"Bugger this for a bunch of bananas." - Rhys Ifans as Spike, Notting Hill

Apr 02 2018

I really find that this one speaks for itself. It's multipurpose, fit for any occasion, and fun for the whole family.

 

Today, I'm using it in reference to our nation's obsession with standardized testing. Please don't let the rhetoric fool you - standardized tests have absolutely nothing to do with assessing student learning or teacher effectiveness. 

 

Testing has become, in less than two decades, a multi-billion dollar industry. The worse the tests are, the more kids fail them - even straight-A students who enjoy reading for fun sometimes fail them - the more remedial test-prep materials that same company can sell your school district. They sell workbooks (for each subject, at each grade level, for each individual child), they sell websites, they sell teacher trainings on how to utilize the workbook and how to access the data on the website.

 

They sell scripted curriculum so that anyone can walk into the room, read from the script, and "teach."

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