Taking time to give thanks

Thanksgiving week is a time for us to pause and give thanks for the past year. I encourage all of my readers to take time and either verbally or in writing share the things you are thankful for.

I have a lot to be thankful for. First, and always first, is my family. I am a proud husband and father.  I have an incredible wife who has been with me through every major life change and in many ways has been responsible for my biggest achievements. I have thought many times that I would not be where I am today, both literally and figuratively, if she had not been there to encourage me and challenge me to think bigger. I am thankful for two children that love their family and friends, care about others and want to pursue bright futures. I am additionally thankful for the friends who have embraced my daughter in the past year. Moving as a junior in high school is tough, but she found great friends that treat her as if she grew up with them.

I am thankful for the people of Kentucky. Time and again, the people here show a great love for the state, each other and a commitment for improving the lives of our children. I have never felt more at home than here. In fact, Kentucky has been so good to my family, we are hopeful my daughter will actually attend college in the state. Trust me, this is a big deal as she had no desire to be in-state in any of our previous states.

Finally, I am thankful for the opportunity I have been given to be the Commissioner of Education for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. I am thankful for our Kentucky Board of Education, whose members work tirelessly on our student’s behalf. I am thankful for our students, our teachers, our administrators and all of our shareholders in education. I am thankful for the opportunity to work with and for our Kentucky School for the Blind (that just published a wonderful book I will write about next week) and our Kentucky School for the Deaf. And, I am thankful to work with an incredibly talented staff at the Kentucky Department of Education, that is dedicated to supporting our districts in educating all the children of our state.

As a Commonwealth, we are not satisfied with where we are, but we also acknowledge the work so far. No matter who I come across, there is a real commitment to improving education – not just for the sake of improving it, but in an effort to make it better for our students. We all may not agree all of the time, but we all seem to realize that our focus must be on Our Students, Our Commonwealth. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Working together for the benefit of students

Another session of the Kentucky General Assembly has come to an end. This is my first one and I look forward to many more in the future. There was a lot of discussion, argument, debate and in the end compromise. After seeing our lawmakers in action, I believe that our elected leaders are committed to Kentucky and to what they believe is the best for the Commonwealth. I appreciate their work and commitment.

As we move into analyzing the bills that were passed including the budget, I would like to say thank you to our P-12 education partners. In particular, it was great to see our teachers taking a leadership role in education policy. The work of governing is hard. There are often decisions that have to be made that many do not understand. There is also an incredible amount of information that has to be digested by our policy makers. As such, hearing the voices of those in the trenches is always important. 

Throughout the session, I saw teachers, administrators, and local school board members at the legislative hearings and I would learn about contacts made by those in each group when I travelled around the state. It is important that educators take up that mantle of leadership to aid in the explanation of the issues they face each day. However, it is equally important that we as educators know the issues that are debated. I only say this because to be effective in using our “teacher voice,” it must come from a place of authority. 

I am so proud of the work that all of the education stakeholders did this session. I heard thoughtful discussions with meaningful points given by education shareholders throughout this session. As a result, many policymakers – including me – have learned so much about the work of our educators in Kentucky. 

At the end of the day, we must work together to ensure our students are the center of all of our decisions. Whether it be the legislative session or our new accountability system, we must remind ourselves that successfully moving education forward only can be achieved by being informed and working together for our students. It is very easy for us to slip and focus a too much on the adults; after all self-preservation is a basic human trait. But, we must remember that our work, must be for our students. It takes a village to raise a child, but a Commonwealth to educate one.

Remember it’s all about Our Students, Our Commonwealth. 

The most effective test prep is good teaching

Well, it’s that time of year again.  The weather is getting warmer, the days are getting longer, the grass is greening, the trees and flowers are blooming and the Commonwealth is emerging from a cold, gray winter and bursting to life once again.  Yes, spring has sprung in Kentucky.

Yet, many in the education world view this as the season of dread. It is, after all, the time of year when our students sit for state exams.  Testing is a hot topic across the country.  We worry about over testing, “teaching to the test” and the stress our students incur as the result of testing.  Assessment and accountability have become interchangeable words and both have made us change our perspective on education.

As we move forward into a new era of assessment and accountability, I believe it is time to change this mindset from one of testing trepidation back to a demonstration of the learning that has taken place over the course of the school year. There are several things we need to remember for this shift to happen so that we can be most effective educating all of our children.

First, testing is not new. Students have taken tests since education began.  All industrialized countries test students and participate in international assessments.  I took tests as did anyone who ever went through K-12.  However, since accountability has focused so intently on state test results, it seems to have created a loathing and opposition to all testing. We always need to be mindful of why we are testing. Assessment has its place; it is needed to ensure all students are learning and getting an equitable education.  However, assessments must be high quality, aligned to rigorous standards, and must not be the only measure we use to determine the excellence in education.  That last point is key.
I often speak of my three pillars of education: equity, achievement and integrity.  All of these relate to assessment, but are not defined by it.  In fact, many think when they see the word achievement, it is determined solely by assessment.  Of course assessment is part, but not all of the equation.  I believe our students must be able to demonstrate achievement in many areas.

Closing the achievement gap starts with closing the opportunity gap.  Access to various opportunities for learning must be available to students both within and outside of tested subjects.  Opportunities in the visual and performing arts, STEM, science, social studies, career tech education, and any non-tested or limited-tested subjects have value, can increase student engagement and will lead to a well-rounded, educated and employed populace.  It is why our new accountability system must look at the inputs into the system and not just the outputs.

Additionally, we must remember that the most influential factor in all of education is the teacher.  It is unfortunate we often forget this.  In my opinion, we spend way too much time and money on test prep programs and not enough on one single, simple truth – the most effective test prep is good teaching.  I understand not wanting students to walk into a high stakes test unawares.  As a former AP teacher, I would have students practice problems periodically.  What I did not do is stop instruction for a month to “prep” my students.

It is time we realized that waiting until the end of the year and cramming their heads with information they didn’t relate to or get the first time around, going over the same material slower, and with additional worksheets is not the answer.  It’s our teachers who are.

I strongly believe, and research supports this, that if teachers do what effective teachers do and give great instruction and reteach when necessary along the way, the test is just an opportunity for students to demonstrate what they know.  So again, the best test prep is a great teacher giving great instruction throughout the school year. I am hopeful we can change the narrative in the future of Kentucky education. Great learning opportunities for all students plus great instruction equals great achievement – that is the equation for education success.

We have a lot of work ahead of us, but there is no where I would rather be than here in Kentucky working with our educators for Our Students, Our Commonwealth.