For Immediate Release
Feb 25, 2008 2:21 PM
The UFT on Feb. 25 began airing a television commercial highlighting the importance of a well-rounded education and the need to far better balance standardized testing and test preparation with a rich curriculum that promotes teaching and learning.
The 30-second “Seeds of Knowledge” ad will run for four weeks on local broadcast stations as well as satellite and cable television networks in the New York City metropolitan area. More than 80 percent of adults over the age of 25 – about 11.6 million people – are expected to see the spot at least 10 times during its run.
“While testing is an important part of measuring student progress, it should not be done at the expense of educating the whole child. We want to bring attention to the need for teachers to be able to spend time encouraging curiosity, knowledge and higher learning in their students in order to help them achieve,” said Randi Weingarten, president of the union representing New York City’s 100,000 public school educators who teach 1.1 million students in 1,400 schools.
“Teachers know that accurate assessments are necessary for accountability. But as our ad illustrates, focusing so narrowly on math and English standardized test scores and subjecting our children to excessive test prep denies them a well rounded education, which is counterproductive to their long term academic achievement. Moreover, because so many policy decisions, including closing schools, are now based on standardized test score results, over-reliance on these tests has widespread repercussions.
Commenting on the ad and its theme, noted education expert E. D. Hirsch Jr., the founder and chairman of the nonprofit Core Knowledge Foundation and professor emeritus of education and humanities at the University of Virginia, said:
"Yes -- and let the word go out from cognitive science that teaching history, literature, science and art IS the surest road to better reading comprehension and higher scores on standardized reading tests ."
The ad features teacher Liane Mieles of PS 325 in Manhattan guiding small groups of children engaged in various projects, including one in which a little girl focuses intently on planting a seedling in a jar of soil as Ms. Mieles watches and encourages her. As the camera pulls back, an announcer says: “A child’s mind is a precious thing that’s growing every day.
Standardized school tests can measure her progress in certain subjects… but New York City teachers believe it takes a well-rounded curriculum – including science, civics, language, arts and sports – to help young imaginations thrive.”
As the camera cuts to the little girl carefully transplanting what has grown into a small leafy plant into the soil, the ad concludes, “A dedicated teacher can inspire a love of learning, encourage intellectual curiosity and prepare them for the world of tomorrow.”
The ad will run during some of television’s most popular shows, including 60 Minutes, Law & Order, Today, Jeopardy and Late Night with David Letterman, among others, along with local morning and evening news shows.