tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post2673772732542742257..comments2024-03-18T22:44:53.542-05:00Comments on Learn Me Good: TESTIVUSMister Teacherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00797744114515551901noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-11091898589320068292009-04-27T18:19:00.000-05:002009-04-27T18:19:00.000-05:00Don't worry, I know about that oath you have to si...Don't worry, I know about that oath you have to sign as well as the ridiculously phrased questions. Culturally biased? You betcha.Mister Teacherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00797744114515551901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-33313306350331939902009-04-27T16:38:00.000-05:002009-04-27T16:38:00.000-05:00yeah, testing is a bum deal. here, all students a...yeah, testing is a bum deal. here, all students are tested, regardless of ability, at grade 3 and above. our district also does MAPS tests at the beginning, midterm and end of each year. this is a required short cycle assessment, and the data is to be used to drive instruction. it measures student growth based on state standards. however, this set of tests has NO bearing on our state standardized test. our school is in corrective action and if we don't raise our school wide scores by an insane amount we will be in danger of having our school taken over by the state. they have done this for one middle school and the students there take 3 reading and 3 math classes each day. the last class is a science class (since science now counts toward our AYP but social studies does not). yikes. since i teach music, this really scares me.<br />i also agree that these are mostly reading tests. there is not a single computation problem on our math test. every math question is a story problem and almost all of them require at least 2 steps to arrive at a correct answer. some of the questions are totally bogus and i would love to share them, but i had to sign this right away on a paper that says if i get caught discussing specific test material (even with my spouse) then i can be fined and lose my license. sorry you won't get to laugh at what constitutes a proficient student.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-46119832167399263452007-02-21T18:26:00.000-06:002007-02-21T18:26:00.000-06:00That's exactly my problem with that, Mrs. Bluebird...That's exactly my problem with that, Mrs. Bluebird. I don't know how the other teachers can stand it. Like I said, THANKFULLY we are allowed to read words and phrases on the third-grade math test, if they ask for help.Mister Teacherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00797744114515551901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-74474018374309394542007-02-21T16:33:00.000-06:002007-02-21T16:33:00.000-06:00Great post - loved the comment about differentiati...Great post - loved the comment about differentiation. Beautiful.<BR/><BR/>And you're also on target about the science test basically being a reading test with a science bent. I teach 7th science and every year we shake our heads about the fact that the kids' science scores are a mirror image of their reading scores. It's almost not worth testing science because what's really being tested is reading!Mrs. Bluebirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10283080212189118357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-63773249068939163202007-02-20T18:46:00.000-06:002007-02-20T18:46:00.000-06:00Elementary, special ed kids DO get tested, but the...Elementary, special ed kids DO get tested, but they don't take the TAKS. They take a test that is modified for their needs. From what I've heard, though, NEXT year, everyone might have to take the standard TAKS.Mister Teacherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00797744114515551901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-76164841622701878262007-02-19T19:53:00.000-06:002007-02-19T19:53:00.000-06:00You mentioned kids that were exempted from the tes...You mentioned kids that were exempted from the test.....I had head that Federal guidelines for Spec. Ed. under IDEA were now calling for all students to be tested.....at least that's the mandate in my district.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-68604135992202086002007-02-19T18:37:00.000-06:002007-02-19T18:37:00.000-06:00Do you know that homeschoolers in Iowa have the op...Do you know that homeschoolers in Iowa have the option of having their kids take a standardized test or submitting a portfolio (reviewed by whom? on what standards?) that shows the students are making "adequate progress"? What would that do to our lives if we had such an option?Adequate progress? What exactly might that entail?<BR/>On the standardized testing, my school opted to have us test our 4th block classes, all in one shot. The school provided bottled water- I brought healthy snacks (granola bars, cheese, fruit, crackers) for them to munch on during the breaks. Unlike Mamacita, I didn't get in trouble for it, either. <BR/>We were instructed not to provide any additional explanation of test items, nor were we permitted to "clean-up" any of the answer sheets- erase stray marks, fill in the bubbles better. At the end they each got a ticket on which they could write their name and then submit to a drawing for fabulous prizes.Mrs. Thttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17730747441676219265noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-25078782470610519772007-02-18T22:46:00.000-06:002007-02-18T22:46:00.000-06:00I agree completely and have not understood many of...I agree completely and have not understood many of the testing rules I had to deal with when testing my Wisconsin 3rd graders. At some point, let's all hope someone wakes up and gets rid of the standardized testing as the main measure of learning.IMC Guyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16279699282698965195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-32038882976867015062007-02-18T08:33:00.000-06:002007-02-18T08:33:00.000-06:00Man, this sounds like some kind of bad idea the ad...Man, this sounds like some kind of bad idea the administrators at my district would have.<BR/><BR/>I myself get to watch over 6 incorrigibles, kids with behavior and learning problems so bad they are exempt from the test.<BR/><BR/>My boss told me I'd need to provide some kind of structure to their day .<BR/><BR/>DUHMike in Texashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00635962989639829455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21615042.post-58759395111293774862007-02-17T19:04:00.000-06:002007-02-17T19:04:00.000-06:00You'll get no positive comments about testing from...You'll get no positive comments about testing from me, apologies in advance.<BR/><BR/>I was written up three times for cooking breakfast for my testing group. My kids were poor and their parents were far too ignorant to know how to fill out the paperwork for free meals at school, so by nine thirty a.m. their stomachs were growling like mad, and no way in hell was I going to force them to take a big test on empty stomachs. <BR/><BR/>However, feeding them was forbidden, so I got written up for it. Since I did it again, two more times, you can see that I am a person who believes in following regulations to a T. Not.Mamacita (The REAL one)https://www.blogger.com/profile/15400978384217375737noreply@blogger.com