Summer Reading

I enjoyed reading the two articles and in particular, Preparing Our Youth to Engage the World.  I liked the quote, "The world will not be saved by high test scores." It is in contradiction to the current trend of elevating students who receive high scores in our assessment driven society. We underestimate those who are creative and have the "disposition to understand and act on issues of global significance," but may not score as well on traditional formal and informal assessments. We need to nurture all students to become young people who want to "do good." I also liked the idea of teaching global competence through the examination of examples of citizenship in history, literature, and local life. In grade 4 we read Shiloh, and students examine the concept of lying and whether it is okay or not. This moral dilemma is a perfect focus for the ethical development of fourth graders. As students read about the character Marty's decision to do something he believes is morally correct, but lies to his parents to cover it up, student conversations about the topic occur in an authentic way. Finally, I look forward to hearing about what teachers already do at BB&N and then build and grow upon that.

Nina