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Blog: FCAR
Speakout
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Teaching to the Test Narrows Curriculum, Handicaps Learners
Stacie Ramie, a
Palm Beach Speech-Language Pathologist, assesses the damage done by teaching to
the test.
Dear TREND/FCAR Members,
I think you can't say enough about the negative effect the FCAT has had on our
public schools in Florida. Curriculum is now based on teaching the children to
take a test instead of teaching them the foundational skills that they need to
build on.
Entire portions of learning are being left out completely or taught in later
years. Cursive used to be taught extensively in third grade. Now it is
considered "optional" because there isn't enough time to teach it when the
entire third grade year is devoted to teaching the portions of the FCAT that
must be passed in third grade. Recent research has shown that learning to write
cursive in third grade is crucial for developing fluent reading. It seems that
the practice of learning the kinesthetic movements used in writing cursive are
related to developing the ability to read longer strings of words and advancing
reading naturally.
Reading is also being taught to improve scores on FCAT. The problem is that the
type of reading that you do to answer questions on a test is very different than
the type of reading that you do in order to become involved in a story or relate
to a character. The problem with "teaching the test" is it never shows real
skills or skill levels. It is, in effect, like a parlor trick. Just because you
can answer questions on FCAT doesn't mean that you can read critically, remember
what you have read, or read for sustained periods of time. Our children deserve
to learn to read in a way that will promote a desire to read. FCAT only promotes
a fear of reading in some and a disconnection with longer more fluent reading in
those who are good readers.
On the subject of reading, what if we spent even half of the time, money,
energy, and manpower actually teaching and practicing reading in the classrooms.
What if we didn't practice taking the test at all and just saw what our kids
could do? Sally Shawitz suggests reading out loud in grades 1-4 with an adult
who can hear and correct is the single best way to improve reading in children.
The early years of education should be about establishing a foundation that the
children could build on as they grow.
Other states have used "boards" or tests that all of the children took in order
to show proficiency in a subject of study. They were given in high school with
no special test preparation other than teaching the curriculum. It is dangerous
to let people make decisions about the education of our children when they do
not understand the nature of education.
Stacie I. Ramey CCC/SLP
siramey@voicemenders.com
561 512-3551
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