There is a story in the Union Leader today about some expensive student grading software that is supposed to make things easier and it is not. What caught my eye was the reason the Tech Director gave for why it has become more of a burden than it needs to be.
Teachers have complained that inputting grades with Aspen has become labor-intensive and complex during the past school year. The complications led to quarterly report cards being issued a week late in the fall, which administrators attributed to the unforeseen consequences of an upgrade to Aspen.
Here it comes…
Information Technology Director Jeff DeLangie, flanked by executives from Follett, told the school board that the problems stemmed not from the software itself, but the “hybrid” approach the district has taken in incorporating “competency based” scores, which are used to measure student mastery of a subject, rather than performance on discrete tests and assignments.
“Over time the product has evolved, but Manchester did not evolve; we stayed with the system that was working for us in 2008,” DeLangie said.
So the stuff works better if you use it with Common Core or worse? I’m not entirely sure which.
If works better with “Competency based education,” then who is pulling what strings to make sure that the district can’t use the grading software unless they go all-in on Common Core?
It would not surprise me if grading software companies are part of the Common Core cabal. That there is federal money being plied to build grading software as a way to drive compliance. Or that people in the districts are finding new software or upgrades to existing software, are pushing them toward competency based education whether they are there or not.
I’d also expect there are individuals within districts who want common core who are making purchases like these with an eye towards pushing taxpayers toward favoring compliance by crying about costs, which should make you laugh. With school budgets stretched by massive administrative, salary and benefits costs–none of which have anything in particular to do with buildings, education materials, or even students–arguing that you have to use the Competency based system cuz it’s be so darn costly to switch, is a real knee slapper.
