Marko 1

Alexis Marko Megan Keaton English 112-15 2 May 2013 Peterson, Elizabeth R., Christine M. Rubie-Davies, Margaret J. Elley-Brown, Deborah A. Widdowson, Robyn S. Dixon, and S. Earl Irving. "Who Is to Blame? Students, Teachers and Parents Views on Who Is Responsible for Student Achievement."Manchesteruniversitypress. N.p., Nov. 2011. Web. 25 Mar. 2013. This article discusses the different viewpoints on who is responsible for a students success between the teacher, the student and the parents. Studies were conducted all across the world on all three of these groups. Different factors were brought up depending on who was being asked. For example, family background, effort, ability, parental involvement, and teacherstudent relationships were taken into consideration when students were asked. As the research was done, a majority of students top choices were effort and ability. Parental and teacher involvement came later on the list. Factors such as involvement at home through projects, homework, encouragement and supporting a student came into play when parents were questioned about their students success. The research revealed that parents associate their students successes in school to their ability and their failures to their lack of effort (Peterson 3). When teachers were asked who they think should take the blame for students being successful in school there were different opinions. Some felt that the students likelihood of success was based on uncontrollable biological factors such as ability. Studies show that students show greatest achievement gains when the teacher takes responsibility for both their failure and

Marko 2

success (Peterson 3). This argument rules out the fact that background at home plays a major role in a students learning. As the authors discuss the factors that each group thought was most important, ones that were most prominent were students thinking that effort was crucial and teachers taking responsibility for students. The authors of this article make it seem like the parents are going to do what it takes to make their children look good in school whether it be helping them with their homework or softening up when they do not do well. One of the strengths of this article was that it gave a little piece of information from each side of this argument. They gave insight of teachers, parents, and students. Something that made this source more credible was the fact that the authors did research studies to gather data on how the relationships of these groups correlate with the grades of the students. The authors did not leave any questions unanswered. They thoroughly explained their reasoning behind each group of subjects and gave credible information to prove their case. Having read this, a reader will be affected in the sense that they will have a better understanding of where each group comes from. They will know why teachers feel that they should be held responsible, and likewise why parents feel that they should be held responsible for their students success in school. I am going to use this article to favor the teachers being responsible for students learning material. This article gives thorough insight on what teachers think and feel about their students and what they will do to ensure their students learn material. Quotes: Findings suggest that students show the greatest achievement gains when teachers take collective responsibility for student success and failure, rather than blaming the students for failure.

Marko 3

Brown found that teachers tend to view assessment as a way of measuring and encouraging students to be accountable or responsible for their learning, much more than they see assessment as a way of making schools accountable.

Ran (2001) noted some teachers also believed there should be limits to parental involvement with British teachers believing many UK-Chinese parents spent too much time and effort in supporting their children to do well and applied too much pressure on their children to perform in examinations.

Marko 4

Scoggin, Jennifer. "The Blame Game." Scholastic 120.6 (2011): 33-35. Scholastic, Summer 2011. Web. 27 Mar. 2013. This article is strictly about teachers. The author goes into detail about why teachers are the ones that get blamed for several things such as low graduation rates and low test scores which both attribute to the overall success of students. She gives several different reasons and explanations that elaborate why teachers are always the scapegoat. For example, the author states that one possibility teachers are blamed over the success of students is because of their ranks on the totem pole. They rarely have input on educational matters that impact their jobs every day. Another reason Scoggin claims that teachers are blamed is because of the way they are portrayed through the media. According to the media, there are two types of teachers: the superhero who will do anything for their students and the Sing-Along-Simpleton who does everything by the book in an orderly fashion and sends the kids on their way (Scoggin 34). This gives little room for the real teacher to actually show what they do. One of the most blatant reasons stated in this article would be the fact that by blaming teachers, it takes the blame off everyone else. However, as Scoggin says in one of the last paragraphs, with so much blame being thrown around teachers are not given the opportunity to do their jobs to the best of their ability. Scoggin goes into a lot of detail explaining why teachers are blamed for negative results in school systems. She defends them and is very persuasive with all of the examples she gives. While teachers may have something to do with the failure of students, according to the author they are not solely to blame. She feels that other people should stop focusing on just teachers and look at the whole situation. One weakness of this article would be that it seems to be more opinionated than factual. Although this may be the opinion of a majority of teachers across the country, the fact that this

Marko 5

article is so subjective may make this source seem less credible. However, some strengths of this source would be all of the vivid examples she uses. Some questions I was left with after reading this article were how Scoggin thinks things should change in order to make the education system better. I plan to use this in my paper when I talk about teachers taking or not taking the blame for student learning. Scoggin gives several great examples that I can use to back up my statements when describing why teachers are blamed and if they are the ones that really should be blamed. For example, she talks about why it is easy to blame teachers for students failures because they are an easy scapegoat. Every person in America has had teachers at some point so it gives them a common enemy so to speak. Let's be honest-blaming teachers is much easier than thinking about issues such as poverty, unequal resources, overcrowded classrooms, poor parenting, violent neighborhoods. or layers of conflicting leadership, just to name a few. This is a valid argument that she brings up towards the end of her article that has a strong message. Quotes: Ultimately, it's so easy to blame teachers because it lets everyone else off the hook. If we can blame teachers for all that is wrong in our schools today, then no one has to take a long, hard look at what is really going on. Perhaps it's easy to blame teachers because they represent the low man on the totem pole. Teachers rarely get a voice when it comes to issues of school reform. ..holding teachers solely accountable for student performance doesn't seem to be getting us anywhere. What's more, blaming teachers alone when students do not perform at the level we'd like them to isn't doing a heck of a lot to improve that performance.

Marko 6

NEA. "Parent, Family, Community Involvement in Education." NEA.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2013. This article talks about how crucial it is for the outside world to be involved with students in order for them to succeed. It talks about how this matter is often overlooked and emphasis is placed elsewhere when it should be placed in the hands of the community, family, and friends of students (NEA 1). According to research done, Parent, family, and community involvement in education correlates with higher academic performance and school improvement (NEA 1). One way the article says that families and communities can get involved with their childrens academic lives would be to integrate programs into the schools that allow them to work together. There are several possible factors that can hinder outside contribution to a students academic career though. For example, some do not have the time in their schedule to volunteer, they feel uncomfortable with the school officials, they feel frustration towards the school systems, or they do not have the proper resources or Know-how to help their children. In refute to these factors, the article gives several examples those parents and community members can do to integrate their childrens school with their everyday lives. It heavily emphasizes the fact that the school must work hand in hand with not only families of students but also the community around the school. Strengths of this article would include how it not only gives reasons on why the family and community are so important, but they also elaborate and give examples of what family can do to be more interactive with a students academic career. It lists out reasons that can hinder a parents involvement with their children but also gives good alternatives to help parents and school systems work together. The techniques used in this article will cause readers to understand more because they can associate with the problems that are talked about. These issues can be found in most of todays families which makes NEAs point even more useful. I am going to use this in my paper to support the option that parents are the ones who are responsible for the success of students. This article gave me a new perspective on the role that families and communities play in a students academic career and made me rethink how I should go about my

Marko 7

argument. It also has several different examples that are really beneficial to that side of the argument and I can use them to back up the fact that parents do have a great amount of influence on their childs academic career. If they do not play a role, students have no outside motivation to strive in school and make good grades. Quotes: Parent, family, and community involvement in education correlates with higher academic performance and school improvement. Today, the old model has been replaced with a much more inclusive approach: school-familycommunity partnerships now include mothers and fathers, stepparents, grandparents, foster parents, other relatives and caregivers, business leaders and community groupsall participating in goal-oriented activities, at all grade levels, linked to student achievement and school success. In fact, the lack of parental involvement is viewed by teachers, administrators, the public, and even parents of school-age children, as the single biggest problem facing our nations schools.

Marko 8

Friedman, Thomas L. "How About Better Parents?" The New York Times. The New York Times, 20 Nov. 2011. Web. 04 Apr. 2013. This article written by Thomas Friedman discusses how parents do play a significant role in their childrens academic lives. Friedman states that teachers do play a tremendous role and they are very influential, however without better parents, American students will not be able to take it to the next level so to speak. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECP, gives a test to 15 year-olds around the world every three years to assess their reading comprehension and ability to apply what they learn in other subjects to solve real problems. Results revealed that American 15 year-olds do not distinguish with those in Singapore, Finland, and Shanghai. Andreas Schleicher, who oversees the OECP exams, says that 15 year-olds whose parents read books with them when they were in primary school score an average of 14 points higher on the test. This is solid evidence proving how influential parents can be. Just by asking their students questions like, how was your day? what are you learning in school right now? and showing genuine interest, this can substitute for hours of private tutoring. To conclude the article, Friedman talks about how there are many different things that parents can do, but only certain ones truly affect how their students will succeed. Friedman uses great examples in his article to back up his argument as to why parents need to become more involved and actually care more when it comes to their kids education. He talks about how a parent can do minute small things that dont take much time while a child is young, but that alone can go a long way even when they are older. The OECP test example Friedman gives

Marko 9

supports this statement. Overall, it is very clear that Friedmans main argument and thesis would be that although teachers are important, better parents will equate to better teachers. Strengths of this article include all of the outside resources Friedman used to back up his opinion. For example, talking about the test that is given across the world and how American students do not compare with students of other countries. For the purpose this article served, there were no weaknesses in Friedmans writing. After reading this, a reader will be enlightened on the fact that maybe parents really can do a lot more to help their children. I am going to use this in my argument to side with the fact that parents need to be responsible for the learning of their children. Friedmans examples will be easy to incorporate into my argument and they are very valuable. With his words, I will explain and support the significance of parents spending time with students at a young age in order to help them further down the road in their academic careers. Quotes: We also need better parents. Better parents can make every teacher more effective. Schleicher explained to me that just asking your child how was their school day and showing genuine interest in the learning that they are doing can have the same impact as hours of private tutoring. even when comparing students of similar socioeconomic backgrounds, those students whose parents regularly read books to them when they were in the first year of primary school score 14 points higher, on average, than students whose parents did not.

Marko 10

Berk, Laura E. "Chapter Six." Awakening Children's Minds: How Parents and Teachers Can Make a Difference. New York, NY: Oxford UP, 2001. 181-219. Print. In chapter six of Awakening Childrens Minds, by Laura Berk, she takes you into the classroom of Tamara. Tamara is a teacher of a kindergarten/first grade split class. This contains a group of students ranging between five to seven years old. These students come from a variety of both ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. To throw even more obstacles into the mix, two of Tamaras students have disabilities in reading and one has a disability in speech/language. Several times a week, therapists visit Tamaras class and assist those students who are in need. Despite the wide range of students Tamara takes under her wing, she keeps her classroom incredibly organized and she always has an elaborate plan that defines the entire day for her and her students. Another tactic Tamara uses would be that she incorporates mathematical, scientific, and reading problems into everyday situations. For example, she has a guest and it is snack time. Together, her and her students count out how many cups they will need in order for everyone to have snack. According to the book, it is crucial to teach these children at such a young age because it will motivate them to learn not only for the teachers, but for themselves. Her students understand the importance of learning in order to pursue practical goals for when they grow up. This chapter of the book gives a lot of insight on what extremes some teachers go to to ensure that their students are learning not only the material, but life skills as well. Tamara has several methods she uses, whether it be organizing the classroom by stations or taking the time to ask them practical question that help allow her students to succeed. A strength of this source would be the proof that a teacher can make a great difference in the classroom. Berk gives a strong and valid example by showing Tamara, a teacher of a very diverse classroom succeeding gracefully. She gives examples of how Tamara is so successful

Marko 11

such as how organized, well-planned out, and interactive with the kids. There were no questions left unanswered after reading this excerpt of her book. She fights a very strong case on how influential teachers are amongst their students. The strengths of this article may cause a reader to understand more about how hard some teachers do work and how much influence they really do have over their students. It also may help them understand the struggles that some teachers go through. Even if they are not given the proper resources, some teachers like Tamara make do with what they have. I will use this passage to support the fact that teachers have more influence and are more responsible when it comes time for students to learn. This book allows me to get insight on what it is like in a real life classroom that has such a diverse student population. Despite it all, Tamara still manages to help her students along the path of their academic careers. Quotes: (page 182, second paragraph) Tamaras extensive planning and organization result in a remarkably smooth flow of classroom events. (page 183, last paragraph) Tamaras students want to master reading, writing, and math skills not because an adult tells them to but because those skills are essential to pursuing real-world practical goals and compelling topics in literature, social studies, and science. (page 185-186) The environment constantly encourages children to engage in deliberate reasoning to guide their behavior, to stretch to new levels of thinking about thought.