Nicole’s fabulous opinions!

I have always been brought up to believe that learning was supposed to be fun.  For most subjects, it is fun, well for me at least.  But then there are those ones that you can’t hardly sit through because your leg is shaking so bad and all you want to do is take a nap.  I thought about my educational experience in elementary and middle school not remembering being taught the crap for the MEAP test, but after thinking about it, I vaguely remember….                      

  I remember getting up early for school and having breakfast already made for me, which was uncommon at my house.  Having my parents tell me to do my best no matter what and to focus in school today because we were learning some really important stuff.  (Does any of this sound familiar?  It is exactly what the parents were taught to do in Massachusetts for their kids…)   I would get to school and we would get donuts and orange juice in class and we would sit there and be bored all day.  We didn’t get art class or gym because we had to prepare for the MEAP.  Frankly I didn’t care, I hated both and we got food!  But this is the part I think I blocked out, taking that test all day, and filling in answers without reading the questions because all I wanted to do was lay my head down and shut my eyes.    

This situation is very similar for one girl in Massachusetts.  She is 17 and the MCAS (Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System.  (This goes into what I talked about in my last blog.)  She is a sophomore (she was held back when she moved) and is working really hard to take this test because her graduation depends on it.  She gets to school early, goes right to class and pays attention because she may need to know what her teacher is talking about for the test she will soon be taking.  She eats her lunch in the library and is glad when her math teacher says lets have two minutes of quiet.    If I were her I would want that too.  I think I would be a little bit frustrated if the only things I was learning were about some test that determines whether I get to graduate or not.  But the test that she is taking is doing a lot of good things for the
Massachusetts school systems. 

“When the state Legislature passed the Massachusetts Education Reform Act of 1993, it created the MCAS test, established the 10th-grade exam as a graduation requirement beginning with the class of 2003 and demanded the creation of high standards for teachers and students.”    

“In exchange, the Legislature promised more funding; it has pumped more than $19 billion in additional money over the past decade-plus into education.”

It seems as though Massachusetts wanted to get their education program up again, so by starting these tests, outside of NCLB, they have gotten so much money.  Is that good for the students though?  Are these tests helping or hurting the students?  Are there more children not graduating because of this test, because all the state cares about is money and not whether their students get to graduate?

What do you think?  I have yet to decide my opinions because they did post any statistics, but I am curious about what others think about the MCAS.

One teen’s struggles preparing for standardized test POSTED: 11:30 a.m. EST, January 29, 2007 Full Article

Some may think that we are a pretty lucky culture to have computers, Internet at our fingertips and so many books that one could read, it would take 5 lifetimes.  Don’t get me wrong, I am not, by any means complaining about the life that I have gotten to life thus far, but does Big Brother have a stronger grasp on us than we think?  I didn’t think so until I read this certain article about Big Brother, the Thought Police and The Ministry of Truth.  (All from the George Orwell book, 1984, for those of you who have never graced the pages of that amazing read.)  The article, justly titled, “Has 1894 finally arrived?”, is about how, although we think that we have free speech and all that great stuff, we actually are a tad bit mistaken. 

This editorial has some interesting points about censorship in our schools.  Have the parents, afraid of what their children might dream about after reading a book like 1984, considered that they are creating their own little Ministry of Truth, or their own little brigade of the Thought Police?  By getting books like 1984, Huck Finn and To Kill a Mockingbird from the schools, they are advocating what they don’t want their kids to read.  Of course, how would their kids know about that if they can’t actually read the books, right?

“About 200 years ago, a man named Thomas Bowdler decided to undertake the editing of Shakespeare and Edward Gibbons’ “Decline of the Roman Empire.” His intention was, given the time, wholly honorable. In his introduction to his version of Shakespeare’s plays, he wrote “… words and expressions are omitted which cannot with propriety be read …”

Basically, Bowdler took out, or changed, anything he felt was blasphemous or lewd. His efforts were not appreciated, and his name became synonymous with prudish censorship. “Bowdlerizing” became a term of derision.

Today’s Ministry of Truth, however, is engaged in its own bowdlerizing. The use of certain words has become so unacceptable that those words are either being edited out of books, or the books themselves are banned. Mark Twain’s “Huckleberry Finn,” generally considered one of the greatest American novels, and Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird,” one of the classics of 20th century American literature, face an uncertain future in high school English classes. “Gone With The Wind,” one of the best movies ever made, has been surreptitiously edited to remove some phraseology, although the phrase which most stunned the country when the movie was released, Clark Gable’s parting retort when he walked out on Vivian Leigh (“Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.”), remains intact and now seems positively quaint.”

What parents and school administrators don’t realize is that, they may think they are helping their students in shielding them from talk of rape and sex and swear words, but they are depriving the youth of America of these amazing, interesting books that can open minds to whole new worlds.

That last comment reminded me of something I read in the newspaper when Harry Potter came out.  Apparently everything is about sex in this country, because there were like eight phallic symbols just in that book, but honestly, what 12 year old is going to think of something like that???

Anyways, my reasoning behind this rant on 1984 is the fact that students are missing out on a great book, and that their parents are just like the Thought Police by trying to get all these books banned from schools.  I hope someday they will realize the disservice they have done the students in those schools.

And there is another thrilling episode of MY wonderful, yet wordy opinions!

Full Article

January 18, 2007

Has 1984 finally arrived?

Dan Sernoffsky

Opinioneditorials.com 

Continuing my rant on standardized testing… I started reading this article from the Sun Chronicle in Mass.  The title of the article is “Attleboro parents get a taste of MCAS testing”.  I was hoping that all the parents of the third and fourth graders would get a dose of what their children went through when that had to sit for hours at a time taking these pointless tests.  Except the catch is, these tests are far from pointless in good ol’ Massachusetts.  The students have to get a 240 OR BETTER to qualify for a high school diploma!  If I went to this school I would still be in the third grade taking these test at 21. 

Anyways, what the article was really about was parents taking a MCAS 101 class so they could see how they could better prepare their young ones for success on these tests.  The principal showed the parents sample questions and gave them ideas on how to make their child less stressed out when coming to school on a test day.  Here are those wonderful ideas:

“In a handout to students and parents, Porter included several tips to help students get ready to take the MCAS:

Get a good night’s sleep.

Get up early enough on test days to have a relaxed morning.

Eat a good breakfast.

Arrive at school on time.

Come to class with a positive attitude.

A word of praise from parents always helps.

Parents should advise their children to listen to directions and read instructions carefully before answering questions. Tests are not timed, so extra care can easily yield better scores.

Students should be encouraged not to be the first to complete their work and should always check it over to see that it is correct.”

I remember that is what they told me and my classmates when we took the MEAP test and GUESS WHAT!  I never got a dime of scholarship money because I was so sick of taking tests that I did not even care how I did.  Good thing my graduating wasn’t based on those tests!

I just don’t think it is fair to tell parents: this is how to handle these situations with the standardized tests that are going to be the basis of your child’s future.  I think, if they have to give the test at all, the standards should not be so high as to stop someone from graduating because of a test they took in the third grade.  I just think that some school and state officials don’t take into effect the things that could be going on in a students life, but we’ll leave that subject for my next rant!  Good day all!

The Sun Chronicle

Attleboro parents get a taste of MCAS testing

BY RICK FOSTER SUN CHRONICLE STAFF
Thursday, January 25, 2007 1:22 AM EST

Full Article

I have found out that some things in life just are not fair.  One thing that I totally disagree with, but know I can’t change is standardized testing.  I don’t think that they actually help anyone and it takes away from the learning going on when classes are supposed to be in session. 

I have never been able to take tests well.  Just ask some of my teachers from last semester… The whole multiple chioce thing doesn’t help.  I always seem to choose the wrong answer.  The sad thing is that I have found that I am not the only person that found out that tests are hard no matter what.  I think that states are making it harder and more stressful for students by giving those tests.  I always got so nervous when we had to take the MEAP and the ACT.  I was so stressed out, it made taking those tests worse and hurt my scores.  I think the pressure to do well on the MEAP came when the scores came and I didn’t get that scholarship money. 

I think the pressure to do well on these tests hurts how students do, which makes the schools look bad because if the students don’t do well then something must be wrong with the school system and the teachers.  I don’t think that is the problem, but those are the first things people think of when schools don’t get good reviews when the scores come out.

I hope that the state will take the scores a little less seriously and think of what is best for the students and I just don’t think that these tests are helping.

And that’s the opinion according to me…

I have decided to make my 310 blog about Standardized Testing and how it affects students and schools.  I am truly passionate about getting rid of those stupid tests because they have been the downfall of my getting into Grand Valley the first time and the reason I didn’t get that wonderful MEAP money that everyone else got. 

I seriously don’t think students should be tested on things that they sometimes never learn and I don’t think that their getting into certain schools should be based on a 4 hour test that takes place at 8am on a Saturday.  Here is the thing, when I was a senior in high school, I applied to Ferris, CMU, GVSU, WMU and MSU.  I got into all but GVSU.  I got into MSU over Grand Valley because of the score I got on the ACT….  Yeah, I thought it was a little odd too, but I accepted it and made my way to Kalamazoo.

Anyways….I could have started my education at GVSU 4 years ago if it weren’t for the ACT and I would have had $2000 extra dollars because of the MEAP.  I found that test very hard and boring and tests and I don ‘t mix.  These are the reasons I have decided to blog on testing because I know I am not the only one who feels this way about standardized tests.  I will be using many different sources so I will make sure to post which ones I do use. 

P.S.  Sorry if I offend anyone with my blunt words, I tend to say what is on my mind.

The topic I have chosen is how and why there is censorship in literature.  I think it is very interesting that schools decide what books students can and cannot read.  I hope to learn what schools think is unacceptable material to be in a book.  I think that it is important that students be able to read books that are important to their education.  Some books have certain messages that could help students.  A wonderful book that some schools don’t think that student should read is Fahrenheit 451.  It’s all about censorship and students should know what censorship is about and why it affects the world in many different ways.

I am hoping to find many posts on censorship because it is such a controversial concept and I think that I will benefit as a teacher by knowing what to teach and what not to teach to my students.  I hope by the time I am ready to teach, there won’t be a lot of problems with censorship and I will be able to teach what I think will interest my students best.

I would love to know what other people think on the topic of censorship and what books should and shouldn’t be taught in a high school setting.  I would totally appreciate the input because I love the opinions of others!