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Testimony of Nicholas Lawrence, 8th grade teacher, Educators 4 Excellence member To the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Education on

“The Regents Reform Agenda: “Assessing” Our Progress” Tuesday, October 29, 2013

 Senator  Flanagan,  members  of  the  education  committee,  fellow  panelists,  community  members,  thank  you  for  offering  me  the  opportunity  to  speak  at  this  important  hearing.  My  name  is  Nicholas  Lawrence.  I  am  a  concerned  citizen,  an  education  stakeholder,  a  union  member,  and  I’ve  been  a  part  of  the  Crotona  Park  East/Fairmont  Claremont  Village  community  for  a  bit  more  than  five  years.  I  am  an  active  member  of  Educators  4  Excellence,  a  teacher-­‐led  nonprofit  that  places  the  voices  of  teachers  at  the  forefront  of  the  education  policy  discussion.  Most  importantly,  my  wife  is  a  teacher  and  I  teach  8th  grade  United  States  history  and  a  college-­‐prep  elective  called  AVID  to  high  school  juniors  at  the  East  Bronx  Academy  For  The  Future.  I  am  also  a  lead  educator  who  coaches  other  teachers.  Education  reform  is  not  a  distant  phrase  to  me.  It  is  not  a  plan,  or  a  newspaper  editorial  or  a  policy  whitepaper  or  a  think-­‐tank  panel  discussion.  My  student  and  I  live  in  every  day  in  our  classroom.    Just  as  real  for  me  is  the  necessity  that  our  schools  must  change,  must  be  improved,  must  –  yes  –  be  reformed.  I  know  that  teachers  are  not  superheroes  in  and  out  of  the  classroom  –  we  can’t  do  and  be  responsible  for  everything.  We  can’t  turn  off  the  TV  at  night  or  give  all  our  kids  a  stable  home;  we  can’t  clothe  them  when  they’re  cold  or  feed  them  when  they’re  hungry,  though  we  wish  we  could  and  sometimes  try.  What  we  can  do,  however,  is  teach  them  when  they’re  in  our  classrooms.  We  can,  and  must,  engage  them  with  literature,  challenge  them  with  math,  impress  them  with  science,  inspire  them  with  art  and  music,  and  through  the  study  of  history  bring  to  them  a  sense  of  community  in  their  borough,  in  their  city,  in  their  state,  and  in  their  country.    I’ve  been  in  classrooms  and  schools  where  this  is  happening,  where  loud  noises  indicate  creativity  rather  than  chaos,  where  teachers  have  invested  their  students  so  well  that  when  one  kid  is  off-­‐task,  it’s  not  just  the  teacher  who  corrects  him  –  it’s  his  peers.  In  fact,  it’s  a  community  that  doesn’t  only  correct  behavior;  it  is  a  community  that  promotes  a  healthy  devotion  to  self-­‐improvement  –  a  healthy  approach  to  academic  achievement.  It  is  a  community  that  values  learning  –  that  believes  learning  history,  and  math,  and  science,  and  English  not  only  leads  to  future  success,  but  is  worth  doing,  just  for  the  sake  of  learning.      There  is  still  much  work  to  be  done,  though.  Teachers  know  it,  parents  know  it,  politicians  know  it  –  our  students  certainly  know  it.  On  both  the  math  and  English  components  of  the  new  Common  Core–aligned  tests,  the  vast  majority  of  our  students  –  about  three  quarters  –  did  not  pass.      Perhaps  we  can  chalk  some  of  this  up  to  new  tests  and  a  new  curriculum,  but  let’s  not  kid  ourselves:  Students  in  New  York  City  and  New  York  State  are  not  where  they  need  to  be,  and  far  too  many  are  graduating  neither  college-­‐  nor  career-­‐ready.  And  some  aren’t  even  graduating.    

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 According  to  the  New  York  State  Education  Department,  only  74%  of  New  York  students  are  completing  high  school  on  time,  and  only  35%  of  students  are  estimated  to  graduate  college-­‐  and  career-­‐ready.    This  matters.  It’s  great  to  have  a  high  school  diploma,  but  we  also  know  that  in  today’s  economy  that’s  often  not  enough  to  get  a  living-­‐wage  job.  Not  all  students  will  choose  to  attend  college  –  but  all  students  should  have  the  preparation  and  opportunity  to  attain  a  college  degree  or  other  form  of  higher  education  if  they  so  choose.    And  indeed  many  students  are  pursuing  this  option,  but  sadly  they’re  finding  that  their  K–12  education  is  not  leaving  them  equipped  to  handle  the  rigors  of  college  level  courses.  The  New  York  State  Education  Department  estimates  that  about  25%  of  students  attending  college  must  undergo  some  form  of  remediation  –  and  that  number  balloons  to  over  50%  of  students  at  two-­‐year  universities.      Although  there  are  a  few  dissenting  voices  arguing  implausibly  that,  no,  our  schools  are  doing  just  fine,  the  vast  majority  of  stakeholders  agree  that  public  education  in  New  York  needs  drastic  improvement  –  and  needs  it  soon.  The  much  tougher  question  is  how  to  go  about  making  these  improvements.    As  a  classroom  teacher,  I  live,  breath,  and  implement  the  current  attempts  at  improvement,  and  I’ve  seen  the  ways  that  two  of  the  most  important  reforms  –  teacher  evaluation  and  Common  Core  State  Standards  –  have  improved  my  school,  supported  me  as  a  teacher,  and,  most  importantly,  helped  my  students  learn.    Let  me  start  with  teacher  evaluations.      I  am  a  professional,  and  I  should  be  treated  as  one.  Doctors,  lawyers,  engineers,  architects  –  every  profession  that  I  can  think  of  is  evaluated  and  given  feedback  on  the  basis  of  their  work  product.    But  for  years,  this  rarely  was  the  case  for  the  teaching  profession.  While  my  principal  has  visited  my  classroom  to  observe  my  class  as  much  as  possible  to  give  me  feedback  on  my  performance,  I  know  that  this  was  not  the  norm  for  New  York  City.  Even  two  to  three  years  ago,  my  principal  did  not  actively  make  teacher  evaluation  and  improvement  the  priority  of  my  school.  This  was  no  fault  of  my  administrators,  as  there  is  an  enormous  menu  of  choices  on  which  principals  can  focus  to  improve  their  schools  in  addition  to  the  oppressive  piles  of  paperwork  and  bureaucratic  red  tape.  In  the  past  two  years,  my  administrators  have  also  made  the  important  decision  to  put  teacher  improvement  at  the  forefront  of  their  school  improvement  efforts.    That  said,  many  of  my  colleagues  and  my  own  wife  have  not  been  as  fortunate  as  I.  Many  deal  with  administrations  that  are  focused  on  compliance  or  disciplining  teachers  based  on  their  own  unique  “vision”  of  what  education  should  be,  rather  than  assessing  learning  and  teaching  on  a  shared  understanding  of  what  solid  instruction  looks  like.  In  those  instances,  

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the  old  evaluation  system  was  often  times  treated  as  a  hoop  through  which  teachers  and  administrators  must  jump,  rather  than  a  tool  to  make  our  schools  better  by  improving  teacher  quality.    Things  are  different  this  year  throughout  the  city.  I  will  receive  one  of  four  ratings:  highly  effective,  effective,  developing,  or  ineffective.  Overwhelming  research  confirms  that  teachers  vary  in  our  effectiveness,  and  our  evaluations  should  reflect  this.  I  felt  fortunate  that  my  school  has  been  working  for  two  years  now  to  create  a  culture  wherein  teachers  strive  to  be  better  and  in  which  teachers  are  given  an  informal  rating  on  this  scale.  This  year  the  state  has  made  a  similar  system  more  official,  but  the  sentiment  of  improvement  is  still  present.    Perhaps  most  exciting  for  me  to  report  is  the  way  that  New  York  City’s  evaluation  system  is  effecting  a  cultural  shift  in  city  schools.  No  longer  are  we  encouraged  to  shut  our  doors,  and  do  our  own  thing  –  instead  by  supporting  professional  development,  observations,  and  use  of  the  Danielson  rubric,  the  evaluation  system  is  encouraging  teachers  and  principals  to  talk  about  what  effective  pedagogy  is,  and  how  we  as  professionals  can  continue  to  improve  our  practice.    In  New  York  City,  we  are  given  the  choice  of  being  observed  four  times  –  including  one  formal  evaluation  –  or  six  times.  We  are  also  given  the  choice  of  whether  to  be  videotaped  to  hone  our  teaching.  These  are  minimum  observation  numbers,  and  I  hope  my  principal  comes  to  visit  more  often  than  that.  This  isn’t  about  ‘gotcha!’  –  it’s  about  supporting  struggling  teachers  and  recognizing  top-­‐notch  performers.  The  choices  embedded  in  the  system  are  also  an  important  step  in  treating  us  as  the  professionals  we  are.      Indeed,  the  preliminary  conferences  that  I’ve  already  had  with  my  principal  have  been  very  positive.  They  are,  in  fact,  a  continuation  of  the  work  we’ve  been  implementing  over  the  past  two  years.  The  feedback  I’ve  received  has  affected  my  practice  in  a  positive  way.  It  has  forced  me  to  continue  my  own  professional  development  and  pedagogical  improvement  –  even  when  it’s  not  easy.    You  needn’t  take  my  word  for  it.  At  an  event  with  Chancellor  Walcott  –  hosted  by  Educators  4  Excellence  –  more  than  100  teachers  in  the  audience  were  polled  on  a  variety  of  education  issues.    Over  60%  of  those  voting  expressed  hope  that  the  new  evaluation  system  would  lead  to  useful  feedback  and  support.  Nearly  two  thirds  agreed  that  the  most  positive  change  in  their  school  as  a  result  of  the  new  system  was  an  increase  in  conversations  about  teaching.    This  is  a  sea  change  –  and  an  important  one.  Since  research  shows  that  teaching  quality  is  the  most  important  in-­‐school  determinant  of  student  achievement,  I  am  convinced  that  the  new  focus  on  quality  instruction  will  improve  my  students’  academic  and  life  outcomes.      The  second  important  change  that  is  affecting  my  classroom  is  the  new  Common  Core  State  Standards.  Like  the  vast  majority  of  teachers  in  my  school,  and  teachers  in  the  city  and  

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state,  as  well  as  educators  in  the  45  states  that  have  adopted  the  standards,  I  believe  that  the  Common  Core  will  raise  the  bar  for  students  and  teachers  alike,  challenging  us  to  go  beyond  rote  instruction  and  into  the  deep  critical  thinking  that  constitutes  an  excellent  education.    In  a  recent  poll  conducted  by  the  National  Education  Association  –  the  country’s  largest  teachers’  union  –  almost  three  quarters  of  the  teachers  surveyed  expressed  support  for  the  Common  Core,  with  just  11%  opposed.      The  Common  Core  sets  high-­‐quality  standards  that  students  in  states  from  Hawaii  to  New  York  –  and  many  in  between  –  will  be  using.  It  has  been  endorsed  by  a  host  of  groups  and  individuals,  from  Republicans  like  Jeb  Bush  and  Chris  Christie  to  Democrats  like  President  Obama  and  Andrew  Cuomo.      Of  course,  as  a  teacher,  I  understand  that  the  real  test  is  not  what’s  written  in  the  standards,  but  how  the  standards  are  implemented  in  classrooms  across  the  state.  And  it’s  certainly  and  unfortunately  true  that  there  are  many  schools  in  New  York  that  have  not  received  enough  support  –  be  it  in  curriculum,  professional  development,  or  administrator  support.  I  count  myself  lucky  that  my  administration  recognized  the  importance  of  these  standards  early  on  so  that  the  school  community  could  begin  to  receive  professional  development  and  training  on  how  to  shift  to  this  set  of  standards,  if  at  the  very  least  to  start  to  engage  in  conversation  about  the  implications  of  the  shift.  Even  in  a  school  that  worked  to  implement  the  standards  early,  I  feel  as  though  there  is  a  great  deal  to  learn  about  the  set  of  standards  as  well  as  how  teachers  can  weave  them  into  the  curricula  and  classes  they  have  established  as  parts  of  their  school  communities.    These  stories  of  implementation  issues  are  no  reason  to  abandon  the  Common  Core.  The  solution  to  lack  of  support  for  teachers  is  more  support  for  teachers.  The  solution  to  a  curriculum  that  is  not  aligned  is  a  curriculum  that  is  aligned,  as  well  as  supporting  the  teachers  who  will  rewrite  their  curriculum  to  align  with  the  Common  Core.  The  solution  to  bad  tests  is  better  tests,  designed  by  teachers.  The  solution  does  not  lie  in  delaying  stakes  so  they  may  never  come,  or  so  that  implementation  is  a  dress  rehearsal  rather  than  the  real  thing.  After  all,  for  our  students,  there  are  no  moratoriums  on  their  education.      The  truth,  I  think,  is  that  examples  of  faulty  implementation,  though  very  real,  have  been  emphasized  by  those  –  for  one  ideological  reason  or  another  –  who  would  like  to  see  the  Common  Core  fail.  But  in  fact,  at  the  Educators  4  Excellence  event  I  spoke  about  earlier,  66%  of  teachers  said  they  felt  at  least  somewhat  prepared  to  teach  to  the  Common  Core  standards.  Certainly  buried  in  that  number  is  room  for  growth,  but  it  also  belies  the  notion  that  roll  out  of  the  new  standards  has  been  a  failure.    We  know  that  improving  our  schools  will  be  a  long  and  challenging  task,  requiring  immense  political  will.  As  a  classroom  teacher,  I  know  how  hard  it  is  to  execute  a  great  lesson  –  executing  a  plan  to  strengthen  all  classrooms  in  the  state  is  a  daunting  task  indeed.  But  it’s  also  a  deserving  one.    

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I  can’t  promise  you  silver  bullets  or  miracles  or  meteoric  test  rises.  What  I  can  promise  is  that  if  New  York  stays  the  course  on  these  reforms,  teachers  across  the  state  will  continue  to  work  to  give  the  best  to  their  students.  For  veteran  teachers  as  well  as  new  teachers,  this  may  be  the  most  important  point.  These  reforms  are  real  and  worthy  –  more  so  than  many,  if  not  most,  prior  education  reforms  in  this  city  and  state.  Veteran  teachers  have  felt  duped  by  past  reforms  and  new  teachers  are  entering  our  profession  in  a  time  of  great  change.  To  retract  support  for  them  would  be  to  pull  the  rug  out  from  beneath  the  teaching  force  –  yet  again.  The  long  and  short  of  it  is  that  we  need  time  to  implement  these  changes.  As  we  assess  the  progress  of  reforms,  what  we’re  really  doing  is  aggregating  all  classrooms’  progress.  I  can’t  speak  for  all  of  them,  of  course,  but  I  can  speak  for  my  own.  And  in  my  classroom,  progress  is  the  word  that  comes  to  mind  –  my  own  progress  as  a  teacher,  my  students’  progress  as  learners,  and  that  the  state’s  progress  in  implementing  successful  education  policies.  This  progress  is  real  and  it  ought  to  continue.  It  is  what  makes  my  job  exciting  and  worthy.  It  is  why  I  work  so  hard.      Thank  you  and  I  welcome  any  questions.