Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Tell Us How You Really Feel

Did you know you can evaluate the Regents exams and the administration thereof?  You can.  The State Education Department wants your feedback.

Here is an excerpt from how I plan to fill out my survey*:

Did the examination as a whole constitute an appropriate measure of the commencement-level expectations set forth in the New York State Learning Standards and core curriculum?

Well, considering that the English Regents asks students to write an essay in a single draft in an hour or less, not really--not when the state learning standards say that students should use the writing process of brainstorming, drafting, revising, and publishing.  

Was the examination generally appropriate in difficulty?

Was it appropriately difficult for my students who read The Great Gatsby independently?  Not so much.  Likewise, was it appropriate for the young lady I teach who still struggles to write in paragraphs?  Not exactly.  Standardized testing will only ever encourage teachers to teach to the middle.

Was the time allowed appropriate for completing the examination?

Is a lifetime enough?  Is an hour too much?  

I'm still too emotionally exhausted to comment much beyond that.  You can look at the survey if you want, though.  Me, I'm far too likely to be inappropriately honest right at this moment to fill out a survey that requires me to give my real name and school location.
*Not really.  I don't know if I'll even fill one out.
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