Ignition for Education

In my last post, I encouraged readers to read an article in The Economist which argued that the rise in high school graduation rates is merely that–a rise in the number of student who graduate. It does not represent an increase in educational achievement. In fact, it represents the opposite–the dumbing down of standards to massage graduation rates.

I also suggested that this raises an important moral and political problem: If we maintain high standards, or even middling standards, some students will fail. They will not earn high school diplomas. Or, earlier on, they will not consistently advance through the grade levels, so they will be older than their classmates when they do graduate. Inevitably, students who do not graduate, or graduate later, will more often be from lower-income households and have less educated parents. That means that a disproportionate number will be of historically disadvantaged ethnic or racial identities. And, of course, more will have dyslexia, ADHD, and other unique needs. From a social justice point of view, this is a serious challenge to anyone who wishes to argue, as I do, for the maintenance of high academic standards even if the face of failure by some students.

A credential, a high school diploma or any credential, must mean something other than that the holder made it to a certain place every weekday for a certain number of weeks in a certain number of years. Otherwise, the credential is an act of dishonesty. And it will lose its value in the eyes of employers, who will demand higher credentials, and in the eyes of colleges, who will (and already do) demand that students prove through standardized tests what their high school diplomas and transcripts should prove already. Not setting and maintaining standards, therefore, is unfair on the students who do succeed to the level that the missing standards would demand.

Promotion from one grade level to another must also mean something. Otherwise, students may be caught in a snowball of failure as they enter grade levels that they are less and less prepared for. Or teachers, realizing that some of their students are unprepared, may feel that they have no choice but to lower their expectations of all their students. Again, this will have a snowball effect, as teachers of older students will also have to lower their expectations if teachers of younger students have lowered theirs.

But how can we insist on high standards without becoming guilty of maintaining social injustice?

Here are some ways in which we can do that.

1. Provide support for struggling students, whether through individual tutors (probably the best option), learning resource centers, or remedial classes. Patience is key. If students are under pressure to make it to the next grade level, if promotion with their agemates is presented to them as the most important goal, then those to whom learning comes more slowly may lose heart.
2. Involve parents in their children’s education by telling them clearly in what ways their child is behind, what is going to be done about it, and how they can help. In my experience, a text messaging group is by far the best way to do this, and parents really appreciate it. Of course, if a small minority of parents become abusive, they should not be provided with this information, or should be provided with it on a limited basis and only by a senior person such as an assistant principal.
3. Adjust for health needs, especially mental health needs. Students who are struggling because of personal problems should always have access to mental health services, including on the school campus. Schools can make this happen by partnering with local mental health charities, or larger schools may be able to provide therapists “in house.”
4. At the societal level, help struggling families. Struggling students will find it easier to catch up if their families benefit from living wages and, where necessary, an amount of income support that they can live on. And, of course, free or otherwise affordable healthcare.
5. At the societal level, create more chances later in life. If completing high school is too much for a teenager, because of high academic standards or for any other reason, they should have accessible and well published options for completing a high school diploma (There’s no need for any “equivalent”) in person or online, through daytime or evening classes, on a high school or a community college campus.
6. Acknowledge the moral component of success, without assuming it’s primacy. Success is the product of effort, and we need to let young people know this. If we don’t, they may be disabled by the belief that they can only achieve in favorable circumstances. However, we must also be frank with them the circumstances can make success a lot harder or a lot easier. They must understand that failure is not necessarily a reflection on them, and they must learn look for second chances.