Why Isn't There Accountablitly?

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "How Wonderful Are Our Teachers ?":

You're absolutely right - they system is broken.

One example is our "guided reading" program in elementary school:

Kids are tested to be on a certain level and then they are guided to read books on that level.

Do you know your child's reading level? Did you even know such a thing existed? It's not on the report card - although it could be.

NYC schools follow this program. They send home letters during the year with the kid's reading level and their teacher's goal for their reading progress. The program is not a secret and your kid's reading level and progress is not a secret.

Are your kids getting books from school or are they told to pick out their own books?

Many teachers in our district don't believe in guided reading. They will even tell parents this on back-to-school night. I don't follow that program. I don't believe in it. Doesn't matter that your kid was using it a different year, doesn't matter if your friend's kid in the next class is using it - your kid's teacher chooses not to.

But what are they doing instead? In some cases - not much - because no one is looking to see what is actually going on each and every classroom.

No specific goals are set, many classrooms do not have reading groups or reading instruction of any kind.

Our kids are lost in literary space and it's no wonder they aren't improving in reading since their progress is not monitored on a measurable manner.

So how are the kids learning to read? How are district scores going up?

Parents recognize what's going on (or really what's NOT going on). They are working with their kids at home, hiring tutors, sending them to Kumon.

Parents will not let their kids fail. They will pick up the slack while teachers take the credit and ask for more money in their contract.