You know that FCAT season has rolled around when Jeb Bush's Foundation for Florida's Future sends out its annual defense of the exam, which engenders so much disdain among parents and educators.
As folks bemoan kids' test anxiety and schools' teaching to the test (which the foundation assures cannot happen), the foundation goes to bat for the FCAT by pointing out things like the fact that Florida had exams before the FCAT and that, contrary to public belief, Jeb Bush didn't create the test.
The group also points out something that has to make you wonder if it's good or bad, especially if the goal is high standards: "Students must only get approximately 20 questions correct on the 10th grade math FCAT in order to receive a high school diploma. Students also get 5 opportunities to take the grade 10 FCAT in order to pass it."
That's 20 out of 50, by the way, or just 40 percent.
Don't visit schools next week. They'll be giving the FCAT.
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Pat better start defending the Bush A+ Plan from the newbie Republicans running the House (like Flores) who don't seem to have any concept of the Bush vision.
For eight years we heard that it was impossible to teach to the FCAT. How can you teach someone to take a reading test without teaching them to read they parrotted about a million times. Now, the K-12 committee in the House is blaming districts and teachers for "FCAT Mania." And, they are planning (in the slightly enhanced but not quite world class standards bill) to ban any district activities to actually prepare students for the test. Go, Pat, and give them the message directly from the Ministry of Truth.
Posted by: | March 05, 2008 at 08:06 PM