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四级干货》》 作文 |阅读 |翻译 |听力
Deborah Kenny's "Born to Rise" Tells Story of Harlem Village Academies
A) Deborah Kenny, CEO of the Harlem Village Academies, is frustrated with
the nation's current education system. Unlike most, though, she decided to do
something about it. Part declaration part record, her book Born to Rise writes
down her journey toward creating and running her own system of progressive
charter schools in Harlem in New York City.
What is your educational philosophy?
B) We want our students to receive the same high-quality education as
students who are privileged to attend the best private schools in the country.
Personally, I believe a progressive education is superior as long as it's
delivered by really smart, talented teachers who know how to execute well. It's
a sophisticated approach that really only works well in the hands of a really
sophisticated educator. We're dealing with a little bit of a challenge because
students enter this school from the regular public system. And when they enter
in fifth grade, they're not yet well-trained in the basics reading, writing, and
math--which means that we have to catch them up on basic math skills, on the
'basics of writing. And many of them come in at a kindergarten, first,
second-grade level in reading. So we have to accelerate their mastery of the
basics, but we reject the idea that if you do that you can't teach that at a
high level. We push ourselves constantly to think about how we can make sure
that our students will catch up while we teach at the highest possible level. It
means asking difficult, delicate questions, not accepting an answer that is not
backed up by evidence, the kinds of things that you would expect to see in the
best private schools. We aim for a high level in rich discussions where the
students are asked to analyze a challenging text and where the teacher does not
accept just any answer simply because the student is behaving. What makes the
Harlem Village Academies different?
C) First of all, I have to say what we have in common with other charter
schools because we have learned so much from them: creating an expectation that
all students will attend college, naming classrooms after colleges, the longer
school day, the longer school year. I feel it's important to give credit where
credit is due because I learned from them. In those early years when I opened
the school, most of these other schools bad been around for seven years, ten
years, some of them even longer.
D ) As far as what makes us different, I'll tell you what the teachers say:
teachers tell us that the level of professionalism and passion for teaching at a
high level and teaching above the test, not to the test, and working in an
environment, where everybody is trusted to do their job and continually
learning--there's this incredible culture of learning. There's this incredible
workplace culture where the adults are continually becoming better and learning
more about how to become a better lead her. The teachers get to make all of the
decisions 'about their own professional development rather than being enforced
to at tend the training. They are treated like professional-grade' doctors and
lawyers at the. Highest level. They actually make the decisions not only about
what books to use and what teaehing methed, but even about what their own
professional development Ioukslike.There's a very clear set of standards far
what the students need to know and be "able to do at the end of each year and
quarter, and we hold people accountable for that end goal. But we give them
complete freedom to decide how they're going to achieve it, which is how all
professionals are treated. Unfortunately, it's not how most teachers are treated
inthis country. Most teachers are treated like factory workers, where there's a
hig set ofrules on how they have to do everything.
What does the curriculum look like at Harlem Village Academy schools?
E) It looks like a classic liberal-arts curriculum, where math, reading,
and writing are not the only subjects taught. Even if the state focuses its
testing on those things, we do not let the state dictate our curriculum. We are
interested in a rich curriculum that includes art and music and seience and
social studies and a wide variety of electives, and character education is
integrated throughout.
How do you address the criticisms people have regarding charter
schools?
F) I'd say that the .main criticisms are stemming from the fact that in a
charter system the teachers are not unionized, and they're treated as
professionals instead of as manual laborers. The charter movement is challenging
the current situation, it's eoming along and saying we used to completely change
the underlying premiere ( 前提) of how we go about public education. Parents
should be able to choose the scherzi. We should give power to all parents,
regardless of socioeonomie level, to choose where they send their child, and
that creates market competition: if you have an amazing school with caring
teachers and great results, parents are going to ~ant to choose that school. The
charter movement is putting the needs of children first anti is holding teachers
accountable. It ehalleuges the notion of tenure (终身教职), where there's no
accountability at all.
What's next for you and the Harlem Village Academies?
G) We are going to triple (增至三倍) in size in the next twn years. We will
have a full K -12 system. We're starting two new elementary schools, we will be
serving 2,000 children, but we are not eager to grow super-big. We want to use
the platform of what we' re learned and the results that we've produced--that
ant teachers have produced--to have an ational influence on policy and on
teaching methods. The laws that govern how school srun constrain the ability of
the printcipal to run the school well. They're not allowed to build a team. And
building a team where teachers are trusted, happy and cooperative is really the
foundation for an excellent school. So we want to find a way to get our message
out nationally and continue to be part of the movement.
1. In the Harlem Village Academies. teachers can decide themselves how they
are going to achieve the teaching objectives.
2. The charter movement challenges the tenure system in making children's
needs apriority and holding, teachers responsible.
3. The Harlem Village Academies will be able to enroll 2,000 ehildren in
the next twoyears
4. Deborah Kenny admits that she learns a lot from other charter
schools.
5. The curriculum at Harlem Village Academies not only includes the
subjects frequentlytested.
6.The Harlem Village Academies are eager to exert a national influence on
policy and teaching methods.
7. Students entering the Harlem Village Academies are from the regular
public system.
8. Deborah Kenny decides to create and run the Harlem Village Academies
because sheis disappointed about the current education system.
9. Charter schools are mainly criticized for treating the teachers as
professionals.
10. One of the challenges facing the Harlern Village Academies is how to
accelerate students' mastery of the basics.
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发表于 2018-12-8 10:33:36