Oh NO! Not Common Sense

Oh NO!  Not Common Sense!

For years we have been fed the fantasy that higher test scores mean a better school.  We have also been told that we need to have research based methodology for everything.  Here comes some research that a lot of these “raise standards, raise test scores” folks are going to have to explain away.

In a large study of over 150,000 students in every one of Chicago’s public high schools, research has found that students from schools that build social-emotional qualities do better than schools with high test scores.  How can that be?

The researchers found that the kids who went to schools that taught the ability to resolve conflicts, the motivation to work hard, and to have empathy are getting better both short-term and long-term results than schools with high test scores.  Specifically, schools that made a point to develop these so-called soft skills had students with higher grades, fewer absences and fewer discipline problems.  Later, students who attended these high schools went on to college at higher rates.   They even graduated at higher rates.

This is good research.  The findings were presented at the conference of the National Center for Longitudinal Data in Research Education, an organization noted for its significant follow-up research and credibility.  

Data were gathered by the researchers by interviewing students individually and through some survey data.  Data were collected at 9^th grade and again in the final year of high school.  Students who went to schools that were good at developing soft skills had higher grades, better attendance and fewer disciplinary incidents.  They also had higher graduation rates and were more likely to attend college.

We sometimes are afraid of terms like “social-emotional” skills but we will probably see “grit” as becoming a goal for educational facilities.  And that is not a bad idea.  Into each life a little rain will fall, and if we can prepare our students to persevere, they are more likely to be successful regardless of their endeavors.  The schools with the higher social emotional scores from students did not follow a particular curriculum.  Instead, they were staffed by adults who treated students with respect, fostered a sense of community and encouraged everyone to work hard regardless of academic skill level.

Oh, please do tell me that this teacher skill set will replace the demands for higher test scores.