Our 2009-10 Colloquium Series:
Preparing Students for Life Beyond K-12

The purpose of the Learning Policy Center Colloquium Series is to create an informed dialogue between researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and university students around timely national and local education policy questions. To view live webcasts for any events, click link indicated below at the time of each event (all are listed for Eastern Standard Time).

MARCH 25, 2010
"Finding Solutions to the Latino Education Crisis: A National Imperative"
Patricia Gándara, Professor of Education & Co-director of The Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles, UCLA
2:30 to 4pm, University of Pittsburgh School of Education Colloquium Room, 5604 Wesley W. Posvar Hall, 230 South Bouquet Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15260

This event is free and open to the public, but an RSVP is requested. To RSVP, click here.

To view the live webcast of this event, click here a few minutes prior to Dr. Gandara’s talk (2:30pm EST on Thursday, March 25th). Prior to viewing the webcast, click here to play the "Welcome to Mediasite" presentation in order to test your browser.

PAST 2009-2010 PRESENTATIONS

OCTOBER 22, 2009
"Rethinking Education in the Age of Technology"
Allan Collins, Professor Emeritus of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University

DECEMBER 9, 2009
"Beyond the Business of Parallel Play: Engineering Change in METS (Mathematics, Science, Engineering and Technology)"
William Tate, Chair and Professor of Education in Arts and Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis

FEBRUARY 25, 2010
"Limited Learning in U.S. Colleges: Findings from the CLA (Collegiate Learning Association) Study"
Richard Arum, Professor of Sociology and Education, New York University & Director of Educational Research Program, Social Science Research Council

2008-2009 SERIES:                            
EXCELLENCE AND EQUITY IN AN ERA OF ACCOUNTABILITY

September 23, 2008
Lauren Resnick, University of Pittsburgh
"Standards-Based Reform: A Powerful Idea Unmoored"

Abstract: "No Child Left Behind" is the current expression of a twenty-year drive to use a "standards" strategy to steer American education toward higher levels of achievement and greater equity. The idea, as it developed over the last two decades, was that a standards-based system could combine the positive aspects of centralized curriculum guidelines with the individuality and energy of the American local-control system. Standards and assessments would be set by public entities such as states, but the details of curriculum, teaching, and professional development would be left to districts and schools. Student performance accountability systems, rather than detailed regulations, would structure the priorities of schools and districts and press them to make the changes necessary to deliver effective teaching to all of their students. Broadly, the goals of the standards movement, beginning in the late’80s, were to promote both equity and excellence in education.

In this talk, an overview is provided for the goals of excellence and equity, tracing the societal conditions that gave rise to them and how they became entwined with the standards movement. Next, a step-by-step history of the events leading up to NCLB is offered, focusing on both the tension between national and local control and the maneuvering to resolve that tension. Then, the two overarching goals of excellence and equity are addressed again to consider whether they were accomplished and at what cost. Finally, a set of recommendations is offered for adjusting our standards-based efforts to improve American education.

December 3rd, 2008
Jane Hannaway, Director of Education Policy Center at the Urban Institute and Director of CALDER.
"Unbounding Rationality: Education Policy and Practice in a Data Rich Environment"

Abstract: Largely as a consequence of accountability policies, state and school districts are developing data systems that provide insight into issues associated with the effectiveness or productivity of U. S. education, as well as insight into those factors that promote effectiveness. Using the lens of organization theory and empirical results from a number of studies, this talk focuses on the likely effects of these data systems on the structure, the goals and the process of education -- the good, the bad and the ugly.

January 15, 2009
Kati Haycock, The Education Trust
"Improving Achievement and Closing Gaps Between Groups: Lessons from Schools and Districts on the Performance Frontier".

Kati Haycock is one of the nation’s leading child advocates in the field of education. She currently serves as President of The Education Trust. Established in’90, the Trust does what no other Washington-based education organization seeks to do: speaks up for what’s right for young people, especially those who are poor or members of minority groups.

Haycock’s presentation reviewed national data on achievement patterns over time, focusing especially on the achievement of low-income and minority children. She shared what The Education Trust has learned from the schools and districts that are effective in both raising overall achievement and closing gaps between groups. For a brief bio on Kati Haycock, click here.

Thursday, February 12, 2009
Michael Cohen, President of Achieve, Inc.
"Improving Postsecondary Preparation: Lessons from the American Diploma Project Network"

Michael Cohen is a nationally recognized leader in education policy and standards-based reform. He has been the President of Achieve since 2003. Michael’s talk began by noting that many young people earn a high school diploma but lack the fundamental academic skills to be prepared for postsecondary education and 21st century careers. One of the key contributing factors is the gap between the expectations for high school graduation and the real world demands students face after completing high school.

The American Diploma Project (ADP) Network was formed in 2005 to help states close this gap and improve postsecondary preparation. Michael Cohen’s talk provided an overview of the ADP policy agenda and the progress states are making in addressing it. He focused on the challenges of designing state policies in these areas, as well as the implementation challenges ahead. He also highlighted emerging state efforts to adopt common standards and assessments in the context of the ADP Network, and the potential opportunities created by this development.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Richard Rothstein, Research Associate, Economic Policy Institute
"Getting Accountability Right"

From 1999 to 2002 Richard Rothstein was the national education columnist of The New York Times. His recent book, Grading Education: Getting Accountability Right (Teachers College Press, 2008, http://www.epi.org/content.cfm/books_grading_education) was the basis for his talk. Rothstein argues that we should hold public schools accountable for effectively spending the vast funds with which they have been entrusted. But instead of grading a school’s progress in just math and reading (No Child Left Behind), we should hold schools accountable for the broad outcomes we expect from public education - basic knowledge and skills, critical thinking, an appreciation of the arts, physical and emotional health, and preparation for skilled employment - and then develop the means to measure, and ensure, schools’ success in achieving them.

April 2, 2009
Alan Lesgold, Dean, School of Education, University of Pittsburgh
Better Schools for the 21st Century

Alan Lesgold is professor and Dean of the School of Education at the University of Pittsburgh and also professor of psychology and intelligent systems.His talk began by noting that, at some level, virtually every American recognizes that our schools are not preparing our children adequately for citizenship and a productive life in the 21st century. Within this context, Alan discussed (i) the nature of productive work in a world where computers can do any task we fully understand, (ii) the implications of this reality for schooling, and (iii) why the New Standards Project Applied Learning Standards have had so little influence on education.  Alan concluded his presentation by discussing several possible ways that schooling can be improved, including more learning by doing, open discussion of a new "hidden curriculum" for schools, and a new approach to testing that builds on what Valerie Shute has called "stealth assessment."

2007-2008 Colloquium Series:

September, 2007
Deborah Ball, University of Michigan School of Education
Paul Goren, Spencer Foundation
"What Makes Education Research Educational?"

Abstract: Schools of education are under fire -- again. Critics point to the uselessness of education research, the low intellectual demand of teacher education, and the weak academic qualifications of education students and their professors. Disdain for schools of education is not new; from Koerner (1963) to Reid Lyon, criticisms have been heaped on the colleges, schools, and departments whose central mission is "education." Even ed school scholars have been among the sharpest e.g., Labaree, Levine).

This lecture argues that schools of education should exist not because of professional self-interest or historical convenience, but because they are in fact, the place where research in education is conducted and where people who have expertise in education are housed and trained. The talk will focus on the question, "What is research IN education, and what makes it both special and essential?" Using a sample of studies that exemplify this educational perspective, the talk will unpack its key features and raise challenges for school of education and their inhabitants.

October 25, 2007
Roy Romer, Strong American Schools - ED in ’08 campaign, former Colorado Governor and LA Unified School District
Mark Roosevelt, Pittsburgh Public Schools
Lauren Resnick, Learning Research and Development Center
"American Education Standards: New Possibilities"

All students, no matter where they live, have the right to a quality education that will prepare them for life. In the past, high school graduates could be placed in high-paying jobs without high level skills in mathematics or reading. But the workplace is changing. Occupations that pay enough to support a family - jobs like electrical work, construction, upholstering, and plumbing - now demand the same math and reading skills it takes to be successful in college. Two-thirds of new jobs being created in today’s economy require higher education or advanced training. College prep is work prep. And both are preparation for life. But too many students are not learning what they need to be successful adults: More than two-thirds of students attend schools in states with mediocre expectations for what their students should learn.

All parents and taxpayers deserve honest information about how students are progressing in their learning. States with low expectations, however, paint a picture of progress that doesn’;t match reality; as a result, many parents don’t know that their children lack adequate preparation in today’s world. For example, although every state requires high school students to take tests, only a handful make sure those tests measure readiness for college and work. There is even troubling evidence that states are lowering their testing requirements to make students look like they are learning more than they really are. The above trends, left unchecked, will create a  ’race to the bottom’ among states that will imperil efforts to raise student achievement and put America at even greater disadvantage internationally. What are the options - in a nation historically committed to local control of education - for setting and meeting truly effective national standards?

February 6, 2008 -
Susan Fuhrman, Teachers College, Columbia University
Ron Cowell, Education Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC)
"The Role of States in Education Reform"
Abstract: Despite historic authority over education, state activity in the field was minor until the’80s. Now states take the lead in standards, assessment and accountability, and, according to No Child Left Behind, in assuring that schools in need of improvement receive remedies. However, their capacity, perhaps reflecting their come lately status, is typically far inferior to their responsibilities, posing a major dilemma for education policy. State agencies lack resources and technical expertise and legislatures seem unwilling to redress the situation. Americans are beginning to expect state agencies to act like Ministries of Education in other nations--providing leadership and expertise to schools--but we are not making the investments required by that change in role.

University of Pittsburgh School of Education Colloquium Room - 5604 Wesley W. Posvar Hall - 230 South Bouquet Street

February 27, 2008 -
Jim Hiebert, University of Delaware School of Education
Lisle Staley Stigler, Pearson Achievement Solutions
"Research-Based Guidelines For Improving Mathematics Instruction"
Abstract: Classroom teachers are, again, being buffeted by recommendations for improving their teaching in order to raise students’ performance. Mathematics teachers are receiving more than their share of conflicting advice from numerous experts and interest groups. Most advocates for one teaching approach or another claim the support of research findings. What does the research actually say about how we currently are teaching mathematics in the U.S. and about what aspects of teaching we should change to improve students’ achievement? Although the story is complicated, there are a few features of teaching that warrant much more attention than they currently are receiving at various levels of the educational system.

April 8, 2008

Derrick Lopez, Chief of High School Reform, Pittsburgh Public Schools
William Isler, School Board President, Pittsburgh Public Schools
Rachel Bird, Senior Policy Analyst, Strong American Schools ED in ’08 Campaign
’2 Million Minutes’

The Learning Policy Center and Strong American Schools ED in ’08 Campaign sponsor a screening of 2 Million Minutes, a provocative documentary about how the three superpowers of the 21st Century - China, India, and the United States - are preparing their students for the future. Strong American Schools ED in ’08 campaign senior staff will discuss the presidential candidates’ education agendas and the role of education in the election, and Pittsburgh Public School leaders will provide a local perspective to this important national discussion.

About the Film:
Regardless of nationality, as soon as a student completes the 8th grade, the clock starts ticking. From that very moment the child has approximately Two Million Minutes until high school graduation. Two Million Minutes to build their intellectual foundation. Two Million Minutes to prepare for college and ultimately career. Two Million Minutes to go from a teenager to an adult.

This film follows six students from China, India and the United States, composing a global snapshot of education, from the viewpoint of kids preparing for their future. The goal of the documentary is to tell the broader story of the universal importance of education today, and address what many are calling a crisis for U.S. schools regarding chronically low scores in math and science indicators.

Unless otherwise noted, all colloquia will be from 2:30-4:00pm at the University of Pittsburgh School of Education Colloquium Room - 5604 Wesley W. Posvar Hall - 230 South Bouquet Street (VIEW MAP)