New teaching system a hit Schools & Kids, posted by Editor, Mountain View Voice Online, on Mar 20, 2012 at 2:21 pm
Since the Explicit Direct Instruction program was introduced at the beginning of this school year, Craig Goldman, superintendent of the Mountain View Whisman School District, says that teachers have reported a significant increase in student engagement and interest in lessons.
Read the full story here Web Link posted Tuesday, March 20, 2012, 10:24 AM
Posted by MV Parent, a resident of the Monta Loma neighborhood, on Mar 20, 2012 at 2:21 pm
Voice: For a very different perspective on EDI, interview a cross-section of teachers but withhold their names from publication. You need to understand that the MV-Whisman district is very political and teachers have to be very careful about what they say publicly.
Posted by Oh please!, a resident of the Monta Loma neighborhood, on Mar 20, 2012 at 3:05 pm
Another boondoggle by the district to replace the last three pet projects of the superintendents. All the studies say EDI is the least effective teaching method out there. Yes, having individual white boards in math is a great idea, but that is not what EDI is. Ask the kindergarten teachers about EDI...
Posted by Observer, a resident of the Old Mountain View neighborhood, on Mar 20, 2012 at 5:40 pm
I would just like to know what has been going on in the classroom up until now? Nothing?
"Teachers all over the district have reported a significant increase in student engagement and interest in lessons." Is this quantifiable? If so, how? And when Goldman says "there are signs all around that his school district has been re-energized" how is that quantified? What criteria was measured to come up with such a statement? Or is the data driven decision making the district was selling a few years back now been thrown out the window?
So now we have a "highly systematic approach" in the classroom whereas before it was just chaos? So are we looking at teaching from a system of systems approach? Or is this replacing Ghysels' corporate approach to teaching whereby the students were stakeholders with decision making authority?
It sounds to me that all this mumbo jumbo is nothing more than an attempt to get pay raises all around for the administrators. Haul out a new label for teaching the old fashioned way, dress it up in fancy terms with acronyms, and then claim that it has improved learning and test scores.
Posted by MV parent, a resident of the Cuesta Park neighborhood, on Mar 20, 2012 at 8:59 pm
My child's teachers have been using individual white boards for at least 2 years already before the "new" system was brought to the district. The idea of calling on all students rather than letting the air time be hogged by the students who already know all the answers sounds like it is simply the way teachers would deal with that issue. All I know is that the EDI program has eaten up a ton of professional development time for teachers and has pulled them out of the classroom periodically on regular class days for training.
How does the EDI program dovetail with the Khan Academy math instruction pilot programs that are also going on in the district? That's a totally different approach - individualized learning, on-line and taken at a kid's own pace with the teacher becoming a mentor and guide of small groups of students who need specific skills reviewed or taught. Quite the opposite of instructing the entire large group on a scripted math lesson and using white boards to see which kids get it or not.
Posted by MV parent, a resident of the Old Mountain View neighborhood, on Mar 21, 2012 at 12:50 pm
Observer, "nothing" pretty much sums up what happens in my sons class room this year.
I would love to see a breakdown of how the district spent the 1 million from Google. The article states that the EDI program was taught to a group of teachers who then "passed on their knowledge" to other teachers until all had "at least a working understanding of the system". Seems like that million could have gone to something that would actually benefit the students.
Posted by Elizabeth D. Intero, a resident of the Whisman Station neighborhood, on Mar 22, 2012 at 1:31 pm
If Craig Goldman thinks this is such a great program, than he should go into the classroom for 6 hours and teach this new great program. The Google grant could have been used for WAY better things in the schools such as Art and Music programs, teacher salary increases, replace portables with actual classrooms, multi use rooms to be remodeled for better use of space. The district officials need to put their words to good use and become teachers for a day. Then we will see how excited they are after others come into the classrooms and belittle their teaching.
Posted by Student Teacher-Mom, a resident of the Waverly Park neighborhood, on Mar 25, 2012 at 7:19 am
A ProQuest search on "Explicit Direct Instruction" turns up only two recent research articles, both dissertations, both examining the impact of EDI on closing the achievement gap (Latino v White) in a California school. Both show that EDI was useful in these case studies.
Key research by major names in the field of English-learning (Krashen, Cummins, Dutro, etc) shows that much more than just explicit instruction is needed for students to authentically acquire the kind of academic language they need to succeed in school. But- it's a start.
My personal experience using EDI techniques tell me that it's useful in a large classroom- trying to make sure the kids are all participating in a whole-group lesson, for example. However, EDI should only be one tool in a teacher's "bag of tricks" to keep the classroom moving forward. I hope that's the real implementation.
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