Re: Students and Tests - Kyle and business models

["Donald E. Simanek" <dsimanek@eagle.lhup.edu>]

On Sun, 8 Dec 1996, David Dockstader wrote:

> I have no problem with the student as a customer.  I'm the store keeper.  I
> accurately describe my product and if the student chooses to buy he gets what
> I told him he would get.  If it isn't what he wants he can go try some other
> product.  Seems like a good system to me.  The more I think about it the better
> I like the retailer/customer model.  I think it fits very well.  Is there a
> problem with pleasing the customer?  Where we hurt ourselves in education is
> that too often we operate on a one size fits all philosophy.  Another problem
> is that schools are often not honest in describing what they have to offer.  As
> a result students often get sucked into something they really didn't bargain on
> Can you blaim them if this makes them unhappy?

One aspect of education which doesn't fit the consumer model is evaluation
and grading, i.e. standards. However, if you wish to abandon standards
entirely, then you can force a fit to the consumer model. Some teachers
seem quite willing to do this.

No one seems to be mentioning the possibility that standards, evaluation,
exams, and grades play a role in education and in motivation. That's not
politically correct these days. You can talk nobly of motivation through
the strategy of making the subject interesting and entertaining, but in
fact we have seen from several decades of experience that it doesn't work
except on the superficial level and for the most trivial aspects of
education, and only for a few students. The difficult material, the
inherently uninteristing and unappealing (to most students) subjects (such
as physics, mathematics and accounting) require industrial-strength
motivational strategies.

Parents can play a role in motivation. "You'll get a whipping if you don't
get A's this term." Teachers can play a role. "You are likely to flunk if
you don't study and keep up with the work." Society can play a role. "You
won't get this very desirable job unless you present evidence of a good
record in school." This is the way it used to be done, and it worked--for
many students. As someone here pointed out, *nothing* works for *all*
students.

An educator once remarked that no sensible child could *enjoy* school,
learning dull subjects taught by teacher-hacks minimally proficient in the
subjects that they teach, subjects which, unfortunately, *must* be
learned. So, he said, the only motivator in these cases is fear of
flunking, and a clear understanding that flunking has serious and
long-term consequences. He even suggested that education began to decline
when we stopped whipping students. 

Of course self-motivation is best, and we all wish that all students had
it. Very few do. It can't be imposed from outside. (It wouldn't be
*self*-motivation then, would it?) So artificial and external motivations
are then used:  entertainment, praise (even when undeserved), rewards (but
never punishment), dummying down the tougher parts of the course, etc.
etc. This works for some, but still not for others. And nothing works so
well as peer pressure, which helps ensure the lowest common denominator.

If something is difficult for most students, leave it out. If most
students score poorly, boost the scores. If students have different
learning modes, don't force them into more effective learning modes, adapt
your teaching to theirs. If they can't express themselves precisely, adopt
the 'close enough' method of evaluation. Read this Sunday's comic strip
"B.C." for a nice commentary on the way that's done.

Never underestimate the ability of students to descend to our
expectations.

	-- Donald

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 
Dr. Donald E. Simanek                            Office: 717-893-2079
Prof. of Physics                    Internet: dsimanek@eagle.lhup.edu
Lock Haven University, Lock Haven, PA. 17745          CIS: 73147,2166 
Home page: http://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek            FAX: 717-893-2047
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