Originally, I posted these comments on February 16, 2011... I am a 7th grade Math teacher with 20 years of fulltime teaching experience in public schools, and I vehemently concur with your comment, “the education system is broken and has been broken for a long time.” The federal department of education, the notion of “entitlement,” rampant illegal drug use, “blended” families, lack of self-respect, lack of common courtesy, lack of discipline in the home and from school administrators, etc. have all contributed to this decline.
Oh, did I forget to mention No Child Left Behind and “teaching to the test” rather than teaching MATH?
Math skills build! Students must have prerequisite skills and understanding before moving on!
STUDENTS SHOULD BE RETAINED UNTIL THEY HAVE ACQUIRED THESE NECESSARY SKILLS - NO “FUDGING” ALLOWED.
The educational system needs to STOP all of this rampant and reduntant testing that erodes classroom instructional time!!!
We have lost at least TWO weeks of class time SO FAR this year in order for “data to be collected so that I am aware of my students’ weaknesses”. BS!
I look at my students’ test scores every year when school begins and have a base knowledge of their math strengths/weaknesses - or rather test-taking abilities. Not to mention that our school system wants ALL of the objectives - and leave out the “fluff” - to be “covered” by mid-January, even though official testing season occurs for two weeks in mid-March. (The “fluff” consists of extension activities that incorporate history, art, hands-on experiences, real-life applications, the use of technology - like graphing calculators, computer programs such as Geometer’s Sketchpad and PowerPoint, and internet-based research, etc.)
I have not even addressed behavioral issues in the classroom: argumentative, sassy, back-talking students; students with extreme emotional issues who constantly want and do pick a fight with someone; students who talk/sing to themselves; students who REFUSE to get out a pencil and paper and just sit there; students who ATTACK other students, teachers, and bus drivers and are WARNED: “don’t do it again or you’ll go to youth detention”. Whatever happened to EXPULSION? Oh, that’s right. No Child Left Behind.
BTW: Not all teachers are bad. I am sick and tired of hearing that poor test scores are all a teacher’s fault!!!
I coach a Math Team and offer complimentary tutoring for an hour once a week after school. In the past, I have had as many as 15 students participate in tutoring. This year, at most, three students have taken advantage of this opportunity.
What say you?
Powerful commentary!
I particularly appreciate your comment about teaching to the test in math. My daughter just finished 7th grade and for the first year since she started taking the state standardized tests (SOL) in math she did not score a perfect 600, it was only a 596.
But she wasn’t “taught to the test” this year because she took 8th, not 7th grade math, but had to take that test.
My child is a bit on the bright side, but obviously these tests are geared more toward, I won’t say lowest common denominator, but definitely not toward the top tier.
The week before the tests, she took 3 this year, and the 2 weeks of the tests, there is never any homework from any class, even those without the test so that they “focus” on those SOL tests. To me, it’s a waste of valuable time.
See #70.