Investing in human development

It is odd that the mantra of ‘raising the bar and closing the gap’, is a policy imperative in Canada, yet claims made about overall improvement (raising the bar) are generally not accompanied by any assessment of whether we’re closing the gap. The important census work of the Toronto District School Board would suggest that we have not^[1]. The achievement hierarchy is the same as it was some forty years ago.

It is odd that the mantra of ‘raising the bar and closing the gap’, is a policy imperative in Canada, yet claims made about overall improvement (raising the bar) are generally not accompanied by any assessment of whether we’re closing the gap. The important census work of the Toronto District School Board would suggest that we have not^[1]. The achievement hierarchy is the same as it was some forty years ago. It is simply not fair, nor is it just that children do not obtain equal benefit from twelve years of schooling. In fact the achievement gap related to socio-economic factors widens as students move through the system.

An inner city teacher told me recently of a parent in tears of joy yet disbelief at what her child had accomplished. ‘Attention deficit disordered’ since kindergarten, her son had quietly and determinedly worked on a drawing until it was exactly as his eye had envisioned. It’s more than unfortunate that his ability to concentrate, to strive for excellence had gone unnoticed or undiscovered during his first five years of schooling. The story reminded of a contrasting one.  A father at a school meeting who had been working with Portuguese-English interpretation came up to me after the meeting to ask, in essence “Why does this school teach my daughter that I am dumb?” His daughter was given homework that she couldn’t do and he couldn’t help with. He told me how much harder he found it in Canada to maintain his self-respect and his child’s respect.  I wondered what would have happened if instead of the exercise of looking up definitions of words and writing a sentences to show their meaning, she had been asked to compare her schooling with that of her father.  She may have dealt with the subject in two languages; she would have learned more about her father and he about his daughter.  We can be pretty sure that he wouldn’t have felt ‘dumb’ and she wouldn’t have done homework without a parent’s help.

What I’ve learned from parental, political and professional experience is that what is effective for poor children is what is effective for all children. And we know a lot about that. The difference is that poor children are more likely to depend on their school experience whereas the success of middle class children can often be in spite of it.

What I’ve learned from parental, political and professional experience is that what is effective for poor children is what is effective for all children. And we know a lot about that. The difference is that poor children are more likely to depend on their school experience whereas the success of middle class children can often be in spite of it.  Like all sensible commentators on issues of educational equity, I usually add the proviso that we “can’t expect schools to do everything”. Though I do expect that we could do much more than we do to achieve outcomes that are both fair and just. We should expect them to do what we know from good evidence works. And we must pay attention to the paramount importance of relationships that generate trust, reciprocity, and generosity among students, parents and teachers; we need to be much more responsive to the intentions and interests of children; and we need to exercise great humility in making judgments about human potential.

Schools are our largest public investment in human development. I’ve often asked, ‘if you were to design a place and program to nurture the fullest development of children, would it be like a school?”  The answer is invariably ‘no’.

Related Education Canada articles:

• Implementation and Innovation: The Route to Equity
• Early Literacy Success: A Matter of Social Justice
• Early Learning and Childcare: A Dual Imperative/L’apprentissage et la garde des jeunes enfants – Un double impératif
• Student Engagement for Effective Teaching and Deep Learning

[1] Brown, Robert S. and Sinay, Erhan (2008) 2006 Student Census: Linking demographic data with student
Achievement. Research Report. Toronto District School Board. Available for download at http://www.tdsb.on.ca/_site/ViewItem.asp?siteid=172&menuid=28103&pageid=24167

Meet the Expert(s)

Penny Milton

Penny Milton is former CEO of the Canadian Education Association and the initiator of What did you do in school today?

Penny Milton a été chef de la direction de l’Association canadienne d’éducation et a lancé l’initiative Qu’as-tu fait à l’école aujourd’hui?

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