Providing a Superior Education for All Children
The Teaching Gap and The Learning Gap burst the bubble that Americans know more about learning and respect education more than other countries. While this was often true in the 18th and early 19th centuries, by the 1950s it was increasingly untrue. Based on two very large studies of classrooms in America, Asia, and Germany, these two books explain some of the reasons why. Their conclusion is that the problem in American schools is not class size, lack of technology, or low parental involvement.
Their recommendations for better education are to focus more on concepts and less on terminology, guide students to discover knowledge for themselves rather than supplying it, and accord teachers professional status, higher pay, stricter certification requirements, more accountability, better peer review, and more demanding academic standards. While other aspects of education have changed since the early 1990s when these studies were done, the status and pay of teachers has not.
In America, teachers are paid on the average of 1.4 times the average income. In Japan, they are paid 2.4 times the average income. This means that in 2004 using the Japanese standard, the average American teacher's salary would have been $96,000. In a city like Washington DC, the salary would have been $124,000.
More information follows on classrooms and curriculum, but here are the book facts, They are both excellent:
Equal Education for All
It was discovered to be a myth that Asian schools were selective and thus only represented the "best" students. School was compulsory for all children and they were randomly assigned to classrooms. A national curriculum specified what concepts were taught on which day. All students received the same education; no tracking and no special classes. Concepts such as "gifted" or "learning disabled" were not recognized.
The Classrooms
The Japanese had large classes of 40-50 students and lower education budgets, but did a significantly better job for all students. While the differences in the first grade were not large, by fifth grade the highest scoring American school was below the lowest scoring Japanese school. Of the highest scoring individual students, only one was American; 80 were Japanese.
In 1994, Japanese classrooms were dramatically different than American classrooms. They had fewer books and other resources, almost no technology. There were no libraries, special instruction labs, or gymnasiums. The classrooms consisted of a blackboard and student desks, with perhaps a few reference materials. The textbooks were simple paperback primers that explained concepts. The focus was on student learning and it was up to the teacher to provide examples and demonstration tools.
Within classrooms the students worked in assigned groups, collaboratively. The teachers tried to include students of different abilities in each group -- an artist, a leader, a mathematician, etc.-- so they could help each other. While abilities varied, the concepts and level of difficulty did not. There was greater attention to understanding concepts, much less time in review, and almost no time spent on repetitive activities.
Each classroom had a rotating student leader who was responsible for student behavior, for example, quieting the class when necessary. Orderliness and cleanliness were expected so there were no maintenance crews. Administrative staff was minimal.
School Schedules
Students had 5-6 recess periods during the day with an hour and a half for lunch. This provided more time for physical exercise and socializing, very important in Japanese culture where the ability to harmoniously interact is valued highly. Bullying or aggressive behavior was dealt with quickly.
While the Japanese students spent more time in school, 38 hours in 5 1/2 days for many more weeks, they spent approximately the same amount of time in academic instruction.
The Teaching
The Japanese teachers encouraged students to think for themselves. They asked open-ended questions that required searching and long explanations. The emphasis was on understanding concepts, much less time in review, and almost no time spent on repetitive activities.
The Japanese teachers guided students in their discovery of knowledge rather than presenting knowledge. They typically sat at the back of the room when students were at the blackboard or circulated amongst student working in groups.
Concepts were taught before terminology. A teacher would present activities for students to discover fractions by using pieces of paper or containers of water and figure out how to write a fraction. Only at the end of the lesson would the teacher introduce the words "fraction," "numerator," and "denominator." In American schools, the teacher would typically start with the terminology and expect the students to use the proper terms before they had a clear concept of what they actually meant.
The Teachers and Professional Development
All Japanese teachers were treated equally. There was no distinction between elementary or high school teachers and university professors. Teacher salaries were equal to corporate workers and were expected to be equally professional and attentive to their work. In America, teachers were paid on the average of 1.4 times the national per capita Income; in Japan, 2.4 times. This meant that in America in 2004 when the per capita income was just under $40,000, the average teacher salary in Japanese terms would have been $96,000. In a city like Washington DC, $124,000.
The Japanese can pay these salaries because they do not spend funds on expensive textbooks, administration, special teachers, counselors, technology, or full-time maintenance staff.
Teachers arrived at least an hour before the students. Their work day averaged 9 hours but Japanese law limits to four hours the time a teacher can be asked to spend in direct instruction. The rest of the time is spent preparing lessons, working with individual students, correcting homework, and consulting with other teachers. All homework is corrected.
Each year, teachers work in small groups to design a lesson for teaching a specific concept. The teachers discuss the concept, design alternative ways to explain and demonstrate it, observe and critique each other in teaching the concept, and often publish their final lesson plans. These lessons are then bound and made available to other teachers.
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