Freakonomics

As part of my current SPED class at Roosevelt we were asked to read and review Freakonomics. Here is that review.
Freakonomics (2005) written by Stephen Levitt and Stephen Dubner shows how thoughtful analysis of data can be used to draw conclusions causing us to question that which we thought to be true. The analysis within illustrates that morality and economic theory can at time be at odds with each other. While the author’s analysis spans across fields ranging as far apart as sumo wrestlers to crack dealers, and the Ku Klux Klan to parents, often their insight is applied to education.
Recent stories in the press, most notably the Atlanta public school system, have reported what has been suspected by many for some time. Some teachers, when under pressure to produce greater levels of achievement from students, succumb to ‘massaging’ the figures instead of re-evaluating their antiquated teaching methods to improve their instruction. Levitt & Dubner blame the creation of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law in 2002. The high-stakes testing that was mandated by President Bush made school districts, their schools, and their teachers more accountable. These tests have been used to reward the highest performing schools, and to sanction those that performed poorly. Opponents of NCLB argue that a certain cohort of students will be subjected to tests that they have little to no chance of passing. These opponents also argue, and Levitt & Dubner prove, that teachers may concentrate on test topics to the detriment of a wider curriculum, and even go as far as committing a criminal act in order to suggest that their students have hit benchmarks.
The arguments for and against incentivizing teachers are many, but Levitt and Dubner illustrate that with careful analysis it is possible to run analysis of figures to such an extent that individual teachers who are guilty of cheating can be found and punished.
School districts are now more likely to be run by an individual from a business background than an educational one. The business world is more likely to financially reward their top performers, and fire their poor performers. It would make sense that the success of a manager in one field can be transferred to another using those same management principles. The examples given in Freakonomics of the Chicago Public School system, and the recent debacle revealed in Atlanta would suggest that comparing the business world to the education world isn’t as simple as some might think.
After reading Freakonomics one calls to mind the phrase “Lies, damned lies, and statistics”. This phrase describes how numbers can be used to support an argument, even when that argument is a weak one. It can also be applied by people to disparage those statistics that do not support their own views. Healthy discussion and utilization of statistics should be encouraged, but when the use of those same statistics are used to cover up truths, thoughtful insight and clear analysis, the type of which Levitt and Dubner champion, need to be employed.