About Teaching and Leading
He encouraged us to always use our teacher voice to say proudly, "I am a teacher." We never need to marginalize ourselves by saying, "I'm just a teacher."
He stated that he took this job to work for kids, and he assured us that his office will not make decisions that aren't in the best interest of students.
He also reminded us that Kentucky has been talked about across the nation in every educational meeting he's been in over the past 5 years. People know that we're moving forward in Kentucky and they are anxious to follow our lead. Kentucky has great respect in the educational arena across the country.
About Assessment
In further discussion of assessment, KDE staff suggested that if students can answer an assessment question solely by pulling information from something they've read in a book, then the assessment item isn't deep enough.
Dr. Pruitt assured us that the summative assessments that will be designed (probably for 4th and 7th grades) will be very different from the tests we are used to taking. They will not be focused on memorized facts and vocabulary.
Regarding our current assessment and accountability system, he suggested that our accountability system is far too complex, but that at the state level, Kentucky does a good job of limiting the amount of assessment it places on students. He did suggest that we need to look at the amount of assessment mandated at the district level, though.
Regarding Science Instruction
He mentioned that we need to address instructional practices in science, and we need to ensure that all students have the opportunity to access high-quality science instruction at every grade level. (Eliminate the opportunity gap.) Then, he suggests, we can work on assessment.
"3-dimensional learning is hard" ~Dr. Pruitt
"We are going to have a STEM agenda in Kentucky." ~Dr. Pruitt
The Takeaway
The bad news
His answer was, "War Eagle."
I think we can get past that one (for the kids).