When visiting the campaign website of any candidate there is a certain level of platitude to be expected on any given issue. You hope to see some sense of the direction the candidate will take on the issue but know that there is unlikely to be a detailed rundown.
Checking out the Dan Severson Issue Page, I was quite disappointed that the representative from House District 14A has summed up his entire view on education into two neat and tidy little sentences.
Checking out the Dan Severson Issue Page, I was quite disappointed that the representative from House District 14A has summed up his entire view on education into two neat and tidy little sentences.
I believe in a strong education system. I also believe in accountability in education funding and local control through parental involvement.
Really, Mr. Severson? Is there someone out there who believes in a weak education system? One clue, however, is that Severson conveniently leaves out the word 'public' from the education system he wants to be strong. I have to wonder if anybody has ever asked him if he really believes in a strong public education system. Are the folks in 14A aware of the fact that Severson is another legislator in the back pocket of extremist organizations such as Edwatch?
Severson believes in accountability in education funding. He is not specific as to what that accountability might be but it typically means he wants funding tied to some sort of test. So, even though he is opposed to NCLB which does ostensibly the same thing that he is actually in support of, he wants the entire evaluation and funding of your school to be summed up by one assessment given on one day and containing questions that require little, if any, higher order thinking skills.
It becomes very tiresome, as an educator, to be told by people who don't support public education in the first place that they know more about education and educating than people who have been in the classroom doing everything they possibly can to get children excited about learning. I can tell you what doesn't get kids interested in learning and that is studying for a bubble test that they are told will pigeonhole their existence and the existence of their school.
If Severson is brave enough, I challenge him to answer the following questions:
If you have other questions for Mr. Severson regarding his beliefs about public education, leave them in the comments section and I will send them along to see if he is up to the challenge. Perhaps if we are persistent enough we can help Severson build a better issue statement to add to the paltry content he currently has displayed.
Severson believes in accountability in education funding. He is not specific as to what that accountability might be but it typically means he wants funding tied to some sort of test. So, even though he is opposed to NCLB which does ostensibly the same thing that he is actually in support of, he wants the entire evaluation and funding of your school to be summed up by one assessment given on one day and containing questions that require little, if any, higher order thinking skills.
It becomes very tiresome, as an educator, to be told by people who don't support public education in the first place that they know more about education and educating than people who have been in the classroom doing everything they possibly can to get children excited about learning. I can tell you what doesn't get kids interested in learning and that is studying for a bubble test that they are told will pigeonhole their existence and the existence of their school.
If Severson is brave enough, I challenge him to answer the following questions:
1. Do you support a strong PUBLIC education system and reject the mission of Edwatch to establish a NONPUBLIC education system?
2. What assessments do you believe provide the best accountability for any given school? Please describe those assessments in detail.
3. Describe the best pedagogical methods one can use to achieve success.
4. What role should educators play in the education of our children? Should they be creators of educational policy and standards or merely facilitators of the parent's wishes? If they are to be facilitators, how would you solve the problem of having conflicting parental wishes?
If you have other questions for Mr. Severson regarding his beliefs about public education, leave them in the comments section and I will send them along to see if he is up to the challenge. Perhaps if we are persistent enough we can help Severson build a better issue statement to add to the paltry content he currently has displayed.
