I can’t imagine this happening in this country what with No Child Left Behind and it’s push for higher test scores. We’re too honest for that.
While several School Committee members seem satisfied with the district’s response to testing violations at Goddard School of Science and Technology, others want more information, they said yesterday. Superintendent Melinda J. Boone, however, defended the steps she has laid out.
The state commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education announced Thursday that his department would nullify Goddard’s scores because his department found that school staff “reviewed student work on the assessment, coached students to add to their responses, scribed answers or portions of answers that were not worded by students, and provided scrap paper for students to use during test,” according to a Jan. 19 letter from Commissioner Mitchell D. Chester to Ms. Boone.
When he wrote of teachers who had “scribed answers,” he was referring to teachers who work with students who cannot write and who are supposed to transcribe the students’ answers verbatim, according to Jonathan Palumbo, a state spokesman. The investigation did not find any evidence of testing irregularities in previous years, he said.
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“We live in a country now that unless there’s evidence of a head rolling under a bus somewhere, something hasn’t happened, but I think the consequences for this school were huge, and they were real,” she said.
Students who cannot write. Hmm…
I think the “No Child Left Behind” motto was actually invented by Dick Cheney. And he was really referring to getting them thru school faster, and into the volunteer military. Because there are only just so many jobs open at Burger World, that that level of education qualifies anyone for. But the services will take just about anyone who can point a rifle. In fact I think they prefer them NOT to be too smart. Because anyone with brains might think twice, before sacrificing their lives to protect Arab oil fields, overseas. Not that their sacrifice isn’t appreciated. But, most of us never asked them to volunteer. And most of them, went in with a overly glorified sense of adventure, in their heads. And the notion that it would pay better than Burger World. But the customers there, don’t shoot you, when they’re unsatisfied. So perhaps the safer choice, would be the better one, in the long run. But you have to be able to do the math, to make this distinction. And most can’t do that either. Long term quality of life decisions, aren’t something they school you in, in the United States. It would interfere with too many institutions who base their success on us not being good at making wise choices.
Maybe the US should do as the Muslims to, to steer their untamed youth into sacrificing their life for a cause. And promise them 70 virgins, if they graduate from school with high honors. Not that they’ll actually get the 70 virgins. But then the terrorist bombers very likely don’t either. I’m sure THAT heaven ran out of virgins long ago. Hey, we lie about Santa Claus, to make them behave, when they’re young. So what’s so terrible about lying to them, about another impractical reward, to get them to learn more? What are they going to do? Get a law degree and suit their parents, for breach of contract?