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Authors, sign in!Melissa Nelson teaches high school at Rockwall High School, a Dallas suburb.
She's not a big fan as of our state's standardized test (Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills or TAKS) as a prerequisite for graduation. Neither am I. Of course I have issues with the emphasis we've placed on it anyway.
But Ms. Nelson's op-ed in the Dallas Morning News makes an interesting assessment and suggestion regarding testing for 'college readiness':
Senate Education Committee chair Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, said, "The overarching goal is to raise the bar so that Texas students are prepared for success in life." I couldn't agree more, but I don't think denying a student a high school diploma because he can't perform Algebra II on a college-ready level is the best way to prepare him for success. In fact, if he gets discouraged and drops out, we are almost assured he will have less success in life.Senate Education Committee chair Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, said, "The overarching goal is to raise the bar so that Texas students are prepared for success in life." I couldn't agree more, but I don't think denying a student a high school diploma because he can't perform Algebra II on a college-ready level is the best way to prepare him for success. In fact, if he gets discouraged and drops out, we are almost assured he will have less success in life."The fact is we already have tests in place that tell us how our students are doing when it comes to college readiness. They are the SAT and the ACT. Make every high school student take the ACT or SAT and see how we're doing.
"The fact is we already have tests in place that tell us how our students are doing when it comes to college readiness. They are the SAT and the ACT. Make every high school student take the ACT or SAT and see how we're doing.
Published May 20, 2009 by Gerald Britt |
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