Children are one third of our population and all of our future. ~Select Panel for the Promotion of Child Health, 1981
We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher
Dear Colleagues,
I am always reflective at the end of a class. I think back to the beginning and how I was nervous; would I remember the days assignments are due?, Would anyone comment on my blog or discussion board? Will I be able to do the course work and work full time?. Now that we are at the end of the class, I am thankful for all of you who made it easy and comfortable. I am thankful that I was able to communicate with a group of professionals who bring a diversity and love to a field I am passionate about. I have learned and grown from each one of you. Thank you for all of the comments, tips and personal stories. I have applied many of the strategies and ideas that we have discussed throughout the 8 weeks to my own classroom and seen some wonderful results. I wish you all the best in your future classes and hope to have a class with you again.
Thank you,
Amber
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Testing for Intelligence
I have thought a lot about this topic throughout the week. While I believe that children should be assessed and progress should be monitored I don't agree with the idea of standardized tests. As a special education teacher, I measure progress differently than my general education co-workers. What their students may learn in a week may take my students months. Because I teach special education many of my students are not required to take standardized tests. With that said, I don't believe general education students should be required either.
Best practices show that differentation within teaching and learning is a key to success for students'. Why then are we requiring students to take the same test without any regard for differentiation? Unique learning styles is another concept that is important to consider when assessing. I don't believe standardized tests measure how much students know rather how well they can memorize information and convert it to bubbled answer sheets. Application of concepts is just as important as memorization. How do we know that students can take the concept of addition/subtraction skills on a test and convert them to balancing a checkbook or making change at the grocery store?
Many teachers are now pressured to "teach to the test" which limits the creativity of teachers and stiffles engagement of students. Would it not be better to teach addition/subtraction or money skills to students through real life application? Isn't that the ultimate goal?
Personally, I am not a good test taker. I would study hard but it never reflected on my test scores. When I got my MEAP scores (Michigan tests) or ACT scores back my heart sank at the score. What that score told me was that I was "stupid" and wouldn't be successful in college or in life. It brought my self-esteem down which probably caused me to do worse the second time around. And followed me through to college and the teacher prep tests that had to be taken. But the the truth is it didn't measure my ability to be successful or how smart I was, it measured how well I could take a test. I am living proof that standardized tests don't accurately reflect how much a child knows but how well it can be transferred. I believe teachers' should be given back the creativity to teach students' content and students' should be tested on how well they can apply concepts they have learned to everyday situations.
I chose to research education in China. I did this because I often hear how China has the strongest education system, how some believe it is surpassing the United States in education and I wanted to learn more about it. Here are some facts:
- There are four levels of education in China: primary, junior middle, senior middle and higher education.
- All students have 9 years of education. Students are required to complete primary and junior middle education but may go on to senior middle and higher education by passing exams.
- The exam focuses on core subjects but also physical and sports education, moral and political education. How well the students do on this exam determines the quality of their senior and vocational schools.
- In order to be accepted into a University students' must take the National College Entrance Exam. Admission is determined mainly on the results of the exam but investigation into the students' moral and social character may also be considered.
References:
Best practices show that differentation within teaching and learning is a key to success for students'. Why then are we requiring students to take the same test without any regard for differentiation? Unique learning styles is another concept that is important to consider when assessing. I don't believe standardized tests measure how much students know rather how well they can memorize information and convert it to bubbled answer sheets. Application of concepts is just as important as memorization. How do we know that students can take the concept of addition/subtraction skills on a test and convert them to balancing a checkbook or making change at the grocery store?
Many teachers are now pressured to "teach to the test" which limits the creativity of teachers and stiffles engagement of students. Would it not be better to teach addition/subtraction or money skills to students through real life application? Isn't that the ultimate goal?
Personally, I am not a good test taker. I would study hard but it never reflected on my test scores. When I got my MEAP scores (Michigan tests) or ACT scores back my heart sank at the score. What that score told me was that I was "stupid" and wouldn't be successful in college or in life. It brought my self-esteem down which probably caused me to do worse the second time around. And followed me through to college and the teacher prep tests that had to be taken. But the the truth is it didn't measure my ability to be successful or how smart I was, it measured how well I could take a test. I am living proof that standardized tests don't accurately reflect how much a child knows but how well it can be transferred. I believe teachers' should be given back the creativity to teach students' content and students' should be tested on how well they can apply concepts they have learned to everyday situations.
I chose to research education in China. I did this because I often hear how China has the strongest education system, how some believe it is surpassing the United States in education and I wanted to learn more about it. Here are some facts:
- There are four levels of education in China: primary, junior middle, senior middle and higher education.
- All students have 9 years of education. Students are required to complete primary and junior middle education but may go on to senior middle and higher education by passing exams.
- The exam focuses on core subjects but also physical and sports education, moral and political education. How well the students do on this exam determines the quality of their senior and vocational schools.
- In order to be accepted into a University students' must take the National College Entrance Exam. Admission is determined mainly on the results of the exam but investigation into the students' moral and social character may also be considered.
References:
Living in china: The education system in chinga. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.liuzhou.co.uk/china/educationinfo.htm
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