Power of Good

PowerofGood.com | Elevate Alabama 3 Zeke Smith, executive vice president of External Affairs at Alabama Power Co., said in introducing Bice. "Well, a good education is indispens- able. It makes so much more in life possible." Bice talked about the challenges in educating children in Alabama, rang- ing from poor performances on standardized tests to high drop-out rates. But it was Bice's encouraging signs of improvement and the inno- vations taking place in class- rooms across the state that heartened the crowd and led many to believe what was once a source of shame for the state could soon become a source of pride. For instance, Bice said when he first started as state superintendent, he saw high school graduates getting diplomas but not carrying an intellectual curiosity into college – and that was among those who graduated rather than dropping out along the way. Bice said the past emphasis on standardized tests had a negative impact on teachers and on learn- ing and it was showing in the graduates. "We spent a decade teaching kids to take a test rather than teaching them to be pre- pared for the future," Bice said. In addition to a lack of intellectual curios- ity, Bice said universities and colleges told him nearly two-thirds of Alabama public high school graduates required remedial classes in math and science when they enrolled in post-secondary education. Once it was determined what wasn't working in education in the state, Bice said the goal was to empower local schools to introduce new ways of teaching and learning and to advance what works. That has led to some truly inspirational results, he said. For instance, the state took over the Midfield school system in Jefferson County and made wholesale changes, replacing many administrators, staff and teachers and implementing new, proven ways of teaching. By replac- ing the adults, Bice said the children blossomed. A school system that had a gradua- tion rate of less than 50 percent was at 80 percent two years later. Most importantly, the students are engaged in learning and have an intellectual curiosity they carry with them when they leave. Whether it's a Talladega school that replaced indi- vidual desks with round tables to encourage students to work and learn together, or a rural Alabama school where pre-teen kids are programming computer codes into wheeled robots to traverse the streets of a cityscape model, Bice said some amazing things are happening in Alabama's public schools. ELEVATE continued on page 4 Alabama Schools Superintendent Dr. Tommy Bice shares his education goals during Elevate's lunch session.

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