The apparent increase in the New York City graduation rate is due to the explosion of the "credit recovery program" which replaces "seat time" for students. Included in the elimination of "the seat time requirements are all the new online learning programs that the DOE has approved and now operating. Tweed has said time and again that technology is the key to success. However, the DOE is strangely quiet on the consequences of having technology replace "student seat time" in graduating students for the working world. Of course, Tweed doesn't care about that, just get the student to graduate out of the public school system, not what happens to them after. Unfortunately, I saw a first-hand situation of such a consequence.
Most every morning I would stop at a coffee shop for my cup of java. Usually the person who served me was named Pedro. He was 20 and had just graduated in January, thanks to "credit recovery" and online courses he was allowed to take at home. Pedro was a good worker, when he showed up, and the owner was reluctant to fire him since Pedro was supporting a year old child. However, the owner was at the end of his rope with Pedro about his many absences. The owner asked me to talk to Pedro since I was a regular and a teacher. I spoke to Pedro and told him that the working world is different from school. There are no "credit recovery programs" in the real world and taking off time is frowned on by employers. Pedro responded by saying the following "I know that I should be more responsible but I can't help it since I learned that in school if you don't show up good things happen anyway". Exasperated with that response, I tried to explain to Pedro that this does not work in the real world that as a teacher, I make sure I am there every day. He thanked me for talking to him and he will try better.
Today, I came in for my cup of Java and there was no Pedro, the manager told me that Pedro did not come in Monday and Tuesday, (he went to the beach) and told the manager on Wednesday that he needed the days off to relax. Of course he never called the manager to tell him about being absent. The manager had no choice but to fire Pedro and decided to hire an older person who takes his responsibility more seriously. I hope this person did not graduate High School due to "credit recovery" otherwise, the manager may face the same problem.
Credit recovery is the new way of doing things. The owner is safe since he hired an older person who probably graudated before this nonsense started.
ReplyDeletegraduated not graudated.....
ReplyDeleteI think the credit recovery program is horrific. This is high school and students need to be in school to get the most out of their education. This goes for college too. I am sorry for anyone that is a Phoenix but that is a bs degree. Getting a Pheonix degree is not the same thing as getting a real degree where you have to show up for class.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I am sorry Chaz but I don’t believe your story. "I know that I should be more responsible but I can't help it since I learned that in school if you don't show up good things happen anyway": really??? That doesn’t sound like any 20 year old I know. I get the point of your story but I don’t believe it for one second.
You people always complain about age discrimination but it sound like you are all guilty of reverse age discrimination. You never give any young teachers credit and you make comments like; “The owner is safe since he hired an older person…”
ReplyDeleteSchool is not the same as the workplace. In the workplace, someone is making a profit off of what you do. In school, the profit is all yours. In fact, society is willing to lose money on you over and over again. We cannot fire a child or give up on him.
ReplyDeleteCharter schools are trying to change all of this. They will kick kids out for absenteeism or underperformance, because they will be trying to make money in the education "industry".
Education isn't a game, a competition, or a job. It happens when new neuron connections are made. This can happen in a classroom, online, or in the "real world".
Pedro learned a valuable lesson. Hopefully, the synapses are firing on the next job he gets.
Anon 12:07
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you don't believe me but it is a true story and Pedro said it the way I wrote it. Maybe he is naive but he truly believed that things always work out regardless of how irresponsible he was.
I beleive he may have thought things will always work out for him but I highly doubt he said school taught him that lesson and said "I learned that in school if you don't show up good things happen anyway".
ReplyDeleteDot com bubble, housing bubble, financial bubble, HS credits bubble, HS graduation rate bubble, bubbles are bubbling everywhere you see, they are colorful, and flying high, What a wonderful world!
ReplyDeleteDot com bubble, housing bubble, financial bubble, HS credits bubble, HS graduation rate bubble, bubbles are bubbling everywhere you see, they are colorful, and flying high, What a wonderful world! What a wonderful feeling to forget about the gravity and the reality for awhile or as long as you can! Who can say there will never be a soft landing?
ReplyDeleteAnon: 2:55
ReplyDeleteYou were not there, I was. If you choose not to believe me, so be it.
Pedro graduated using credit recovery and online courses. He failed to attend school and still was allowed to graduate. He repeated this behavior in the working world and was fired. Enough said about poor Pedro.
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ReplyDeleteThe use of credit recovery is the problem, not credit recovery. High school teachers have short circuited ways to pass classes since there was high school. The jocks on athletic scholarships sometimes get to pass English without much work and millions of other examples. I teach in a transfer school where students come in over-aged and under-credited. Without credit recovery there is literally no chance they can get a high school diploma before they are required to be discharged at age 21. Now some might say that is a good thing, but I, for one, do not. I manage the credit recovery program at my school. The academic requirements are rigorous but allow students to work on classes during non-class time to gain the credit without the "required seat time." It is not a panacea but it clearly has helped many of my students get into and stay in college which they would not have done if required to get a GED first.
ReplyDelete, my wife teaches in college and is involved in students recruitment. It is in a weird way that colleges financially benefit from poorly prepared HS students for remedial classes which are fully paid by the students and these students stay in the college a year or two longer. The credit recovery in a way is good for colleges, especially in the climate of declining enrollment in the near future. Most bubbles form in a conducive environment that encourages bigger and more numerous bubbles, the credit recovery does not seem to be an exception.
ReplyDeleteAnon 11:27
ReplyDeleteGo back to the hole you crawled out of. I have told you time and again stop commenting on my blog. Your vile insults are not welcomed.
To Chaz:
ReplyDeleteYou are one of insignificant participants who complain about credit recovery system. HS principals push out the kids they do not know what to do with, and the colleges if any of the kids intend to go benefits from remedial classes these kids need to take forever, it is a win-win situation. What are you worry about credit recovery?
Anon 7:44
ReplyDeleteIt is not a win-win for the students. If anything it is a lose-lose situation since they cannot handle the adult world without the assistance they were used to in high school.
Tell me what these kids have to look forward to without the proper skills and responsibilities required in the world of employment.
Chaz,you have a good heart, not so sure about your mind, but pretty sure we are in the age that the mind trumps the hear.
ReplyDeleteI am more certain than ever that Klein does not have a heart, but look how far his mind carries him!
ReplyDeleteWould the kids receiving credit recovery ever pass high school without it?
ReplyDeleteI think it is better to have students with a high school degree using credit recovery, than to have high school drop outs.
Anon 2:41
ReplyDeleteguess you rather see a student "pushed out" unprepared with a phony diploma instead of holding them back and make them responsible for their own academic progress.
Granted, if the child has special needs or in one of those transfer schools that Jeff K talks about, carefully crafted "credit recovery" is an appropriate use to graduate those students. However, much of the "credit recovery programs" are a joke and graduates unprepared students to the real world.
Is it any wonder that employers are complaining that high school graduates cannot even file an employment application, least not hire them?
I also manage a virtual school high school program, primarily credit recovery. I disagree with your statement, credit recovery programs do not work. Do your research, you based one situation and negate the program. That is not the case, it does work, but not for every student. Everyone makes mistakes, do not blame it on the program, blame it on the individual. He will learn one day, if it is not too late. God bless! Did the Lord give up on you!!!
ReplyDelete