The big trouble in Indiana public schools, as explained by a troubled educator
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For quite some time now education policy-making in the state of Indiana has been nothing short of a mess. Republican lawmakers have long been at odds with the state’s elected superintendent of public instruction, Glenda Ritz, whose recently unveiled legislative agenda for the Indiana Department of Education reveals some of the many problems plaguing the state’s public education system.
Here are some of the issues as explained by Ritz in her budget message:
“First, we need to hold our schools harmless from the 2015 ISTEP+ as Indiana transitioned to new, more rigorous, college and career ready standards and a more rigorous assessment at the same time. Indiana’s schools, educators and communities simply cannot be blamed for mandated changes in standards and assessment….“Second, it is clear that Indiana needs to reform our costly, lengthy, pass/fail, high-stakes assessment system. Simply put, we need to move on from ISTEP+. Recently, the federal government reformed No Child Left Behind and gave states more control over their assessment systems. While annual student assessments are still required, the federal mandate has undergone substantial changes. Indiana must reclaim control over its assessment system and move towards a streamlined, student-centered assessment that provides students, families and educators with quick feedback about how a student is performing and how they have grown over the course of a school year.“Third, we absolutely must take steps to stem the teacher shortage that is affecting schools and communities throughout the state. Over the last six years, Indiana has seen a 30 percent decrease in the number of individuals receiving their initial license and we must take action ensure that every child has access to excellent educators.”
Ritz, not surprisingly, accuses the Republican governor, Mike Pence, of failing to support public education. Meanwhile, many Indiana teachers feel under siege from evaluation systems that use student test scores and other things, The big trouble in Indiana public schools, as explained by a troubled educator - The Washington Post:
