EduBlog Insights

I have blogged about high stakes testing many times, like here, here, here, and here. Maria, one of my students, blogged about it, as many of my students have.
Today I read States Have More Schools Falling Behind in the Washington Post. Listen to this quote:

Under the 2002 law, schools that do not make sufficient academic progress face penalties including the eventual replacement of their administrators and teachers.

The article talks about states manipulating the results. Then this:

The law, however, allows states to adjust both their tests and the formulas by which they calculate “adequate yearly progress,” leaving parents and policymakers unable to make definite conclusions about such numbers, analysts including Petrilli said. .

I’m so sick of these meaningless conversations, quotes, and rhetoric. Why is learning linked with punishment? Punishment for educators, students, and now even test makers are being called to task. Where is our leadership? Where are our voices? It’s time to start asking different questions and it’s time for our leaders to help us change our schools into places that inspire a love for learning. Roland Barth says this far better than I ever could in The Culture Builder and in Improving Relationships Within the Schoolhouse.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 29th, 2006 at 3:44 pm and is filed under Testing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.