Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.news From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Furor in Pennsylvania education reaches capitol Date: Fri, 13 Nov 92 15:11:15 EST Message-ID: \SE A;NATION \HD Furor in Pennsylvania education reaches capitol \BY Carol Innerst \CR THE WASHINGTON TIMES Thousands of parents will rally in the rotunda of Pennsylvania's Capitol on Monday to support rejection of a proposal known as "outcome-based education" that critics regard as political indoctrination. If the reform plan continues on track, Pennsylvania could become the first state in the nation to scrap traditional high school graduation requirements for a set of "student learning outcomes" that include attitudes on such issues as the environment and racial diversity. "Old social-engineers never die; they just sit and wait, change a few words around, and hope the public has a short memory," said state Rep. Ron Gamble, chairman of the Committee on Local Government. Mr. Gamble, a Democrat, said the state tried the proposal without success in the early 70s. He is expected to seek legislation in the General Assembly to repeal the proposal. He opposes outcome-based education, he says, because it lowers student achievement in an environment in which everyone passes. "Achievement is held constant, while time varies," objected William Sloan, legal counsel to the committee. "Under the [traditonal] Carnegie units, time is held constant while achievement varies." Meanwhile, the state Board of Education, which has pushed outcome-based education, is slated to meet Wednesday and Thursday to vote on the latest revision to a set of 52 "outcomes." They would replace the four years of English, three years of mathematics, science and social studies, two years of arts and humanities, a year of health and physical education and five electives now required for graduation. One proposed outcome under "environment and ecology" would require students to demonstrate "environmentally sound decisions in their personal and civic lives." Under "appreciating and understanding others," students would have to demonstrate that they can "work effectively with others, recognizing the intrinsic uniqueness, worth and rights of each person." The Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA), an affiliate of the 2.1-million-member National Education Association (NEA) is already helping the State Department of Education train teachers in the "affective education" methods. A PSEA statement supporting outcome-based education says it will reduce or eliminate "mediocrity or failure . . . at the classroom, building and school district level." "It will be more concerned whether students learn than when they learn." PSEA and the NEA together contributed about $36,000 to the teacher training effort over the past two years. The state education department has put $8,000 to $10,000 into the training. Some $10,000 came from Title II federal block grant funds, said William Steinhart, director of education services for PSEA. The Pennsylvania State Federation of Teachers (PSFT), an affiliate of the 876,000-member American Federation of Teachers (AFT), is "pretty leery" of the proposal in its present form, said Al Fondy, president of the state federation and the Pittsburgh local. PSFT doesn't object to outcome-based education by itself, but it is afraid that deregulation and dropping the traditional graduation requirements will encourage some schools to do less, rather than more. To replace the current 21-credit graduation requirement, Pennsylvania's Board of Education has set forth five broad "goals of quality education" that the local districts must consider in revising curriculums to conform with the outcome-based education principles. They are: self-worth, information and thinking skills, learning independently and collaboratively, adaptability to change and ethical judgment. This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM