In the 1990’s the Oklahoma State Board of Education imperiously declared
that by the year 2000: "All schools will focus instruction on the
needs of each individual student at all levels within the framework of an
integrated curriculum."
How could a secondary teacher assigned an average of, say, 110 students
per day, possibly individualize instruction for each and every one of them? This
is plainly impossible. And teachers had to accomplish this within the
framework of a newly “integrated curriculum” — whatever that meant.
This “reform” was borderline impossible for elementary teachers as well.
Designing and implementing instruction for small groups of, say, 5 or 6
youngsters is demanding, but doable. But truly individualizing newly integrated subject
matter for each of 20 or more children is just ridiculous when the teacher had to keep the rest of the children orderly and learning simultaneously. [1]
This so-called “reform” actually was a mind-numbing combination of wishful thinking
and political hot air. But Oklahoma educators had to appear to comply. This
doubtless gave rise to dozens of mind-numbing meetings and vast amounts of useless
paperwork. Meanwhile, from Kenton in the panhandle to Sallisaw on the Arkansas border, this
top-down “reform” interfered with educators actually doing
their job.
Years have passed since the Oklahoma “reform” deadline. Was the state’s
public education improved? Of course it wasn’t. The whole “reform” effort
was an odious, time-wasting, paper project inspired by hollow slogans "individualizing instruction" — “integrating
the curriculum.” Worse, it was forced on educators by self-important political
hacks that either didn’t have a clue about the day-to-day realities of
classroom teaching, or didn’t give a damn.
One day, far in the future, a janitor will be tidying
up the Oklahoma Department of Education’s back offices. In a musty corner he or
she will stumble across yellowed old documents submitted
by every one of the state’s 520 school districts in order to document how they managed to accomplish the impossible.
“What is all of this?” the janitor will wonder as
he or she struggles to carry the overflowing boxes to the trash. Meanwhile, in State
Education Department board-rooms across the country, not to mention the Department of
Education in Washington, a new crop of clueless political appointees will be crafting
still more top-down reforms to convince gullible voters that their particular administration
really does care about children — provided it isn’t costly.
[1] These
numbers are based on 2016 Oklahoma averages as compiled by the National Center
for Educational Statistics. http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/SASS/tables/sass0708_2009324_t1s_08.asp
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