Fourth Grader Suspended After Refusing to Answer Exam Question [zero tolerance alert]

zerointelligence ^ | Nov. 3 | zerointelligence

[Antioch]

Nine year-old Tyler Stoken, a student in the Aberdeen Public School District, didn't know how to answer an essay question on the Washington Assessment of Student Learning test. As punishment for leaving the question blank his principal suspended him for five days.

Tyler paraphrases the question saying, "You look out one day at school and see your principal flying by a window. In several paragraphs write what happens next." He's asked, "So why didn't you answer that question?" He says, "I couldn't think of what to write the essay without making fun of the principal."

He refused to answer the question even after his mother was called to the school. Tyler's mother Amy Wolfe says, "And he said he didn't know the answer. He just didn't know what to write. And they were telling me to make him answer the question."

He still didn't, so Tyler was given a 5-day suspension. In the letter that went home to mother, the principal writes, "The fact that Tyler chose to simply refuse to work on the WASL after many reasonable requests is none other than blatant defiance and insubordination." Shortly after receiving the suspension letter they received a phone call from Superintendent Marty Kay apologizing for the suspension.

"Because I think a mistake was made and over reacting to Tyler's refusal to complete the test," said Aberdeen school superintendent Marty Kay. ... The superintendent wants Tyler immediately re-instated at school. But Tyler’s mother says the damage has been done. Mom tells son, "Well, nobody will scream at you again. I promise you that." Tyler doesn't want to go to that school any more and you can't blame him. He was manipulated and then punished because he couldn't answer a test question.

WASL opponents also believe the principal and teachers broke the law by interfering with the WASL test. It had better have been a violation of the testing rules. If a teacher and principal browbeating a test taker into answering a question in any particular manner is not against the rules then the test is worse than useless.

[Roccus]

Thanks to a loony Mom and an idiot principal, this kid'll be in trouble with the cops before he's 16 and for some time thereafter.

[xc1427]

OK. You are not giving nine-year-olds enough credit. Abstract thinking was taught to myself and my classmates starting in the third grade.

By the way, I was a product of the worst public school system in America--the Kansas City school system. What in the hell does this say about the rest of this country's educational system? Public, private, or even home schooling?

[Right Wing Assault]

Sounds as if the school was trying to boost its scores on the standardized test. I wonder if any other kids left questions/tasks blank.

[Husker24]

Simple solution, if he leaves the answer blank, count it wrong. No further action needed.

[Mischi3vo]

Hehe, reminds me of the quote:

"Forget it, Mazer. I don't care if I pass your test, I don't care if I follow your rules. If you can cheat, so can I. I won't let you beat me unfairly - I'll beat you unfairly first."

Ender's Game

[driftdiver]

"Why is it ok for kid to refuse to to do his work??? Again he just deserved a bad grade but should every kid get to deside if he/she likes the questions enough to answer?"

So browbeating and humiliation is the answer?

[exnavy]

I hope you've got a good flame suit handy.

[exnavy]

It was a dumb question, a dumber school official, and a perfect argument for total overhaul of the public screwel system.

[Recon Dad]

Kid, what's so hard about the question.

Question: Principal goes flying past your window.

Answer: School's out for the rest of the week, no need for grief counseling.

[sonic109]

"Because I think a mistake was made and over reacting to Tyler's refusal to complete the test,"
Is that a sentence ?
If the kid didn't answer the question or refused to answer it then he fails that section of the test . It's a no brainer.

[driftdiver]

"And I know everyone will freak out on me but it's my GUESS the school freaked out and had such a stupid overreaction because any kid this defiant at age 9 has had lots and lots of discipline issues in the past!!!!"

There are lots of brats in public school.

There are also lots of well behaved children in public school.

The problem with public schools isn't the parents or the children. While parents can certainly improve, the real problem is the NEA and the bureaucratic BS it generates. Look at whats really going on. Administrators and teachers who can't pass the tests they hand out and sexual predators running rampant. They are more focused on pushing their socialist and homosexual agendas than doing anything else. This garbage has driven a lot of of the good teachers out and the rest whine to get paid $90k a year for teaching 2+2 9 months out of the year. The public school system is broke and blaming the kids isn't gonna fix the problem.

[Niteranger68]

Creative writing is WAY overrated!

[been_lurking]

The first rule, when your find yourself in a hole, is to stop digging.

Since your first ridiculous post, you have been furiously digging -- and the hole just kept getting deeper.

It was almost painful to watch.

[sonic109]

The quality of parents is MUCH to blame. We only teach these kids , we don't bring them up. I deal with INSANE parents all the time,mostly liberal , leftist morons who see every problem as a "condition" and slobber all over their little spoiled brat kids. By the way , I'm teaching 10 years and male 41K . I'd like to know how to get the big money you speak about .
( actually in my district kissing the asses of the DEM politicians and buying political dinner tickets can move you into a great position)

[driftdiver]

"The quality of parents is MUCH to blame. We only teach these kids , we don't bring them up. I deal with INSANE parents all the time,mostly liberal , leftist morons who see every problem as a "condition" and slobber all over their little spoiled brat kids."

OK I'll accept that libs are insane and slobbering idiots. My point was that the public school system is broke.

[dforest]

If they absolutely MUST have a response, they should have asked for something that had nothing to do with the principal. The idea of this was totally idiotic. The person who dreamed this up should have been suspended.

[panthermom]

I am assuming since it was a test there was more than one question. He didn't answer one, so really that question should have been marked wrong and then averaged into his grade. Where does lack of respect come into it? He said he felt awkward answering the question because he didn't want to make fun of the principal. I also have a 9 yr. old, why does not answering a question on a test make him a brat? It must be great to be a perfect parent with perfect kids.

[sonic109]

There are some major problems with the education system . Teachers are not the whole problem as most people would like to think. Many think that a classroom still resembles something out of "Leave it to Beaver " TV show days. We're dealing with one parent kids, crack babies , kids with parents who don't speak English and have little schooling themselves, young teachers who had a Marxist , feel good college education and political favoritism beyond belief.PC values and parents who ALWAYS think their kid is right is a problem as well. Most critics of teachers wouldn't last a day in an urban classroom.It's WAY different then you think these days.

[Preachin']

This whole thing stinks.

If the school would have simply failed the kid on the test, and resolved it as necessary from there. And for the life of me, how could a kid not have something to write. He sounds like he either a punk or a baby.

There was no reason for any adult to yell at the child, but they need to either provide a little assistance in this are, or fail him this year and hope he gets it next time around.

[justlurking]

The Engineering Club declares their re-creation of a medieval trebuchet a success?

I was thinking something like "Tornado sirens wail, duck and cover."

But as someone else posted: it's a trick question. Someone with a vivid imagination could easily write something that would get them in trouble, and the kid realized it. His concern about "making fun of the principal" is the dead give-away.

The error was just compounded by brow-beating him about it, and suspension was absolute idiocy. As others have posted, I suspect that too much was riding on the kid's success on the test.