Benefits Of Using Standards For Students

To apply the second standard to my practice I have to make sure I ask questions about the work I am supposed to be doing with my students. Once I know what I am going to doing then, it is up to me to make sure that I know and understand what I am supposed to be teaching the students. To demonstrate that I am adhering to the standard, I have to take the time to plan out what I will be teaching the students and make sure that they are understanding what they are learning.

Today, many states and schools systems are adopting a standards based education system. In fact, according to Common Core Standards Initiative (2014), forty-three states, the District of Columbia, four territories, and the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) have adopted the Common Core State Standards. The premise is that if all critical subject areas follow a standard from state to state, that all students will receive the same and fair education. The Vermont State Board of Education saw a need and a value in implementing such a system. As such, the Board created a strategic plan to implement a framework of standards that would eventually adopt the common core standards. This paper will discuss the strategic plan created by the Vermont Board of Education and evaluate whether or not the goals of the plan were met through the Framework of Standards.

In a standardized curriculum, students become stressed because of the standards that are set. Students are not exploring, creating, or analyzing. Students are not developing their identity.

The purpose of the ISLLC 2008 Standards are to make sure effective leadership is practiced in a changing educational society. These standards should be used as models to effectively run an organization smoothly. These standards impact the educational community because it is allowed a voice. Stakeholders, members of the community, and parents are able to connect and collaborate with school leaders in order to achieve the vision and reach goals.

The purpose of the ISLLC standards is to redefine the roles of school leaders. The standards emphasize on the skills that leaders must be displaying in their schools. Leaders need to deliberate an effective learning environment for all students and by having a set of standards, it makes this more attainable. They serve as a checklist to guide school leaders in the right direction. In addition the standards serve as an evaluation tool for school administrators. They are a set of guidelines that can be used to oversee and evaluate school leaders. These guidelines are useful to aid in improving their performance as administrators. As a result of having clear and consistent guidelines for school leaders the educational community also benefits from these standards. Standard four calls for leaders to collaborate with all stakeholders, responding to the diverse interest and needs of the community. (ISSLC, 2008) Administrators are expected to collaborate with all stakeholders which is how the standards impact the educational community.

Education has been changing and developing for centuries, and with change comes differing of opinions. The Common Core standards are the most recent attempt to educate the best students in the United States. Although teachers at schools implementing Common Core are learning new methods of teaching, the standards do not dictate what approach they should take; these standards are what students should comprehend and be able to do by the end of the term or scholastic year. Provided that students are invested in their personal educations, students should be better prepared for their lives in the “real world,” what some call the portion of life following high school as a result. The Common Core standards should be the standards of education in the United States as it will improve the abilities of students more and produce conscientious citizens of the world capable of contribution.

For many grades and levels, the standards are too progressive. Performance stakes are being raised for students everywhere. Since the year 2007, the standards were introduced and developed

“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently,” Henry Ford stated. Students need to learn to fail in life to eventually succeed. Standards Based Grading (SBG) was created by Thomas R. Guskey. The point of SBG is to focus on the most recent work the student displayed. Frankly, that concept is unrealistic. The reality is traditional grading provides a more effective means of showing student progress and engagement. Not only is traditional grading understood universally, but the system motivates students to try their best on every assignment. Standards Based Grading may make the learning environment more relaxed for students, but is that always positive? To put it differently, civilians who have the perception that SBG is better are not understanding the reality that traditional grading is a more superior method.

ISLLC standards are organized by knowledge, disposition and performances. The knowledge components are those areas of knowledge that are specific to the standards. The disposition is what the administrator believes in, values, and conveys their commitment to the respective standard. The performances are the processes that the administrator engages and ensures. Both standards address six essential areas to effective leadership, the CEC standards require a knowledge base that is much more specific to that required by special education administrators, while the ISLLC standards appear more generic.

One benefit of the CCSS is to make sure teachers are engaging the students in a creative but effective lessons fit to each individual student. It helps students learn better by building upon something they have already learned or have prior knowledge of. The standards are meant to increase the benefits of good teaching on students, meaning it help higher the students’ performance in certain aspects of learning. Instead of students just learning the basic math and English skills they are being moderately taught the same thing but more of a lesson focused on preparing them for the future. Teachers get to teach whatever they think works best in their classroom just as long as the students reach the standards. The way students benefit from the standards is that they are taught. Although there are many benefits of the Common Core State Standards, there are also some gaps within it that need to be filled in or corrected before they become a continuous

Standardized tests are a positive way to look at student growth and if students are reaching national benchmarks. Many standardized tests are a useful tool when deciding what college to attend, for example, the MCAT is a medical standardized that is required for all admittees into medical school. Around the country, many children are able to conform to teacher-made tests and how to navigate through them, although with standardized tests, they are raw and able to show if a student is really struggling in a specific area. Standardized tests are useful in schools across the country because they help enforce growth and how students are meeting benchmarks, while making it an equal playing field for all students.

The ISLLC standards provide high-level guidance and insight about the traits, functions of work, and responsibilities expected of school and district leaders (ISLCC, 2008). Their main purpose is to increase understanding of how educational administrators can enhance teaching practices and student learning. As future school leaders it is imperative that we use these standards as tools in assisting us when making a decision regarding our stakeholders. However, applying the ISLLC standards in a school setting does not guarantee success for a school leader, but it does facilitate the process in creating a positive school culture in a learning

One benefit to Common Core Standards are that they are universally benchmarked. Meaning standards will be the same through each state. Before Common Core each state a different set of standards and assessments, making it hard to compare results on tests throughout the country. Having the same set of standards also allows that every student gets the same education and will be at the same benchmark once graduated to the next level. This allows students to move from town to town or even state without the loss of content knowledge.

Many students have experienced the joy of test-taking. For some people, tests do not bother them. However, many experience test anxiety especially for these more high-stake tests. There are many different standardized tests such as: SOLs, SATs, ACTs, and college entrance exams. These standardized tests are not efficient tools for determining the knowledge of students. People respond differently on tests depending on the testing environment and how their day has been. However, others argue that standardized tests show grades each individual student has truly earned. Standardized tests are stressful, they do not represent a student’s understanding of material well, and they interfere with the way teachers want to teach.

There is much controversy about wether standardized tests benefit students taking them. Some people believe that standardized tests benefit children others believe that standardized tests do not test a child’s abilities completely. I believe that standardized tests don't benefit students. In this story I will explain why I believe that standardized tests don’t benefit students.