Duhh!!

The Philadelphia Public School Notebook, an independent newspaper, recently did a story on the School District of Philadelphia's plunging test scores for the 2012 state-mandated tests.
http://thenotebook.org/blog/125072/big-test-scores-drops-schools-targeted-cheating-probe-and-early-grades

This isn't a scathing criticism of that story, it's a response to our elected officials who don't seem to "get it." The reports concluded that "Across the District, the test-score declines are most stark in the elementary grades."

To this I say, duuhhh!! Two weeks prior to the administration of these unnecessary and stressful assessments, school district teachers/faculty were informed that we would not be testing our own students, because apparently we cheat....(catch the sarcasm, I'd hate to give fodder to those who would read this and assume an admission of guilt...not so...cheaters are stupid).

As a teacher,  I immediately thought of each and every one of my 55 students. Immediately I wrote a letter to the "would be teacher" and politician detailing the individual needs of each and every one of my students. This was more like a journal entry to myself, but I digress.  The point? A "stranger" would not know such details and therefore this whole arrangement would amount to nothing more than a concerted effort to set us up for failure. Honestly, what did the state really expect?

The report also concluded, "Scores leveled off somewhat in grade 7 and 8, and actually rose slightly in grade 11."

To this I say, duuhhh!!! Older children, adolescents, are more mature mentally and emotionally than younger children! 7th and 8th graders see many teachers in a day/week. Certainly 11th graders do! Testing with another teacher would not have as much of an emotional effect as elementary age children!

I never was a conspiracy theorist or barbershop philosopher, but that stunt the state pulled has me rethinking my barbershop discourse!