Returning to "The Race"

This week I had the pleasure of viewing "Race to Nowhere" for a second time.  It was part of a sixteen-independent school project. After the movie a panel discussion took place based on the theme " Should Success Be Redefined?" Two of the panel participants were Vicki Abeles, producer and co-director of "Race to Nowhere" and Alfie Kohn, writer and speaker on topics such as; human behavior, education, and parenting.

Several of the areas discussed in relationship to how student success is viewed were; grades and test scores, AP classes, homework, and their value on success and learning. The following are points made by Alfie Kohn and Vicki Abeles.

Alfie Kohn: Research has shown that homework has ZERO value before High School.  Even in HS a school day should be enough . . . no need for a 2^ND work shift. “Why should the school have a say in what my child does after the school day is over?”

AP classes represent worst form of instruction; accelerated presentation of material based on lectures and textbooks. High School students have less to say about their education than lower elementary students.

He often opens up talks with following question: “ How do you want your child to turn out? As we hear over and over again; to be life long learners; then why are we giving homework? Students hate homework! It extinguishes curiosity."

What makes kids successful in college = a desire to learn. 

Difference between intrinsic and internal:  Intrinsic what you want to feed in to that simulates the student’s curiosity, it is student centered – comes from within

Internal incorporated in student because of outside pressures – comes from outside influence

Vicki Abeles:  We need to get away from the blame game and recognize we all want the same thing for our children. CHANGE not BLAME; The viewing of “Race to Nowhere” is a start. It is a kick off point for dialogue, reflection, and change. It is important for parents to be aware of all the pressures their children experience from school and activities outside of the school setting. Keep the conversation going with students and teachers. Homework is a place to start exploring possibilities for change.

Alfie Kohn provided the following site: www.independentcurriculum.org

Here are two quotes:

“Our classes are not so much about the transfer of knowledge, but about students constructing knowledge for themselves.”

Mark Salkind, Head of School
The Urban School of San Francisco

After several years of planning and anxiety, replacing AP was a non-event at Crossroads School. “One year we had AP and the next year we didn’t. The sky didn’t fall. College admissions didn’t change. Families didn’t leave the school. No one would have known except for the fact that our teachers were more motivated,” said David Olds of Crossroads. 

So . . . are we ready to start?       And which road will we take?       On your mark .  . . get set . . . GO!