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October 26, 2011

A Real Christian Education

My daughter Penny reveals that academic success is not always connected to test scores.

Amy Julia Becker

Our daughter Penny started kindergarten six weeks ago. At the end of her first day of school, she greeted me with, “Mom! I didn’t miss you!” She’s loved every moment since. I’m sure much of her experience is typical—she walks to school, she works on spelling and reading and basic math concepts, she plays on the playground at recess. And yet Penny’s experience also highlights significant changes in American education over the past few decades because Penny has Down syndrome and an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and regular therapy sessions. Hers is an “integrated” classroom, with two teachers and a classroom aid. Forty years ago, she might not have been eligible to attend public school at all, much less in a classroom alongside her typically-developing peers.

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Penny’s academic skills are similar to those of her friends at the moment, but her behavior is different. Her teacher breaks the day down into 10-minute intervals, with a sticker for every stretch of self-control Penny displays, and frequent rewards—"Freeze Dance," a prize from the prize box, the chance to read out loud to the class—throughout the day. It’s a lot of work to have Penny in the classroom. And it’s a great place for Penny. I hope and pray that it’s also a great place for the other kids, that Penny’s presence contributes to the learning environment in such a way that she is a blessing to her peers, even as she is blessed by their inclusion of her.

The New York Times recently ran a series of opinion pieces about “differentiated learning,” in which teachers modify curriculum so that children of various academic abilities can all work in the same classroom at the same time. Most of the commentators held up differentiated learning as an ideal, but they also expressed concern about how this learning works in practice. Cassandra Davis attributes higher test scores for struggling students to inclusion and differentiated instruction, but Michael Petrilli counters that differentiated learning harms high achievers because teachers pay less attention to the kids who least need their help. Frederick Hess summarizes the disparity: “low-achieving students benefit when placed in mixed-ability classrooms (faring about five percentage points better than those placed in lower-track classes) but high-achievers fared six percentage points worse in such general classes.”

My own experience in school couldn’t have been more different than Penny’s. I skipped kindergarten because I came home crying a few weeks into the year. “When is it going to get harder?” I asked my mother. I went on to excel in school, but I cried again in fourth grade when I received a B on my report card for math class. I remember forgoing social events and working all the time in high school. It wasn’t until I was two years into college that it dawned on me that school was about more than my personal academic achievement. As I learned more about Jesus’ priorities, I began to see my single-minded devotion to getting good grades as a problem instead of a sign of success. I had learned a lot about literature and calculus and historical events. I could speak Spanish. I would soon graduate from a good college with good grades. Yet I hadn’t learned much about serving other people or about understanding the gifts I could receive from others, even, especially, people who weren’t as academically inclined as me.

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In Mark 9, and elsewhere within the Gospels, Jesus’ disciples remind me of myself. They bicker with each other over who is the greatest, over which one of them will gain the most power and prestige in God’s eyes. They are climbing the equivalent of today’s corporate ladder, a ladder that now begins in the classroom, with the rungs of academic achievement leading to productive employment leading to success in the eyes of their peers. And then Jesus disrupts their posturing with a child: “He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.’”

I suppose I could say God disrupted my own posturing with a child too. Having a child with learning disabilities has challenged my notions of the purpose of education and offered me a broader vision of God’s kingdom. The potential exists for a similar positive disruption to occur throughout the nation’s classrooms as teachers attempt to educate students with diverse needs. Having a child with a disability has opened my eyes to the ways in which my education—filled with enrichment programs, dedicated teachers, and independent studies—was nevertheless an impoverished one. I never learned alongside or from people who don’t share my academic inclinations. It took me a long time to recognize that my own academic strengths correspond to weaknesses in my character and to recognize that each of my fellow beings has the ability to teach me, if only I have the eyes to see them as God’s beloved.

The purpose of education, at least from a Christian perspective, is not simply academic achievement or increased GDP. Education is one aspect of spiritual formation, in which we learn how to love and serve one another as Christ has loved us. Classrooms with differentiated learning serve “the least of these,” even if they lead to less academic success for peers with higher IQ’s. But I would argue that differentiated classrooms serve the high-achievers too. In some ways, classrooms with differentiated learning mirror the kingdom of God, a kingdom in which merit does not gain us a seat at the king’s table but rather the invitation of the king to understand ourselves as dependent and vulnerable human beings who are both gifted and loved.

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Posted by Sarah Pulliam Bailey on October 26, 2011 9:06 AM

Comments

I never thought about the connection between the corporate ladder and the classroom, but you're totally right. And I didn't learn to balance school and everything else until having a child myself (I'm currently in graduate school... although, to be honest, now I'm having a difficult time making school a priority at all). But in college, grades were my idol. I put academics before all else. And then my first go-around in graduate school (for acting), I let school absolutely consume my soul. And no, that's not hyperbole.

Anyways. Just as we shouldn't preach the world's message about climbing the job ladder, nor should we preach the message about getting perfect grades in school. Instead, we should be preaching the Gospel -- letting it become incarnational in all areas of our lives -- the home, the classroom, the playground, the coffee shop, the church, etc.

Solid post. :)

Posted By: rachel - even one sparrow | October 26, 2011 12:30 PM

Wonderful article! Thank you so much! This is a big issue among Christian educators, and for some reason debated. :) I actually just finished a small supplemental text on this issue for Christian educators in our private and public schools.

When people use differentiated instruction as an example of how this neglects the "higher" functioning students, I like to remind them that differentiated instruction was actually founded for the population of GIFTED students. :) Much of the work is from Carol Tomlinson at UVA.

Also, one of my favorite educational quotes - "the A students work for the B students. The C students run the businesses. And the D students dedicate the buildings." Charles Schwab.

Thanks for sharing!

Posted By: Beth | October 26, 2011 12:47 PM

Haven't read a piece here in a while that I could say such an unqualified "Amen" to, so I'll say it twice - Amen and Amen.

My girls's private Christian school recently went through a crisis after a sudden move to a curriculum that would have embraced this "integrated" model. For many parents, the requirement for their "gifted" children to be one grade ahead so they could be at the top of the SAT heap and get into Stanford ahead of the unwashed public schoolers trumped all. As Christians, we need to be mindful that "gifting" truly is just that - the undeserved granting of skills to be used to build God's Kingdom for God's glory. Anything else is simply burying those gifts in the sand, and we'd do well to heed Jesus' warnings about the consequences of that!

Posted By: Rachael Starke | October 26, 2011 1:11 PM

Nice post Amy. As the husband of a paraeducator who is assigned to a student with Physical disabilities, as well as being a parent with two kids who were each in the GATE program, this has struck a chord with me.

I also like the spiritual significance you raise. The idea of differentiated instruction and whether it raises some and lowers others takes on a different importance with Jesus as the great Instructor. When we learn from him, students are not concerned with whether they will match each others' performance. Instead, we find that we are being raised to the level of the Instructor himself. Aren't justification, sanctification and glorification amazing?

Tim

Posted By: Tim | October 26, 2011 1:19 PM

I can relate to your experience of being a high-achiever and not having a lot of patience for other goals of education, like character-building. This post led me to think about education in a new, more Christian way. Thanks!

Posted By: Bethany | October 26, 2011 1:39 PM

I had to smile when I read this, as it reminded me of this delightful piece from a decade ago:

http://www.theonion.com/articles/parents-of-nasal-learners-demand-odorbased-curricu,396/

Posted By: Peter | October 26, 2011 5:17 PM

I loved this article, Amy! God bless you for your insight and understanding of what education is really about! I hope parents and students will read this and be inspired!

Posted By: Suzy | October 27, 2011 7:04 AM

Amy, I love this post. I wish all teachers and parents would read it! I have six kids, five who go to public school. Of those five I have two who are high achievers -- my oldest can keeps his teachers (high school) moving trying to find more work for him to do that will challenge him. My 2 ten year olds both have IEPS, CP and FAE for one. The other has general learning disabilities. And the youngest is average in smarts but is a bit scatter-brained.

That being said, my oldest, because he is gifted intellectually, takes his extra time and helps fellow classmates. That is perfect! And I've seen my ones with disabilities bless others and help some of the students find their sweet parts, their kindness. One of the sweetest moments I remember is my son with CP and FAE holding onto the arm of another boy. My son says, "Will is my friend." And Will (the other boy) says, "Yep. Pete's my friend."

There is so much more to education than grades. It helps in my family that I also am the Sunday School teacher for 2 of them so it is in the forefront that my 3 youngest and I pray for their classmates and their teachers. When I can with my teenagers I do (or at least suggest it).

Our kids are missionaries too -- sometimes in just who they are.

Posted By: Jane Hinrichs | October 27, 2011 8:17 AM

As a parent of a gifted child I am a bit saddened by some of the comments here (which don't seem in keeping with the intent of the article). Pulling our child out for homeschooling was the result of differentiated classrooms for us. Not because we want to see our child at Harvard or achieve more than other children, but rather that he can be the best "he," he can be. In a public school, differentiated setting, he was doing fine grades-wise, but floundering when it came to developing or using his God-given abilities. Watching him in school was like seeing the man in the parable who buries his talents rather than going out and developing and using them for God. Just remember, there are true benefits to any choice, but also many (often unintended) consequences. Try not to judge until you know someone's situation.

Posted By: Mark E> | October 27, 2011 4:01 PM

Mark E wrote "I am a bit saddened by some of the comments here ... Try not to judge until you know someone's situation." But the comments to this post are by people speaking from their own experiences. I haven't seen one judgmental sentence (unless it's self-evaluation). Is there something I'm missing Mark E?

Tim

Posted By: Tim | October 27, 2011 5:57 PM

Excellent post. I also have been following the debate in the New York Times and as I consider the ramafications, another verse may be applicable. Isaiah 29:14 says "Therefore once more I will astound these people with wonder upon wonder; the wisdom of the wise will perish, the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish." I teach mostly upper level high school science students, but I currently have a student with an IEP whose passion for science, especially physics, and his work ethic put his other classmates, many of whom have been labelled as "gifted", to shame. Personally, I am a bit skeptical of some of the uses of differentiation for different learning styles, but that does not mean that students with special needs should be shut out of the more challenging courses. I think Mr. Hess and Mr. Petrilli raise some legitimate concerns about challenging the high achievers. Yet, history has shown that giving those opportunities to only the so-called elite closes us off to the possibilities God would have us benefit. Think of it this way; if God had stayed strictly within man's wisdom we would have had no opportunities for David because he wasn't firstborn, Ehud (Judges 3:15) because he was left handed (probably because he couldn't use his right hand), Deborah because she was a woman, or Joseph because he was a slave in an Egyptian jail.

Posted By: Brian Campbell | October 27, 2011 6:54 PM

Thanks for this post. The education of our children is such an important topic and one that needs serious thought and attention right now.

I am a homeschooling mom of a kindergartener (after pulling him out of school a few weeks ago), and my husband is in school to get his teaching license. Education is a constant topic in our home.

I'm glad that your daughter is receiving such great benefits from integrated learning, and I'm sure the other students also benefit from her presence. But, you said that there were 2 teachers and a classroom aide in your daughter's classroom. That makes a huge difference in the experience. In our understaffed, underfunded school district (laying off 33 history teachers in the middle of the semester), it's a different story.

My son had a little boy with special needs in his classroom for a few weeks and it was not a good experience. It had nothing to do with academics. The child's behavior disrupted the classroom regularly. The few times I ate lunch at school, the kids were quick to tell me that this child was "bad." (I couldn't correct them because at the time I didn't know he had special needs.) None of this is the fault of the children or the teacher. She was simply too stretched to give the kids the same experience your daughter has had.

I love the idea of integrated learning, but the schools must be staffed well to make it work for everyone. And when the district is too poor to employ teachers for basic subjects...well, there's a whole wealth of other issues to discuss.

Posted By: Monica Selby | October 28, 2011 7:10 AM

Monica, You make a great point. One of the things I love about Penny's school is that the entire school culture is supportive of differentiated learning, and the school has the resources to make it work. I worry very much for kids with special needs as well as typically-developing kids in schools where either the culture is not supportive or the funding is not available.

Posted By: Amy Julia Becker | October 28, 2011 8:54 AM

Almost nothing gets me hot under the collar faster than the subject of education. While I excelled in school, my brother struggled intensely, eventually dropping out during his sophomore year. He has yet to get his GED, convinced that he isn't smart enough to pass the tests. I can't stand that. Traditional modes of learning and evaluation work well for those who can easily memorize facts and spit them out onto paper, but what about those whose minds don't work that way?

I honestly don't believe that there is a good way to measure intelligence, because God has fashioned us all so differently. We are meant to complement each other. I was able to complete a college degree, but my brother can spell any word (really, any word) you give him. He can also do complicated math in his head and has never gotten lost. Why does it have to be that one of us is "smart" and the other is "dumb?"

Differentiated learning is a fabulous idea, though I agree heartily with what Monica said about schools needing to be properly staffed to make it work. I also think that parents need to take a more active interest in their children's education. (That comment isn't aimed at anyone here. I work in a library, and I've seen many parents who are very involved. Sadly, though, for every set that helps with homework and believes education is more than just six hours at school, I see two more who couldn't care less).

Posted By: Marie | October 28, 2011 7:08 PM

Tim,

Without calling anyone specific out, I think it is easy to go back through the comments to see the ones that disparage higher functioning students and their grade-and-achievement grubbing parents. I am not totally against differentiation, if it is done right. I have not seen that myself. In my community neither those who struggle with learning nor those who excel are getting what they need. I was trying to give the perspective that with any kid who learns differently than the main group of kids there are issues and struggles. Sadly, I can't even bring up that my child is gifted (even here) without being met with indifference or antipathy. It is either seen as bragging to say you have a gifted child or they think that we shouldn't complain as if they are no issues with a truly gifted child. Why can't we all agree that raising and educating children is hard and help each other, rather than trying to figure out who has it worse.

Posted By: Mark E. | October 31, 2011 8:09 AM

Mark E, great suggestion here: "Why can't we all agree that raising and educating children is hard and help each other, rather than trying to figure out who has it worse."

It doesn't matter what type of child you have, challenges abound. Our two are in college now and the challenges continue. Raising kids is hard work, and there's no reason to make it harder than it already is. The corrolary to this, of course, is that there's nothing like being a parent. What an adventure!

Cheers,
Tim

Posted By: Tim | October 31, 2011 12:37 PM

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