3 ms·

>Whatever we do, we have to ask our clinicians and teachers whether measurement is working, and truly listen when they tell us that it isn’t. Today, that is pre

>Whatever we do, we have to ask our clinicians and teachers whether measurement is working, and truly listen when they tell us that it isn’t. Today, that is precisely what they’re saying.> The simplest solution, which very often turns out to be the most effective and least expensive solution, is to ask those personally involved in a system to improve it, themselves...if they have trouble getting started offer incentives for them to do so... That (first) step is all too often skipped in our "age of impatience"...

doppioandante 11y ago
I'm not sure I've understood your point, but that has some problems. My parents are high school teachers in Italy. Right now the government is requiring a basic evaluation system for teachers. Tests here are hardly ever standardized and can vary a lot; tests for things like Latin that is still taught like 100 years ago would be impossible to standardize anyway, so assessing student performance is impossible. They could not come up with some metrics for whatever reason, and now teachers have to decide these criteria by themselves. Of course nobody agrees on what such criteria should be, and those I've heard from my parents are hardly useful to improve teaching quality.
- Outdoorsman 11y ago
  I think I understand the difficulties you identify...maybe I should have done a better job expanding upon, or explaining, what I'm advocating, which is simply the idea of "continuous improvement"... In short, I'm in favor of involving those most closely related (those in direct contact, those in the actual environment) to what is perceived as a "problem" in devising a solution, or solutions...versus having an outside entity recommending improvements that might, or might not, improve outcomes... Improvement is often hard, and when it comes it comes in increments...sometimes those increments are incredibly small, but even marginal improvements contribute to the success of the whole...even without "metrics" I think most teachers know, or sense, the difference in student outcomes their approaches have led to... I'll bet (although reaching a consensus is difficult, especially across academic disciplines) that each teacher, at the end of a course, has in mind some way that their efforts could have been at least marginally more productive and could quickly answer the question, "What should I do differently next time?" ... The best teachers do this automatically...and it makes all the difference...

doppioandante 11y ago

I'm not sure I've understood your point, but that has some problems. My parents are high school teachers in Italy. Right now the government is requiring a basic evaluation system for teachers. Tests here are hardly ever standardized and can vary a lot; tests for things like Latin that is still taught like 100 years ago would be impossible to standardize anyway, so assessing student performance is impossible. They could not come up with some metrics for whatever reason, and now teachers have to decide these criteria by themselves. Of course nobody agrees on what such criteria should be, and those I've heard from my parents are hardly useful to improve teaching quality.

Outdoorsman 11y ago
I think I understand the difficulties you identify...maybe I should have done a better job expanding upon, or explaining, what I'm advocating, which is simply the idea of "continuous improvement"... In short, I'm in favor of involving those most closely related (those in direct contact, those in the actual environment) to what is perceived as a "problem" in devising a solution, or solutions...versus having an outside entity recommending improvements that might, or might not, improve outcomes... Improvement is often hard, and when it comes it comes in increments...sometimes those increments are incredibly small, but even marginal improvements contribute to the success of the whole...even without "metrics" I think most teachers know, or sense, the difference in student outcomes their approaches have led to... I'll bet (although reaching a consensus is difficult, especially across academic disciplines) that each teacher, at the end of a course, has in mind some way that their efforts could have been at least marginally more productive and could quickly answer the question, "What should I do differently next time?" ... The best teachers do this automatically...and it makes all the difference...