Episode Details

In the first of two parts looking at how we measure and communicate school quality, and how that impacts our educational system, we’re joined by Professor Jack Schneider. He has been thinking about school ratings, and school quality for many years. He started the Massachusetts Consortium for Innovative Educational Assessment, a coalition of school and district leaders working to reimagine school assessment and accountability by including multiple measures of student engagement, student achievement, and school environment, and emphasizing performance assessments in the classroom to measure students’ deeper mastery of content and skills.

We dig into what we are measuring, and, perhaps more importantly, what we aren’t. We also discuss the tension between a real need for transparent accountability, and the issues with the metrics we are currently using.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Links:

• The Massachusetts Consortium for Innovative Educational Assessment
• Professor Schneider’s 2017 book – Beyond Test Scores
• Professor Schneider’ podcast – Have You Heard
• Pre-order Professor Schneider’s new book – A Wolf at The Schoolhouse Door
• A primer on No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
• Professor Wayne Au on the links between testing and white supremacy

Remember, any book bought through a link here or by starting at our affiliate page on IndieBound supports local bookstores, and Integrated Schools. The Integrated Schools Podcast is produced by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits. Audio editing and mixing by Andrew Lefkowits. Music by Kevin Casey.