No Skill Left Behind

Okay, here's the evidence that schools have gone off track that we've mentioned before. National math and reading tests find students with high grade points who nevertheless test badly. Not really a shock. I got out of higher ed in great part because of the disconnect between the grades we were expected to give to keep our numbers up and the needs for students to be graded accurately. But there are a couple of things in this article that I think need pointing out.

I've blasted the "testing" obsession that states and the feds have for a variety of reasons. I'm not opposed, however, to standard NATIONAL tests that can't be coached specifically. I do object to teachers or schools being judged on the results, but, used for specified purposes, the tests can tell us when the games like the ones in the first paragraph are happening. And what do I mean by "specified purposes"? Well, if we were starting public education from scratch today, like "Lost" or something, we surely wouldn't start with what we have now, historically based and sadly insufficient. I would propose that we dump grade levels and assignment by age completely. I would set subjects in developmental order and have students move from one level to a higher level in the subject once they had demonstrated the requisite knowledge.

This is where the tests would come in. If a student showed "basic" levels of knowledge, then s/he would get that designation in it, "proficient" if higher, and "mastery" if highest, sorta like the article describes near the end. So, at any point in time and at any age, a student would have a "report card" that would show whether and at what level s/he had achieved in a subject. Not dependent on age or any certain level of achievement, just a record of what the student can actually be shown to know or be able to do. When the student is legally able to work, s/he would have a record of performance. If the levels are high enough, no matter what age, s/he could go on to post-secondary education. Gone would be social promotion, flunking, grade points, etc. The tests would show the students' learning to all.

Yes, yes. Not gunna happen. Where's the implementation plan? What about sports or other extracurricular? Yada, yada. You're free to come up with your own. My point is that we have a dysfunctional educational structure, based on tradition and inertia rather than maxing student potential or demonstrating true learning. Proof? Grade points that say students know what they don't. Sure, mine is crazy. Like what we've got is so good. And no "No Child Left Behind" stuff will really change it. Now that's crazy.