Challenging Assertions

What is clear,
and Kentucky has 20 years of experience that shows it,
is that for any test that is adopted
teachers will be coerced into teaching to it.
Despite all the work with national standards,
students may emerge from schools
expected to know only what is on tests.

-- Skip Kifer

In a Monday Herald-Leader Op Ed titled, "New standards alone won't improve education," assessment guru Skip Kifer challenged a couple of ideas offered by Educati0on Commissioner Terry Holliday and CPE head Bob King.

At issue was their Sept.19 column, "Smarter standards; Ky. tackling challenges to meet ambitious goals".

Education Commissioner Terry Holliday and Council on Postsecondary Education President Bob King in their op-ed focus on national education standards and related issues....They say, "It has been common that students who have been earning A's and B's in high school have been placed in remedial courses in college." They say students have not been learning the right stuff in high school and that national standards will solve the problem.

... decades of research has shown the single best predictor of success in college is a student's high school record. Doing well in a rigorous college preparatory curriculum is the key to doing well in higher education. How have or will national standards change that?

Perhaps these hypothetical students were not in college preparatory classes. In that case, one would not expect them to be related to success in college.

Then Kifer disputed international comparisons. Holliday and King stated that, "Among the 40 most industrialized nations, American students perform in the bottom quartile on international math and science examinations."

In the latest 2007 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), U.S. fourth graders were ranked 11th of 36 in mathematics. Their eighth grade counterparts were ranked ninth of 48...

Kentucky did not participate as a state in TIMSS. However, the commonwealth's fourth and eighth graders participate in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessments. Their scores are at about the national average. It is likely then that Kentucky performance on TIMSS would be similar to the U.S. as a whole; they would be in the top one-third in 4th grade and the top 20 percent in 8th grade.

Similarly in science Kifer finds that Kentucky's performance on the TIMSS could be in the top 20 percent: sixth or seventh at fourth grade and ninth or 10th in eighth grade.

Holliday and King stated that, "Since early this summer, teams of teachers and college faculty have been translating sophisticated technical language (of the national standards) into objectives students and their parents can understand." But Kifer wonders,

Suppose another state were doing the same thing. Is there any reason to believe the two groups would come up with the same statements? It would appear the process is a way to turn national standards into state curricula, a problem national standards were meant to solve.

Governor's TEK Talk Draws a Crowd

Last night approximately 1,100 citizens gathered in ten locations around the state seeking a unified vision for education in Kentucky and to reenergize reform.

Reminiscent of the Prichard Committee's Town Forums of 1984 which jump started KERA, Transforming Education in Kentucky (TEK) is Governor Stever Beshear's effort to gain consensus on a wide range of school improvements that will be presented to the General Assembly in 2011. As the governor said when he kicked off the initiative in October, I’m calling on our state and our people to recommit ourselves to ensuring the future of our children.” Last night, he called for "a fresh look" at education in the state.

If the 100 people in attendance at BCTCS in Lexington is any indication, the participants were a mix of prominent citizen advocates in education and health care, along with parents, policy wonks, college professors, teachers, school administrators and interested citizens.

Newly elected Kentucky Board of Education Chair David Karem, told the Courier-Journal the Jefferson County session “affirmed my belief that each student must be seen as an individual and that learning must be tailored to each child.”

Students with a strong elementary through high school education were twice as likely to earn a college degree, Bob King told the television audience. “That’s true even with all the interventions and remedial programs we have to help (poorly prepared high school graduates).”

In Paducah, facilitator Tom Prather said 87,000 new jobs in Kentucky are expected for college graduates by 2018.“But only 12,000 jobs are expected for students with only a high school degree,” Prather said.

The statewide forums should garner important concerns from local districts, according to Morehead State University dean of education Cathy Gunn, who co-chaired the Ashland forum with ACTC’s dean of advancement Louise Shytle. “These are your schools, the districts affected by decisions in Frankfort,” Gunn told the Daily Independent.

Joe Overby, a former Daviess County Public Schools educator and board member praised the effort. "This is the way you build a movement. It's a great way to start people talking about the same thing. It helps me understand that my concerns are a part of many," Oveby told the Messenger Inquirer (subscription only).

The largest single crowd (250 participants) gathered at Northern Kentucky University. When learning about this, Governor Beshear quipped, "I don't know what they did. They must have offered steak."

But the turnout at NKU is very likely the product of substantial momentum that began to gather in November, 2007, around the Vision 2015 Education Summit during Commissioner Jon Draud's tenure.

Audience estimates are as follows: Paducah, 90; Owensboro, 100; Bowling Green, 100; Elizabethtown, 140; Jefferson, 85 (C-J estimated 100+); NKU, 275; BCTCS, 100; Somerset, 80; Prestonsburg, 50 and Ashland, 70.

TEK was also the new season's first topic on Education Matters, Kentucky Educational Television's educational policy program hosted by Bill Goodman. Goodman's guests included Governor Beshear along with First Lady Jane Beshear who spearheads the community-based Graduate Kentucky program, Education Commissioner Terry Holliday and Council on Postsecondary Education President Bob King.

Did you miss the program? Watch it here, at KET.


KET aired the program live and the panel fielded questions from participants and KET viewers while a feed of the program streamed in each location. Goodman bounced a few of the early questions off panel members to see who would best address which topics. The only question I noticed that drew little response from panel members had to do with the teaching of foreign languages in elementary schools, something Kentucky is not heavily involved in.

Afterward, the Commissioner expressed some surprise that "no one brought up the C-word." [charter schools] Goodman added, "and I didn't either... And you know what, we didn't have a question about it."

But perhaps the panel benefitted from a little administrative intervention. A staffer responded, "Well, there are some out there on the table." (Lots of laughter)

The staffer added, we were just swamped with questions from all over the state."

Beshear: "That's good."

Commissioner Holliday told the group, "We'll get all of the questions answered."

Then the staffer said, "There are a few political questions in there."

And feigning surprise, the Governor laughed and said, "No." (more laughter)

The TEK Task Force is seeking public input - from YOU - focusing (but not exclusively) on the following topics:

• Improving college readiness
• Providing every student with the opportunity to earn college credit during high school
• Creating a system of assessments that measure what employers value
• Ramping up academics in career and technical schools
• Using technology to improve teaching and learning
• Improving teacher recruitment and retention
• Improving transitions between preschool and K-12

Let the governor know what you think:

Following the program the panel took a few questions from KSN&C.

KSN&C: Reminding the governor of similar successful past efforts by state leaders to engage the public - most recently the Prichard Town Forums - "I assume this was not an accident, to set this up in the same way as the Town Forums in 1984."

Beshear: "You don't try to reinvent the wheel when something has worked you tend to utilize it again. Particularly the Prichard Forums, that we all recall, played such a vital role in energizing the population all across the state. The parents, and you know, getting outside the education establishment, and energizing the public in general and the parents in particular. It played such a vital role in actually making all of that happen. I'm very hopeful that this kind of thing is going to play the same kind of role as we move forward and try to take this whole system to the next level.

KSN&C: I was talking to Bob Sexton the other day, and he said one of the main things they learned was how hard the work is and how long a haul it is to maintain that energy. So after 2011, when the Task Force presents its recommendations to the General Assembly, what's next? How do you maintain that momentum?

Beshear: As these fellas will tell you, a lot of this effort is just in the beginning formative stages, it's going to take a continuous effort and continuous work to make these things happen ...

KSN&C: So you think you guys will be out there again?

Beshear: Oh, we'll be out there a number of times as we go along. And as Bob - we were talking today - some efforts in other states that have, sort of, dissolved.

KSN&C: Which is actually the more common thing....

King: Well I think the challenge for us is to get some early success. If we can do that, it drives more, you know? The concern I've had - and we talked about this from the very beginning, right after Senate Bill 1 was passed - what you saw in the other states, such as Arizona, they set higher standards, or tried to. In the first round, so many kids flunked the exams that the parents went nuts because they didn't understand it. They put pressure on the legislature, the legislature commanded that everybody get retested. They lowered the cut scores. They made the questions easier. Then they allowed the kids to take the test multiple times. Then, if it still didn't work after six administrations of the exam, you could supplement the kids' record with, literally, attendance and gym class, even though the kid couldn't read or couldn't do mathematics. The pressure that I fear is that if we don't get the parents educated about what's going on that that pressure will come on to Terry and come on to the legislature and it will be really brutal. And the worst thing you can do is succumb to it, but it'll be there. The more we can do now to let families know what's coming and why it's important will serve us well in the future.

Jane Beshear: I think that as long as you've got the desire from the top, from the governor's office, to make sure you move forward, and you've got the collaboration between K through 12 and higher education, you've got the prefect storm. And that's not going to, hopefully, go away at any time in the near future. Once you get the programs going and people start to see the results through the testing scores and everything else, and the change of attitudes in our schools. You've started the engine and it just keeps going and going.

KSN&C: As you know I'm hopeful about Race To The Top too, but if we don't get funded, what other kinds of opportunities are out there? Does the Gates Foundation ...

Holliday: Yes. There's tons of foundation interest in Kentucky right now especially with our leadership on standards and our parent communication about standards and our work on assessment with Gates...

KSN&C: You feel we'll get enough to get the job done?

Holliday: We won't get $175 million, but we'll get enough to get the job done.

KSN&C: But you can build the test and make the change?

Holliday: Yeah. Nationally, we're part of all the consortia of the national assessment...

Helen Mountjoy, a former state education cabinet secretary and leader on the TEK initiative, co-chaired the Owensboro event with Daviess County Superintendent (and Council for Better Education President) Tom Shelton. Mountjoy said involvement must come from local businesses and community members, not just educators.

"Our teachers and students are able to meet expectations when they know what those expectations are," Mountjoy said. "I think there are two things I hoped would come from this: The first was a sense of where Kentucky is. The second was to involve people and talk about their hopes and dreams for education and rebuilding their enthusiasm from 20 years ago (when the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990 laid the foundation for this effort)."

The scene at BCTCS:

Behind the scenes at KET, KDE staffers collect input from around the state.

Back stage before the show.

Governor to host televised forums on education

This from the Winchester Sun:

Last fall, Gov. Steve Beshear appointed a task force to develop new strategies for improving K-12 education in Kentucky, and to create a unified vision of what schools need to offer to better serve students today and in the future.

Members of the Transforming Education in Kentucky task force included education advocates, parents, teachers, superintendents, lawmakers and business and community leaders who were hand-picked for their commitment to education in Kentucky.

Meetings focused on things such as improving college readiness, providing every student with the opportunity to earn college credit during high school, expanding the use of technology for learning, boosting academics in career and technical education and improving transitions between preschool and K-12.

The task force’s aim was to formulate recommendations by the end of 2010, for consideration by legislators during the 2011 legislative session.

The task force now wants to get input on the initiative from citizens statewide through community forums being held across the state.

In partnership with the Education Workforce Development Cabinet, the Kentucky Department of Education, The Prichard Committee, Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and Kentucky Educational Television, Beshear will host TEK Talk on Aug. 17 at 7 p.m., to give the public an opportunity to share its concerns and ideas.

The community forums will be held in Paducah, Owensboro, Bowling Green, Elizabethtown, Louisville, Lexington, Northern Kentucky, Somerset, Prestonsburg and Ashland.

In addition to the local discussions, KET will stream a live panel discussion at 8 p.m., with the governor and first lady Jane Beshear, Education Commissioner Terry Holliday and Council on Postsecondary Education President Bob King.

The panel will address questions posed at the community forums and discuss issues that emerge from local event.

Bill Goodman of KET will moderate the panel for his program, “Education Matters.”

Ky. colleges likely to see up to 6% tuition increases

"Without a budget, we would need to close our campuses.
The likelihood of this impact is real and substantial."

-- Robert King

This from the Herald-Leader:

The Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education on Friday approved guidelines for tuition hikes for 2010-11 of 6 percent for the University of Kentucky and University of Louisville, 5 percent for comprehensive universities and 4 percent for community and technical colleges. Last year's increase was staggered at 3 percent to 5 percent.

Some of the state's public university presidents and council members questioned why the in-state undergraduate tuition increases shouldn't be more than 6 percent. Even if each school adopts the maximum tuition increase allowed, all will be substantially in the red, according to the presidents.

And if the state doesn't adopt a budget soon, said council president Robert L. King, the universities will have to shut down temporarily. The common perception is that universities can run on tuition revenue in a budget pinch, but using tuition requires a budget appropriation, which requires that the state have a budget, King said.

After a 60-day legislative session that ended last week, Kentucky doesn't have a budget...

UK President Lee T. Todd Jr. told the council that he called Beshear on Thursday to tell Beshear he was going to ask for a 7 percent ceiling.

Even with a 6 percent increase, CPE figures show UK will have a deficit of nearly $7.6 million for operations. Eastern Kentucky University would have a deficit of $3.8 million with a 5 percent increase; Kentucky State University, $6.2 million after a 5 percent increase; and Morehead State University, $3.8 million after a 5 percent increase...

Historic Cooperation

Kentucky First to Accept Core Academic Standards

SOURCE KDE: In joint meeting this evening, the chairs of the Kentucky Board of Education, the Council on Postsecondary Education and the Education Professional Standards Board signed a resolution directing their respective agencies to implement the Common Core State Standards in English/language arts and mathematics, formalizing Kentucky’s agreement to integrate the standards into the state’s public education system.

(Smiles all 'round after signing the resolution.

L to R pairs:

Philip Rogers and Lorraine Williams from EPSB;

Terry Holliday and Joe Brothers from KBE;

Bob King and Paul Patton from CPE.)

Archived video and audio from KDE:

Downloadable audio podcast:

The draft Common Core State Standards at the Council on Postsecondary Education website:

More on Common Core Standards at Nat'l Gov's Association:

"Now it is critically important that we provide
our schools and teachers with the support and resources
they need to make sure these standards do
what they are designed to do -
ensure the success of students in every part of Kentucky,"

--- Bob Sexton

(Bob Sexton looks on with Roger Marcum in background.)

With this action, Kentucky becomes the first state to formally accept the standards. Higher, clearer and more in-depth academic standards are required by Senate Bill 1, passed by the 2009 Kentucky General Assembly and codified as KRS 158.6451.

(Patton with Brothers and Williams.)

“This is an historic moment for Kentucky,” said Kentucky Board of Education Chair Joe Brothers. “With the implementation of the Common Core State Standards, teachers and administrators will have a blueprint to move the state forward in P-12 education. This is just the beginning of Kentucky’s next chapter of education reform, and it reflects the mandates of the state’s legislature – specifically, Senate Bill 1 -- and our application for federal Race to the Top funding.”

(KBE member Billy Harper looks on)

“The Common Core Standards come at an opportune time for us at EPSB as we forge ahead to meet the charges set forth by Senate Bill 1,” said EPSB Chair Lorraine Williams. “To truly make a difference in Kentucky’s students’ ability to demonstrate what they know and are able to do and to make them more competitive in the marketplace, it is a refreshing move to narrow the number of standards taught at each level. ESPB is excited to be part of this cutting edge initiative and looks forward to working with our university partners to ensure that our undergraduate and graduate teacher preparation programs embrace the Common Core Standards and prepare a stronger workforce capable of teaching the curriculum to a deeper, more rigorous level.”

(King and Patton listen to Holliday)

“Kentucky is once again at the forefront in education reform,” said CPE Chair Paul Patton. “I am very pleased with the level of cooperation and commitment by Kentucky’s policy and education leaders in the development of these draft content standards. Consistent academic standards, aligned to college and work expectations, will help our students reach higher levels of success.”

(Governor Steve Beshear)

Launched in 2009, the Common Core State Standards Initiative is a state-led effort coordinated by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). Governors and state commissioners of education from 48 states (no Texas; no Alaska), two territories and the District of Columbia committed to developing a common core of state standards in English/language arts and mathematics for grades K-12.

(Former Lexington Mayor Pam Miller)

CCSSO and NGA plan to release the final version of the standards in early spring.

The action by the three Kentucky boards is the beginning of the work of integrating those standards into the state’s curriculum guidelines, teacher preparation programs and higher education activities.

(Ed Cmte chairs, Sen Ken Winter and Rep Carl Rollins)

This action meets the mandate of Senate Bill 1, passed by the 2009 General Assembly, to revise Kentucky’s academic standards to:

• focus on critical knowledge, skills and capacities needed for success in the global economy
• result in fewer, but more in-depth standards to facilitate mastery learning
• communicate expectations more clearly and concisely to teachers, parents, students and citizens
• be based on evidence-based research
• consider international benchmarks
• ensure that the standards are aligned from elementary to high school to postsecondary education so that students can be successful at each education level.

(The Three Amigos)

These standards are the "best of the best” of state academic requirements. They focus on knowledge like multiplication, equations, reading comprehension, language rules and more. But, they also require that students learn how to solve problems and think creatively. To help teachers successfully implement the standards, state agencies and partner groups will provide support and training starting in the summer of 2010.

(Frequent Commish Kevin Noland and Ed Sec Joe Meyer)

Teachers will begin to provide instruction related to the standards in the fall of 2011. Students will be assessed on the Common Core Standards beginning in the spring of 2012.

(KBE Vice Chair Dorie Combs..all pensive)

The Common Core State Standards will enable participating states to:

• articulate to parents, teachers, and the general public expectations for students
• align textbooks, digital media and curricula to the internationally benchmarked standards
• ensure professional development for educators is based on identified need and best practices
• develop and implement an assessment system to measure student performance against the common core state standards
• evaluate policy changes needed to help students and educators meet the common core state college and career readiness standards

(KBE Deputy Commish Ruth Webb with Sexton)

This from the Prichard Committee:

Kentucky's adoption of new academic standards is an exciting development that could signal the beginning of unprecedented progress for the state's schools, the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence said Thursday.

"These standards strengthen our education system in several ways," said Robert
F. Sexton, executive director of the statewide citizens' organization.

"First, they have real-world relevance - reflecting the knowledge and skills that young people need to succeed in both college and work and to compete in the global economy. Second, they give students, teachers, parents and administrators a shared understanding of what students are expected to learn, but they let teachers decide how to help students reach the standards. Finally, they ensure collaboration between K-12 and postsecondary education - something we haven't seen before in Kentucky."

(ESPB staffer and "old" FCPS colleague Mike Carr)

This from Jim Warren at the Herald-Leader:

...Kentucky educators expect state test scores to fall initially when the new standards kick in with the 2011-2012 school year. But they say scores will rebound as students and teachers adjust to the tougher new requirements.

The state estimates that implementing the standards, preparing teachers to use them, and developing a new student testing system could cost about $15 million over the next two fiscal years. But officials say the payoff — generations of Kentucky youngsters fully prepared to succeed in college or careers in an increasingly competitive global marketplace — would be well worth that investment.

(Another former colleague from Meadowthorpe, KDE's Michael Miller)

The Kentucky Board of Education, the state Council on Postsecondary Education and the state Education Professional Standards Board each voted unanimously to adopt the new standards Wednesday night in a joint session at the Kentucky Community and Technical College System headquarters. The audience included a virtual who's who of Kentucky education.

(Our host, KCTCS Pres Michael McCall)

Gov. Steve Beshear and others on hand touted the standards adoption as a "historic step" to toward a "new era of education," calling it perhaps the most important education reform initiative since the 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act.

"These standards will move us closer to our ultimate goal, a K-12 system that positions our children for success," Beshear said. "They will require not only knowledge but skills, like thinking creatively, solving problems, thinking analytically. In short, they will help our teachers teach, and our students study more effectively and more competently."

(Dailey with CPE staffers Lee Nimocks and John DeAtley)

Kentucky Education Commissioner Terry Holliday called the new standards an attempt to "harness the winds of change."

"We must create the future for our children," Holliday said. "I think this is the first wave of the next wave of change for the future of our children, and it is securing that future."

Wednesday night's action is a major step in the implementation of Senate Bill 1, which the General Assembly approved last year calling for new, more demanding state education standards aligned from preschool to college. Now that math and language standards have been adopted, the next step will be preparing new standards for other subjects. The Kentucky Department of Education plans to do that in-house.

(Winters with new UK Ed Dean Mary John O'Hair)

Charlie Newquist, a math teacher at East Jessamine Middle School who participated on a panel that reviewed the new math and language standards last year, predicted that they will do much to boost education in the state.

"The standards are rigorous, but reachable," said Newquist, who spoke at Wednesday's session.

"I think students and parents will be excited because the standards are very clear. We know what the kids need to do. We know what they need to understand. And we know how to get there at every grade level."

We missed Susan Weston last night, but she weighed in telling H-L's Warren, "We now say that a child is reading at grade level, and that sounds reassuring. But in fact, that isn't strong enough for us to keep pulling in the good jobs, and competing with the rising nations of Asia and Europe. We need to be stronger than our current average...Standard research on the countries that have been beating us in math says that they all do it the way these new standards are set up.

Weston referred to the new math standards, which are designed to match up well with the Singapore math program that nine Fayette County elementary schools have instituted this year.

Warren reports theat a key piece of the reform effort is the state's application to the federal Race To The Top program, which was filed last month. Kentucky hopes to get up to $200 million from the Race program, which would be used for implementing SB 1 and the new standards. The state should learn in April how much it will money it will get.

Holliday told the assembly that "if you want to know where Kentucky is going, read our Race to the Top application."

If you want to know where Kentucky's application is headed and the chances for funding, check out the NCTQ Race to the Top Scorecard.

(EKU Math Prof Sue Cain on loan to CPE)

This from WKYT (VIDEO):

It’s still not certain what exactly the new standards will be…as only a rough draft of them is available.

“It may mean scrapping all their lessons..it may mean only a lesson or two,” said Sharron Oxendine with the Kentucky Education Association.

Yet Oxendine welcomes the new standards.

“I really think it’s a good thing…because we’ve been talking for years about the standards…have been way too broad,” said Oxendine.

“Which will allow us to go deeper into the content, rather than trying to spread it out so far,” said Franklin County Schools Superintendent Harrie Buecker.

One concern has been that teachers don’t have enough time in each year…to adequately finish the large amount of lessons they’re required to give students.

“What we’re looking at….is making sure that the lessons we can teach in the time that’s available…is going to be appropriate,” said Oxendine.

(CPE VP Aaron Thompson)

Training teachers on the new changes could cost in the millions of dollars. Kentucky education officials hope federal funding will take care of that expense.

The standards Kentucky adopts will mirror those in 48 other states.

“So I think it will better prepare all of our kids for work, for college, for whatever happens after school,” said Oxendine.

The new standards will be used to develop a new test that most Kentucky students will begin taking in the spring of 2012.

(My favorite pen pal, KDE's Lisa Gross. I'm probably "in trouble" for posting this one.)

Coverage from the News-Enterprise here:

This from Ed Week:

...Kentucky’s move is part of what is known as the Common Core State Standards Initiative, spearheaded by the Council of Chief State School Officers and the National
Governors Association. The K-12 standards crafted as part of that initiative are still in draft form, with a final version expected by early spring. ("Reviewers Urge Standards Fixes," Feb. 3, 2010.)

In making their decisions, the Kentucky boards relied on late-stage drafts that have been circulating among state officials for review. But their decisions direct their staffs to implement the final version of the common standards once it is completed. The state will also wait for the final version to begin the normal 30-day regulatory-review period, officials said.The state education department plans to train teachers on the common standards this summer so they can begin teaching to them next fall. It plans to administer assessments designed for the common standards in spring 2012...

The unusual level of cooperation among the three boards is required by a bill passed last year by the Kentucky legislature. A sweeping revision of the state’s standards and accountability system, the measure mandates, among other provisions, that the education department, the Council on Postsecondary Education, and the Education Professional Standards Board collaborate on new standards that are narrower and deeper, and better aligned with college expectations...

Hat tips to Prichard and KSBA.

It was great to see so many former and current colleagues in one place at one time. The first guy I ran into last night was Roger Marcum, then Michael Miller, then Mike Carr...... There was a great feeling in the room; a concerted effort I haven't sensed in a long time.

Special shout outs to Roger, Mike, Dorie, Aaron, Michael, Bob, Cindy, the other Michael, Sally, Lee, Becky Sagan, Lisa, Kevin, Nancy McKinney, Sue, Pam, and fellow correspondent Jim and fellow blogger Terry.

All photos by Richard Day for Kentucky School News and Commentary.