12 / 46
12
fight about winners and losers but realization that the
current structure sets Illinois up for failure. So what’s
a better structure? It is critical to me that we make
progress on what that should look like. Understanding
local needs and assets is really important. I think the
idea that we would differentiate our funding to support
kids who are in different places in relationship to
opportunity has to be a part of it. I think there has to
be a better sense of adequacy, what we would expect
the baseline to be. What’s our desired outcome? We
need to work backwards from that, and that’s a big
conversation for this state.”
As for his long-term vision, Smith said that
moving from the Carnegie unit, a system developed
in the late 19
th
and early 20
th
centuries that bases
academic credit on time spent in the classroom, to a
competency-based system could be transformative
for Illinois.
“It is time for us to recognize that our young
people can demonstrate in multiple ways that they
know and understand and have mastered content in
ways that are faster and not limited by the amount of
seat time. The time they sit in school has very little
correlation to what they know,” said Smith. “If in the
first two weeks we could demonstrate what we’re
expected to know in six months, would we put up with
having to keep going? Or, on the flipside, if I go
through something for a year and I don’t do well on
one section from February to April, do I have to redo
the whole thing? Why can’t I just redo February to
April and then get back on track?”
Vocational education is part of that vision.
“In my experience, when kids are doing real
things they care about, they excel,” Smith said. “If
they are doing work in the context of learning a skill
that they need to have to earn money, that’s real
work. And why are we not figuring out how to count
that against a standard?”
Never one to dodge a linebacker who needed to
be blocked, Smith also met head-on the topic of the
Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College
and Careers (PARCC) test that was administered in
Illinois for the first time during the 2014-15 school
year. Developed by educators for the National
Governor’s Association, PARCC has become a
political lightning rod nationally and in Illinois.
“I think the promise of PARCC is greater than the
promise of most of the other assessments we’ve ever
had. Kids can test to the edge of their knowledge. But
it’s not perfect by any means, it’s not where it needs
to be yet,” said Smith, noting that next year’s PARCC
tests will be about 90 minutes shorter.
He said that even though PARCC can be taken
by pencil and paper, it has illuminated the
technological gaps among schools in the state.
“There’s a use value in the taking of the test
online that is powerful, the manipulation of the
screen, the understanding of how you use
technology. We live in a technology-based world and
there is a tremendous inequity in our state when it
comes to bandwidth and technology capabilities of
school districts.”
Save the Date - Super Region Meetings with
State Superintendent Dr. Tony Smith
IASA and new ISBE state superintendent Dr. Tony Smith will host 3 super-region meetings to formally
introduce Dr. Smith to our membership. These super-region meetings will be:
September 1 in Naperville
September 2 in Normal
September 3 at Rend Lake
Additional details will be sent soon