Beethoven's Ninth, Our Neck of the Woods and What is the NAPLAN?

Beethoven's Ninth, Our Neck of the Woods, and What is the NAPLAN?

Back at the Opera House on Saturday Night (29th)!

Hello Elementary Friends,

This past Saturday night we were pleased to be guests of my exchange partner, Helen's sister, Eva and her husband, Matthew for a concert back at the Opera House.  We tried to relish the entire evening because it will probably be the last time we will be inside for a performance before we head home in December.  It was a lovely night.  I am sure that most of my musical friends know of Beethoven's Ninth, but we attended a pre-concert talk on the work, and I found some of the points of the talk very interesting.

Ludwig van Beethoven

Did you know?

• Beethoven began his symphonic career at the age of 30.  
• Even as he followed the classical traditions of the 18th century he was breaking new ground, and audiences noticed.
• He completed his Ninth symphony in 1824, when he was in his 50s.
• By this stage he was profoundly deaf - at the premiere on 7 May 1824 a soloist had to turn him around to acknowledge the thunderous applause.
• With the Ninth Symphony, Beethoven broke his own record, composing the longest symphony that had ever been written.
• He also added human voice to the symphony introducing vocal soloists and full choir for a setting Schiller's ode To Joy in the finale.
• Perhaps the most important feature ot Beethoven's Ninth Symphony is its philosophical character.  Up to that point Symphonies in the classical tradition (such as Beethoven's Second) were purely "about" music.  That is not the case in the Ninth.
• The Ninth is profoundly joyous music, and in the last movement Beethoven uses the most basic of means - a simple tune that anyone can sing - to build a powerful hymn to universal freedom and equality.

I have to tell you that during the last movement I was moved to tears for the beauty of the music, but also in gratitude for the experience that night and this entire year.

Vladimir Ashkenazy - Conductor

Our Neck of the Woods

This week I decided to photograph some of the places and businesses that we frequent each week within walking distance of our house.  I want to be able to remember these special places that we have called home this year.  We have really enjoyed our suburb of Hunters Hill!

It's Springtime on our Block!

Our Apartment Building

"Birdie McBirdface" (first cousin of PopEye) - Discussing the World's Problems with Mitch

Our Front Door

This is the name of the road that our apartment faces.
( Kind of like saying "Street Lane" or "Boulevard Drive") 

In front of the Hunters Hill Hotel where Mitch plays trivia each Wednesday Night

Our Chemist (Pharmacy)

Our Shopping Center with Butcher, Grocery, and News Agent

My Hairdresser

Our Bank

 I have to insert some interesting information.  You may wonder "how do you get money transferred from your USA bank into an Australian Bank without paying high transfer fees?"  We looked into several methods and clearly the easiest, most efficient, and by far the cheapest is this:

1. Go the ATM and get out your USA bank debit card.  Place in machine, enter PIN, agree to the charges which are much less than other methods of transfer.
2. Withdraw $500 cash.  Take receipt and card.
3. Then, get out your Australian bank debit card.  Place in machine, enter PIN, and punch deposit.
4. Take the envelope that comes out of the machine, place the $500 cash in the envelope, and place back in the deposit slot.
5. The next morning your deposit will have credited your Australian bank - easy peasy!

With the strong US Dollar since we have been here - $500 Australian is worth about $381 US.

Our Neighborhood Cat, Orlando

What is the NAPLAN?

I have had several Australian educators ask me about the current status of high stakes testing in public schools in the United States.  

Well, of course I know a bit about that topic.  I have also been interested to learn about how Australia determines the effectiveness of its public schools and if assessments here carry as much weight as they do in the states.

The primary nationwide assessment is the NAPLAN.  First here is a bit of information on the assessment:

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a series of tests focused on basic skills that are administered annually to Australian students. These standardized tests assess students' reading, writing, language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy and are administered by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). The National Assessment Program is overseen by the Council of Australian Governments Education Council.

NAPLAN was introduced in 2008. ACARA has managed the tests from 2010 onward. The tests are designed to determine if Australian students are achieving outcomes. There has been a great deal of contention in the educational community as to whether the tests are appropriate, whether teachers are teaching as they normally would or teaching to the test, and what the results of the test are being used for. The data obtained from the NAPLAN tests are collated and used to show all schools' average performance against other schools in the country on the Government My School website

The tests are also designed to be carried out on the same days all across Australia in any given year. Parents are able to decide whether their children take the test or not. The vast majority of Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 students participate.

According to ACARA the main purpose of the NAPLAN tests is to measure whether literacy and numeracy skills and knowledge that provide the critical foundation for other learning and for their productive and rewarding participation in the community. In essence the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) influence brought about a series of tests to determine whether students being are prepared for later life appropriately in the present day school system. The introduction of national literacy and numeracy tests in 2008 has provided consistency, comparability and the ability to transfer information on students’ literacy and numeracy performance nationally.

Having  my "background knowledge" of the assessment programs in both Texas and Colorado, I have "been keen" to observe and learn what I can about how Australia assesses its students and measures the effectiveness of its schools.  Here are a few comparison points to consider from my limited time here and observations from an "outside observer:"

1.  The premise in the United States is that assessment holds teachers and schools accountable. A benefit of testing is that teachers and schools are responsible for teaching students what they are required to know for these assessments.  To this point I have not seen that Australian schools are held accountable to the degree that they are in the US for assessment results.

2.  In the United States standardized assessment allows students from multiple schools, districts, and even states to be compared. Without standardized assessment this comparison would not be possible.   In Australian schools I have not seen active comparison of schools except a published listing of the schools in New South Wales and their rankings on this assessment.

3. Assessment is usually accompanied by a set of established standards or instructional framework which provide teachers with guidance for what and when something needs to be taught. Without these procedures a second  grade teacher and a fifth grade teacher could be teaching the same curriculum content.  I do believe in a consistent curriculum, and the Australian schools have a set of standards and expectations for their students.  I have not seen, however, a unified scope and sequence that all schools follow to ensure a "guaranteed and viable" curriculum ( a Jeffco coined term).

4.  Standardized testing evaluates a student’s performance on a particular day and dismisses external factors. Certain students simply do not perform well on tests. Many of these students are capable and understand the content, but they can not reveal it on the test. Many students also develop test anxiety which hurts their performance.  To this point I have not seen the degree of high test anxiety that we have in the states.

These are just a few of my observations and opinions.  You have to understand, however, I am focused on the success of my students.  As it plays out, we will see if the benefits of standardized testing in Australia reaps the benefits of its conception and purpose.

And now, next week's news...

My Katie comes on November 9th!

I am about to pop!

Stay Tuned, Friends!