About Author: Bob Valiant

Website
http://valetc.com

Posts by Bob Valiant

  • The word DIBELS has a kind of nonsense tone to it and for those who don’t know, it refers to the much-used reading test which includes reading nonsense words. This has rapidly become a go-to test in the massive focus on reading instruction pushed by NCLB and now RttT. I have always been suspicious of its efficacy and now I have this note from my friend Michael Martin:   I’ve tried to explain this to several people here. Particularly for low-income black children, the research says their primary problem is a low vocabulary. So they can read but they don’t know the words used on the tests. Instead of providing exposure to vocabulary building texts, they are instead given “remedial reading” instruction which mostly consist of Phonics classes where they are taught that words do not have any meaning, they...

    What’s Wrong with the DIBELS

    Posted on March 1, 2012 | 1 Comment
    The word DIBELS has a kind of nonsense tone to it and for those who don’t know, it refers to the much-used reading test which includes reading nonsense words. This has rapidly become a go-to test in the massive focus on reading instruction pushed by NCLB and now RttT. I have always been suspicious of its efficacy and now I have this note from my friend Michael Martin:   I’ve tried to explain this to several people here. Particularly for low-income black children, the research says their primary problem is a low vocabulary. So they can read but they don’t know the words used on the tests. Instead of providing exposure to vocabulary building texts, they are instead given “remedial reading” instruction which mostly consist of Phonics classes where they are taught that words do not have any meaning, they...

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  • We have been warning about unsound uses of student  test score data, particularly value added measurement (VAM) as a part of teacher evaluation, here and on our Facebook sites for about a year.  The release of this highly problematic information in L.A. resulted in the suicide of a teacher rated as a top teacher in his school but declared “ineffective” by VAM.  This method of teacher evaluation is coming to Washington State.  Here is what one NY City teacher has to say about the practice.  Hope Washington teachers are ready for this. Published here with the permission of Ms. Geffner. Lilly Geffner So, the NY Times is publishing NYC teacher’s Data Reports tomorrow morning, and they “invited us to respond”. This is what I wrote. Who knows if anyone there will read it or if it well even be published,...

    If It Happens There, It Can Happen Anywhere…

    Posted on February 24, 2012 | No Comments
    We have been warning about unsound uses of student  test score data, particularly value added measurement (VAM) as a part of teacher evaluation, here and on our Facebook sites for about a year.  The release of this highly problematic information in L.A. resulted in the suicide of a teacher rated as a top teacher in his school but declared “ineffective” by VAM.  This method of teacher evaluation is coming to Washington State.  Here is what one NY City teacher has to say about the practice.  Hope Washington teachers are ready for this. Published here with the permission of Ms. Geffner. Lilly Geffner So, the NY Times is publishing NYC teacher’s Data Reports tomorrow morning, and they “invited us to respond”. This is what I wrote. Who knows if anyone there will read it or if it well even be published,...

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  • Have you ever wondered why it is so hard to talk to some people about the research that supports or refutes policy decisions such as Ed Reform.  Our friend Mike Martin may have the answer, and it’s not that they are from a different planet.  Well MAYBE they are not from a different planet.   Philosophical Rant   My dictionary (Websters New World College) defines “Rationalism” as “the principle or practice of accepting reason as the only authority in determining ones opinions or course of action; philos: the doctrine that knowledge comes from the intellect in itself without aid from the senses.”   The same dictionary defines “Empiricism” as “experimental method; search for knowledge by observation and experiment; 2 a disregarding of scientific methods and relying solely on experience; 3 philos the theory that sense experience is the only source...

    Philosophical Rant

    Posted on February 24, 2012 | No Comments
    Have you ever wondered why it is so hard to talk to some people about the research that supports or refutes policy decisions such as Ed Reform.  Our friend Mike Martin may have the answer, and it’s not that they are from a different planet.  Well MAYBE they are not from a different planet.   Philosophical Rant   My dictionary (Websters New World College) defines “Rationalism” as “the principle or practice of accepting reason as the only authority in determining ones opinions or course of action; philos: the doctrine that knowledge comes from the intellect in itself without aid from the senses.”   The same dictionary defines “Empiricism” as “experimental method; search for knowledge by observation and experiment; 2 a disregarding of scientific methods and relying solely on experience; 3 philos the theory that sense experience is the only source...

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  • A Letter to President Obama Two grandparents on opposite ends of the continent each had a concern about the direction of education reform and its effect on their grandchildren.  Through a chain of improbable circumstances they found each other on Facebook and conjured up a letter to President Obama expressing their concerns. Mark Naison, from Brooklyn, NY and a Fordham professor prepared a draft of the letter.  Bob Valiant, retired school administrator from Kennewick, WA, edited the letter and Bob Valiant Jr. developed a survey form and website, http://dumpduncan.org.  The letter calls for the removal of Education Secretary Arne Duncan and the inclusion of parents, teachers, and school administrators in all administration policy discussions.  It insists on the immediate end to penalties and incentives to compel using student test scores to evaluate teachers, require school closures, or install charter schools. ...

    Press Release

    Posted on February 13, 2012 | 5 Comments
    A Letter to President Obama Two grandparents on opposite ends of the continent each had a concern about the direction of education reform and its effect on their grandchildren.  Through a chain of improbable circumstances they found each other on Facebook and conjured up a letter to President Obama expressing their concerns. Mark Naison, from Brooklyn, NY and a Fordham professor prepared a draft of the letter.  Bob Valiant, retired school administrator from Kennewick, WA, edited the letter and Bob Valiant Jr. developed a survey form and website, http://dumpduncan.org.  The letter calls for the removal of Education Secretary Arne Duncan and the inclusion of parents, teachers, and school administrators in all administration policy discussions.  It insists on the immediate end to penalties and incentives to compel using student test scores to evaluate teachers, require school closures, or install charter schools. ...

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  • Our friend from Arizona, Mike Martin,  posted the following on EDDRA2. a listserv we are part of.  It was in response to an article in the Washington Post blog, The Answer Sheet.  Here, Mike takes on the kind of teacher evaluation proposed and being piloted in Washington State.  What is your verdict?  We post it here with Mike’s permission.   I call to the stand Professor James Popham, an expert on testing who noted that test construction requires that for a question to be valid it must be answered by only about half of the students.   Me: Professor Popham, would you please tell the court what you stated in a March 1999 Educational Leadership article:   Professor Popham: “Thus, the better the job that teachers do in teaching important knowledge, and/or skills, the less likely it is that there...

    Value-added teacher evaluation goes on trial

    Posted on February 6, 2012 | 3 Comments
    Our friend from Arizona, Mike Martin,  posted the following on EDDRA2. a listserv we are part of.  It was in response to an article in the Washington Post blog, The Answer Sheet.  Here, Mike takes on the kind of teacher evaluation proposed and being piloted in Washington State.  What is your verdict?  We post it here with Mike’s permission.   I call to the stand Professor James Popham, an expert on testing who noted that test construction requires that for a question to be valid it must be answered by only about half of the students.   Me: Professor Popham, would you please tell the court what you stated in a March 1999 Educational Leadership article:   Professor Popham: “Thus, the better the job that teachers do in teaching important knowledge, and/or skills, the less likely it is that there...

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  • The following is excerpted from an article by Richard Rothstein, a research associate at the Economic Policy Institute, a non-profit organization created to broaden the discussion about economic policy to include the interests of low- and middle-income workers.   “Education “reformers” have a common playbook. First, assert without evidence that regular public schools are “failing” and that large numbers of regular (unionized) public school teachers are incompetent. Provide no documentation for this claim other than that the test score gap between minority and white children remains large. Then propose so-called reforms to address the unproven problem — charter schools to escape teacher unionization and the mechanistic use of student scores on low-quality and corrupted tests to identify teachers who should be fired.”   Read the full article here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/the-facts-that-school-reformers-ignore/2012/01/23/gIQABWQRMQ_blog.html  

    The facts that school reformers ignore

    Posted on January 25, 2012 | No Comments
    The following is excerpted from an article by Richard Rothstein, a research associate at the Economic Policy Institute, a non-profit organization created to broaden the discussion about economic policy to include the interests of low- and middle-income workers.   “Education “reformers” have a common playbook. First, assert without evidence that regular public schools are “failing” and that large numbers of regular (unionized) public school teachers are incompetent. Provide no documentation for this claim other than that the test score gap between minority and white children remains large. Then propose so-called reforms to address the unproven problem — charter schools to escape teacher unionization and the mechanistic use of student scores on low-quality and corrupted tests to identify teachers who should be fired.”   Read the full article here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/the-facts-that-school-reformers-ignore/2012/01/23/gIQABWQRMQ_blog.html  

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  • Parents, you may not have noticed during your teacher conferences, school concerts, or encounters at the supermarket, but America’s teachers have about had it with the pressures of their jobs and the lack of respect they are getting from legislators, the media, corporate leaders, and even you.  I manage several Facebook accounts on public education and thought you might be interested in some comments on just one thread over a span of a couple of hours.  They are representative of what I am seeing every day from across the U.S.  I should mention that the people who post on this site are the fighters.  They are the ones not willing to let the mandated standardized tests dominate their teaching.  They still see children as individuals, each with special needs, and they are trying to prepare them for the real world,...

    Teacher Morale at Low Ebb

    Posted on January 20, 2012 | 1 Comment
    Parents, you may not have noticed during your teacher conferences, school concerts, or encounters at the supermarket, but America’s teachers have about had it with the pressures of their jobs and the lack of respect they are getting from legislators, the media, corporate leaders, and even you.  I manage several Facebook accounts on public education and thought you might be interested in some comments on just one thread over a span of a couple of hours.  They are representative of what I am seeing every day from across the U.S.  I should mention that the people who post on this site are the fighters.  They are the ones not willing to let the mandated standardized tests dominate their teaching.  They still see children as individuals, each with special needs, and they are trying to prepare them for the real world,...

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  • I am currently managing the 5 Facebook accounts listed below.  Each has a different focus and much of the content is similar but for a different audience.  You might particularly note Dump Duncan, which has rapidly become a national conduit for in-depth discussion of education policy issues.  Please check them out and join up if you find one (or more) of interest. And, of course, you can participate here by going to the “Write for Kennewick Citizens” button on the right side of this page. Parents Across America-Tri-Cities http://www.facebook.com/groups/listemail/?notif_t=group_activity   School District Citizens http://www.facebook.com/pages/School-District-Citizens/129808317079224   Kennewick School District Citizens http://www.facebook.com/KSDCitizens   Dump Duncan http://www.facebook.com/groups/194348523992014/   Robert Valiant http://www.facebook.com/  

    How the reader can participate in the education debate

    Posted on January 15, 2012 | No Comments
    I am currently managing the 5 Facebook accounts listed below.  Each has a different focus and much of the content is similar but for a different audience.  You might particularly note Dump Duncan, which has rapidly become a national conduit for in-depth discussion of education policy issues.  Please check them out and join up if you find one (or more) of interest. And, of course, you can participate here by going to the “Write for Kennewick Citizens” button on the right side of this page. Parents Across America-Tri-Cities http://www.facebook.com/groups/listemail/?notif_t=group_activity   School District Citizens http://www.facebook.com/pages/School-District-Citizens/129808317079224   Kennewick School District Citizens http://www.facebook.com/KSDCitizens   Dump Duncan http://www.facebook.com/groups/194348523992014/   Robert Valiant http://www.facebook.com/  

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