This opinion article discusses many relevant topics in education, including the recent investigation into some Georgia schools who have been accused of cheating on the standardized tests. The author is Mari Ann Roberts, a teacher in the Department of Teacher Education at Clayton State University. It was published 2/17/2010 in the Atlanta Journal.
Roberts begins her article with, “Take one flawed, underfunded federal education improvement act, like No Child Left Behind, add increasing pressure on individual schools to meet “Adequate Yearly Progress,” include some inane expectations that teachers can work miracles, sprinkle liberally with furlough days, suspended raises and budget cuts dating back to 2003 that will total more than $2.8 billion through the fiscal year ending next June. And what do you get? Whatever it is, it can’t be good.”
Roberts is not excusing cheating, but investigating the possible factors that may have resulted in systematic cheating at some schools. Roberts also argues that the way the current educational system is set up, students are cheated out of a meaningful education and teachers are cheated out of meaningful, purposeful, interactive teaching. Roberts is also critical of the standardized tests and performance-based pay.
I hope you enjoy the article!
Jennifer,
ReplyDeleteGreat article! I really like the ways in which the author uses the analogy of rating doctors according to the relative health of their patients, regardless of the patients' health practices, including smoking, overeating, etc. The straightforward arguments the writer uses really help us to see the ridiculous nature of some of the premises of NCLB. The opening is especially engaging, in its use of the analogy of a recipe--add all these factors and see what happens. This really raises such interesting points! Thanks for posting it.