Lean Production: Inside the war on public education

[knitter4democracy]

26. It's not about database tracking.

It's about too many kids in a room with only one adult in charge. Once you pass a threshold, the adult isn't in charge anymore, and in reality, the only reason we don't have more violence and problems is because most kids are good and play by the rules.

Grading essays takes time. Lots of time. Give a teacher too many students, and the amount the students write does down. Studies show that, when writing goes down, so do test scores and other objective measurements. That's not about database tracking but more the fact that there's no technology to replace the teacher going through an essay to point out where they need to fix it and where the errors are.

It's also not about bringing back a bygone era (more and more of us are tech-savvy and do our damndest to get kids tech literate as well) but using the data we have. There is a ton of data out there that says that smaller class sizes result in better outcomes, that computer-based education has severe limits (lower test scores, fewer kids graduate or finish programs, etc.), and that the best outcomes happen with an experienced, master teacher in the room.