[StBernard] Week or day in Review:

[Westley Annis]

Jer,

Without knowing what concretely what Walter's plans are to replace the LEAP
test, I think you do have to question the validity of the LEAP test results.
My wife is a teacher, my mother-in-law is a recently retired teacher of 33+
years, so I do defer to them on matters of how to run a classroom.

The problem with the LEAP test is that for those grades when the LEAP test
is given, the classroom becomes a yearlong training course on how to pass
the damn thing.  Doesn't matter if the kids actually learn anything, just so
long as they pass the test.  Administrators could care less about anything
else, and why not?  That's all the BESE board cares about.

My wife and I have talked about it numerous times and it is basically a
catch-22.  How can you accurately measure the effectiveness of a teacher?
There is no constant bench mark to grade the teachers on.

Every class is different.  Some kids learn easier than others, some classes
learn better than others.  With the flux every year in kids, there is no way
to measure if the teacher truly did their job that year or not.

You can take the smartest kid, give them the dumbest teacher, and the
teacher will look great because Johnny scored 100.  Reverse the roles with
the dumbest kid and the smartest teacher and now the teacher looks like she
failed, since Johnny failed.

You could try observing the teachers, but then you introduce different
personalities.  "A" is observing "B", but "A" doesn't like "B" so "A" gives
"B" poor marks when the reality is that "A" is a worthless educator who
resents the fact that "B" is a much better educator.

The best theoretical answer I have come up with would require an intensive
database that monitors every teacher, every student, and how they have been
grouped over the years.  Then it might be possible to more accurately gauge
how well an individual student or teacher is doing.

Westley

-----Original Message-----

Boasso on LEAP -- hmmmm, come on Walter. Why lower our kids standards in
education by wanting to "disembowel the leap tests" from existence, knowing
how many teachers, educators, etc. thoughtfully planned 4th/8th grade
testing to steady/prepare our kids toward upper high school for which will
prepare them for college. Failing to pass testing says loudly, "you are not
ready to continue until you've grasped ideas" that are required to
understand concepts, math, etc. of a higher grade. Leave it to you to worsen
the situation by allowing the stupid to go forward. Don't you know that
learning is the ultimate goal of testing? We all understand that making
things easier on students won't teach, but in effect give the opposite
result: pass a kid not ready for higher education. Similar to saying, "Oh,
John, it's all right you made a "D". It's a LOT better than getting an F.
That "good enough mentality" limits the mind to not accept challenges,
accept OK more than great, and lessens the horizon of the child as he
develops mentally. Mr. Boasso, I don't believe I want you teaching my child.
(or running my state). Pitiful at best.