Replies

Beats me. A radio commentator says that Bush has gimmied scores to show more improvement than there is. I am sure that it is politically difficult to close schools in black neighborhoods with black, union teachers ready and able to bring in Jesse or Al Sharpton.

I don't see gains commensurate with expense in third grade classes limited to 15 students. Gains are about 10% versus 100% increase in cost.

In Texas, George Bush retrained teachers, has that been tried here, yet?

In Texas, George Bush retrained teachers, has that been tried here, yet?

Yes, that is happening now, as teachers in FL will now be retrained for reading.

As for the difference in reading and writing scores -- I have noticed that writing scores are often higher than reading scores. IMO, this is because a student has an easier time grasping the fundamentals of writing, because in teaching writing to these elementary students, you can actually teach them where to use certain words and phrases in an introduction and a conclusion, how to organize the essay, etc.

But, in teaching reading, you have to teach the students skills not as easily grasped by some students, because they have to comprehend what they read. And, this means they must understand information implied in what they read. They often do not. One of the reasons is because many students have a very limited vocabulary, and can not ascertain the meaning of text.

But, when they write, they are choosing their own words, and using an organizational pattern they have learned; while teaching reading, and reorganizing that schema in their head, and adding new vocabulary, is much more difficult. Hence, lower reading scores. That is my theory, but I only have a MA, not a PhD like you! :)