service and reflection. One way to plan the reflection activity is the "What, So What, Now What" activity, which challenges students to review what they did, how it connects to their community, and how they can use this a springboard to future service. When we think about civic responsibility and youth, we should be consciously demonstrating the connections between service and politics to youth so that they understand the nature of systemic problems that can only be fixed by policy.

So yes, service-learning is a great start -- I'm ecstatic that Strickland is incorporating this into his plan, because it permits more students, who haven't even thought about service, to have those "a-ha moments" that could define future goals and transform their lives. But service-learning should be the gateway to other ways to uphold civic responsibilities, like voting, an understanding of the importance of jury duty, taking pride in being an informed citizen, and knowing how to work within the political system to solve a problem.

I Agree

Submitted by Molly McGravey on Sun, 2009-02-01 22:17.

Good answer, however some feel as though requiring service-learning is contradictory. Requiring Community Service differs from requiring service-learning. Service-learning is, or should be, well integrated into the academic courses. Service-Learning, unlike community service, relates to the subject material and can foster interpersonal development, personal development, leadership skills, communication skills, critical thinking and perspective transformation. Thus, service-learning enhances academic learning and therefore it is a legitimate requirement of an academic program for primary and secondary students.
I am an advocate for undergraduate students to exercise their freedom to chose when it comes to enrolling in service-learning classes. This provides college aged students with the opportunity to develop citizen-thinking (“I ought to do”- “I know what I ought to do and why”- “I know how to do”- “I can do and it makes a difference”). I do not believe this should be forced upon students, but it is my sincere hope that colleges will foster this thinking in students. In addition, research concludes that students who are involved in service prior to college tend to remain involved throughout college and they are more likely to enroll in service-learning classes. :)

Good stuff!

Molly

True

Submitted by Craig Berger on Sun, 2009-02-01 22:38.

I don't think Strickland is aiming for community service at all. I think his making service-learning a requirement in order to graduate is actually a good thing, mainly due to the last point you cited. If students are exposed to service-learning early, in this case high school, they're more likely to register for the service-learning courses offered in college. And if they don't go to college, they've given back to their community and learned about reflecting on that experience to get the most out of it. Not a bad thing at all.

As for whether or not the mandate is a bad thing, I'm looking at it as a necessary impetus. Even though I'd prefer to see students serve and learn on their own initiative, I think that most high school students aren't going to do that, and, in the end, many might need the requirement in order to discover service-learning and its potential.

Yes, I do not think

Submitted by Molly McGravey on Mon, 2009-02-02 22:58.

Yes, I do not think strickland is aiming for community service, but he MUST prepare educators to learn how to adjust their teaching style for service-learning. It takes patience, and a paradigm shift on how classes are structured, papers are graded, and course content is "tested". I think his plan has the potential to educate teachers not just on content, but on course structure as well.

Molly

personal experience

Submitted by Rachel Krause on Sun, 2009-02-01 23:23.

As a high school senior at a Catholic high school, I have served 30 hours each year for the past 4 years as part of a required service-learning program. Let me say from personal experience that service learning can be a huge hit or a huge miss. Freshman through Junior Students usually don't get much out of community service and usually b.s. their way through reflection papers.

From freshman to junior year, I honestly did not enjoy fulfilling my service hours, as the projects I was involved in didn't interest me. However, in senior year, I was able to serve at a literary center, which I found very fun and interesting. Most of my peers have enjoyed their projects this year as well. I think most will leave high school wanting to continue serving the community in college.

I think if states are going to mandate service learning in the high school level, they should ensure there is a wide range of organizations in need of volunteers to accomplish a variety of tasks. Not every student is not going to want to work at the foodbank, homeless shelter, or picking up garbage by the highway. They must ensure that there are enough interesting and diverse projects.

While requiring service learning isn't the best thing, as students should want to volunteer on their own, it ensures that everyone has some sort of volunteer experience. I know that if I hadn't been required to volunteer, I probably wouldn't have volunteered...I think students need an incentive to volunteer, however sad that may seem, but in the end, if we can motivate students to do good, why wouldn't we?