Say What? Your Guide to Understanding Education Jargon

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Education Jargon 101

Selecting the right school for kids can be one of the hardest things a parent has to do. If keeping up with the latest in education reform news isn’t enough, some days it seems like you need the Rosetta Stone to decipher exactly what principals and teachers are saying when they talk about their school’s offering and programs.

So you’re not left in the dark at the next school open house, click through the gallery to learn some of the most common education terms used to talk about schools and school reform.

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Scaffolding

Instructional scaffolding is a method teachers use to give students support and direction in completing their tasks. Similar to constructing a building, scaffolding is added to help students who may feel overwhelmed by accomplishing all of their schoolwork. Teachers support students in six different ways: recruiting student interest, reducing freedom by simplifying the task, maintaining direction, pointing out critical features, controlling frustration, and demonstrating ideal solutions.

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Value-Added Assessment

A value-added assessment seeks to measure the impact of a teacher by comparing his/her students’ test scores with scores from the previous year. Value-added assessments do not take into account any factor other than the students’ test scores and are often used to identify effective and ineffective teachers and schools.

There is much debate about value-added assessments. While supporters feel that they are a helpful way to assess teacher effectiveness, many opponents disagree. For example, respected education expert Diane Ravitch thinks:

Value-added assessment should not be used at all. Never. It has a wide margin of error. It is unstable. A teacher who is highly effective one year may get a different rating the next year depending on which students are assigned to his or her class. Ratings may differ if the tests differ. To the extent it is used, it will narrow the curriculum and promote teaching to tests. Teachers will be mislabeled and stigmatized. Many factors that influence student scores will not be counted at all.

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At-Risk Kids

An at-risk student is a child whose prospects of becoming academically successful are inhibited by the less-than-ideal circumstances of his or her life. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, at-risk children experience at least one of the following: poverty, dependence on welfare, one or two absent parents, an unwed mother or parents who have not received a high school diploma.

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Research-Based Study

When you hear that a method or practice is research-based, it means that there is at least one study that supports it. Before accepting a research-based study as undeniable fact, you should always look at who the study is conducted by, and specifically their relationship to who or what their study endorses, in addition to the methodology. Checking to see if there are conflicting studies and doing your own research can also be helpful.

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No Excuses School

A no excuses school is one that conforms to a strict set of rules for its teachers and students in which no variation from the established methods is accepted. No excuses schools are looking to achieve results; they set high demands for students, and an even higher bar for their teachers. Deviation from their methodology is viewed as a risk to achieving results, so they stay the course to hit their goals.

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For-Profit School

A for-profit school seeks to make a profit by being able to deliver a product to its paying customers. There are two types of for-profit schools, according to the National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education (NCSPE).

The first charges tuition; some even have an application process. If they are successful at delivering a product—for high school that might be sending kids to top universities or getting high SAT scores—they will attract students. There are no rules for how much they can charge or for their ability to raise rates. For-profit schools are very adaptable to change because they need to continually attract paying customers.

The second kind, according to NCSPE, “is an educational management organization (EMO) that contracts with school districts and charter schools to operate public schools. The most important difference between the two types of for-profit schools is that EMOs usually manage schools receiving public funds.”

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Common Core Standards

President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan introduced Commons Core Standards in 2010 as part of the Race to the Top plan. The standards in math and English-language arts are meant to give students across the country a high-quality education and teachers a specific set of standards. The hope is that mastering these common core standards will give every child a chance to be successful.

The common core standards are a state-led effort and states can choose whether or not to adopt them.

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Individual Education Plan (IEP)

An individual education plan is composed jointly by students, their parents, and specialists to meet the student’s individual needs. For instance, a student with a speech impediment may have an IEP to specifically focus on improving his or her speech. Individual education plans are guaranteed for students with special needs defined in the Individuals with Disabilities Act.

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Merit Pay

Merit pay is the practice of rewarding teachers—either in their base pay or through annual added incentives—for improved student test scores.

While additional pay is no doubt a major financial incentive for improving student test scores, the impact merit pay has on student performance is still hotly debated.

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What kids are taught in one state is different from what kids are taught in another, better preparing some students for college and the job market than their peers. Stand For Children wants all U.S. governors to commit to implement the Common Core Standards so that all high school graduates will be ready to compete in the global marketplace.

To:

Rick Perry, Governor of Texas

Mark Dayton, Governor of Minnesota

Sean Parnell, Governor of Alaska

Dave Heineman, Governor of Nebraska

Bob McDonnell, Governor of Virginia

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We've reached our goal and sent 10,000 signatures to the governors of Texas, Minnesota, Alaska, Nebraska and Virginia.

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Full Petition Text

Dear Governor,

Too many of our high school students are not prepared for either college or for the jobs of the 21st century. We need clear, consistent, and high education standards that will prepare all students in our state and across the country for a 21st century economy.

I urge you to take the Governor's Pledge to support the implementation of rigorous world-class standards, such as the Common Core State Standards Initiative, and to support other policies that will fully realize these standards for every one of our school children.

Governor's Pledge on Common Core Standards: In today's world, we must adequately prepare our students for life beyond high school. Our students will be leaving our schools and competing for jobs not just with students from other states but with graduates from other countries. The best way to accelerate our state's economic recovery is to invest in today's students--who will be tomorrow's workers.

Therefore, I hereby pledge to support the timely and full implementation of the high-quality and consistent Common Core Standards in my state, including a plan that insures that these standards reach every classroom. I will fully support policies that make these standards meaningful and applicable to every student.

It is in the interest of our children, our state and our nation to better prepare our students for life beyond high school. Clear, consistent, and high quality standards will help restore America to be the world's leader in innovation and productivity.

Sincerely,

Your Name

About The Petition

Forty-five U.S. states and the District of Columbia have adopted the same set of guidelines for what public school students should be learning in reading and math. These are called the Common Core Standards.

When state governors pledge to adopt these standards for their schools, they will ensure that students get increased time with informational reading and be challenged to read at their grade level. They will also focus more deeply and rigorously on the most important basic math topics.

Stand For Children is encouraging the remaining governors (from the states of Texas, Alaska, Nebraska, Minnesota and Virginia) to incorporate the Common Core Standards into their instructional guidelines for public schools. You can join them by signing the petition below.

Thanks For Signing!

You're helping Stand For Children advocate for the inclusion of the Common Core Standards in schools across America.

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Andrew Freeman is a California native with a degree in history from UCLA. He’s covered a wide range of topics for TakePart, but is particularly interested in politics and policy. Email Andrew |@natureofdabeast | TakePart.com