Goose and Gosling
"We are going to be able to take professional development where teachers are rather than simply asking them to come where we are. It also means we are using the latest tools and technology to give teachers the best tools of teaching an educational capacity."
Those are the words of Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in announcing a new on-line program offered by the state Department of Education so teachers can take a required 60 hours of professional development courses annually through distance learning programs.
That’s the same Department of Education that requires that all high schools actually teach 38 required courses every year, with a certified teacher on site, whether students sign up for the course or not.
Nope, courses taught by distance learning cannot meet this requirement. Even if the course comes from the high school’s home district. Or from the state’s virtual high school. Kids can take distance learning courses, but that won’t relieve their high school of having to teach the 38 required courses.
Paron High School was recently closed because one course – journalism – was being taught on site by an uncertified teacher. She had an English certificate and a master’s degree, but no journalism certificate. So Paron students now put in a ten-and-a-half hour day, three of them on the bus, going to Bryant High School which offers all 38 courses.
Another school was ruled in violation of the 38-course requirement because it did not offer Physics. Seems its students were taking Advanced Placement Physics, instead. Can’t have that.
Rural school officials also report that College Algebra cannot be counted as one of the 38 credits. However, Transition to College Mathematics, an easier course that can be taken after Algebra II and before College Algebra, is considered one of the 38. Most students would rather take the College Algebra and get concurrent high school/college credit. But if no one takes Transition to College Mathematics, the school violates the mandatory 38-courses-taught requirement.
Said one official, “That leaves counselors begging a student to take the less challenging Transitional Math Course in order to teach all 38.”
In case what you are reading here seems incredible, we’ll say it again for clarity. The requirement is that each high school actually teach all 38 courses, not that it offers to teach them.
What is the purpose of the irrational 38, as we like to call it? To force small schools to close. No matter how good they are.
The distance learning program for professional development is a great idea. Letting small high school meet the demands of a rigorous curriculum through distance learning is, too. What is good for the goose is good for the gosling.
Marty Strange is policy director of the Rural School and Community Trust.