Chapter 2: The Global Achievement Gap

In the second chapter of the Global Achievement Gap by Tony Wagner, it talked about how there is a gap, and it is happening in some of our best schools. They are still teaching to the test and not using critical thinking. So he begs the question how can students improve on the 7 skills they need when one of the most important critical thinking isn't happening or even being taught. He talks about how children who are educated in the United States now have to compete for jobs on a global playing field, and the kids in the United States are at a much bigger disadvantage. They are not being taught the same things, and are pushed towards these tests then actual skills. Tony also went to visit many schools during this chapter and wrote how many classes that they call Honors classes, the kids in them are not being challenged. They are watching movies with no questions or discussions after the fact. No kid is truly engaged in the lesson the teacher is teaching. And they are supposed to be the schools honor kids. He also mentions the idea of the Bubble Kids. He goes on to explain these children are the ones the teacher should pay extra attention to. He divides each classroom into three parts. Green kids you know who are going to pass the test, yellow the bubble kids these kids could go either way, and red kids you know will not pass. He says that schools are spending more time with the yellow group of kids to get them to pass the test to meet standards. And try to ignore the lost cases, since they want as many kids to pass just focus on the ones that will and the bubble kids to make sure you are meeting your quota, for a lack of a better word, of students. This is horrible! I hope as a teacher I never have to teach under these circumstances. I don't want to have to give up on the students who don't get it and put all my energy towards the kids who do and might get it. I want as many to succeed as possible but not by splitting up the class into three parts and hoping the greens and yellows make the cut. I want as many kids to learn something, even if its something that can't be measured on a test.