Ahh we get older we get wiser. As is the case with standardized testing. I have come to the opinion that it's not an answer. My daughter was one of the first kids held back in school because of EOG testing. We had no idea she struggled. She was a quiet "good" girl in 3rd grade. She always passed until than. I have learned now that she is a senior that her learning disability is that because she does not learn traditionally. She is not a child to learn by listening to someone speak. She's visual and actually does better just reading and answering questions. She doesn't process what she hears correctly sometimes this caused her problems. The testing always put her in an extra reading class, so instead of a class such as art she had the reading class. She has learned up here she is very artistic and she excels in the arts. She has artwork up on the walls at school. She was told not to count on college in middle school that it would probably be out of the question for her, maybe beauty school. She was stuck in the beauty school mind until her junior year. She did very well on her act's and is qualified for college. Suddenly she learned she can do anything she wants. I think I have learned that some kids learn different. That testing doesn't give you an accurate reading of all children. It is a test that works on a streamline basis not accurate because some kids are visual, some kids are not dumb they just have a different way of processing. I am just curious how others feel about standardized testing. Do we stress children out this way? Are kids who have other talents not allowed to follow them because the testing takes a front seat to all other classes? Do we assume numbers in middle school actually can predict things accurately?
There are different types of learners. There are kinesthetic learners who must move something in order to focus on listening....auditory learners who need to focus their eyes on something other than the speaker in order to hear lectures (teachers often think these folks are not paying attention when they are actually staring out the window focusing on one thing so they can focus on listening) ...and visual learners (spatial) who must look at what they are learning in order to soak in what they are hearing. These learning styles continue as children become adults. I am a trainer who works with adults, and I've learned there are tricks to dealing with each type of learner. When I suspect I have a visual learner in my training room, I use more whiteboard diagrams and power point presentations. If I feel the majority of my class is auditory, we do more class discussion and intersperse the training with trainees taking turns reading bits of the material out loud in class so they hear different voices and tones, pitch. As for kinesthetic learners, I take care of any potential "kinnies" at the beginning of each class by handing out "stretchies" first thing. This allows folks to have something to play with that is quiet. Otherwise, I end up hearing pencils tap, zippers going - zip - zip -zip...or feet tapping. :lol: The sad thing about "kinnies" is that many teachers in today's schools aren't adequately trained about learning styles, and often criticize and punish students who are "doodling" in class...refusing to allow them to do so. These untrained teachers don't realize they are removing the mechanism that is allowing the student to focus on the lecture. These teachers consider it disrepectful for the student to be drawing and doodling in class, rather than allowing that tool to be used. Testing is not related to learning. All learning styles can test equally. Someone who appears unable to "test" in standardized testing simply didn't have their learning needs met.
If someone told my daughter that, I would tell them not to count on being much more than the loser they already are, and if they opened their ignorant mouth again not to count on having many teeth left.
1st and 2nd grade assessments are availbel online. Might be of interest to some.. If I can find the link to NC Dept of Public Instruction, I'll post it. Or you check out JOCO school website, and you can find it there. May take some tracking down, but I have done it this way. And, every grade level K-12 has its standard course of study online, so you can download/print out the weekly lessons, etc. Hope this helps.
