RM>For one thing, if there is a nationally agreed-upon standard,
  >then we can have exit exams which certify that a graduate has
  >attained certain skills or a certain base of knowledge.  As
  >it is now, a graduate may, or may not, know much of ANYTHING!
RL>Did my sister lack the skills, did she have less of a base 
RL>knowledge than me? No! She just panicked during a test atmosphere.
RL>The whole problem of exit exams - if they are the whole basis
RL>of graduation - is that don't guarantee that the student has the
RL>knowledge. Some people, let's face it, do not do well in a test
RL>situation.
I understand... Certainly, this could present a problem, but
anything we do will present problems of one sort or another.
I'm not sure what alternative we have if we want graduation
to mean that a candidate has met specified standards?  I 
don't think people, in general, are going to be willing to
accept "our" word for it much longer, especially since "our"
word seems not to mean much these days...
RL>The problem with having national tests is that teachers will
RL>teach to the test.
Which, if the test reflects the specified content, should
mean the student has met the requirements; the key is to
make the test meaningful...
RL>Passing a test only proves that you can take a test or spew 
RL>out whatever has been memorized.
A test doesn't have to consist solely of memorization; that
depends on the test...
RL>WE have had tests here in Math and I believe English at the 3rd, 6th and
RL>9th grade level. These are for assessment purposes only. I remember
RL>being at several schools last (?) year and many teachers complained
RL>about the content of the tests. Some of their best students failed them
RL>or at least did poorly. Actually, I believe it wasn't so much the
RL>content of the test but the set up and wording of them that they
RL>complained about.
Bad tests are just that - bad!  As you well know, you can't
simply throw one together and expect it to have any validity.
RL>Tests can tell you a lot, but I believe the teacher can tell you more.
No doubt.. The current setup doesn't seem to allow for that
input, however...
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