At all ages and grades students are tested for various reasons. Some testing is to see if the child is prepared to advance to the next grade, if the child understands the materials, if the student needs special one on one help, and etc. I believe that testing is a good thing if assessed the correct way and for a good reason. The school system has to assess students, and parents and guardians should understand that, the problem comes from over usage of it.
According to worhnetweb.princton.edu, holistically means emphasizing the organic or functional relation between parts and the whole. I think the child as a whole should be assessed. The reason I think that is because every individual have a weak spot, and should not be punished for it. For example, I am quick and fast in math, but slow in reading. Should I be placed in a special need reading class because my 3rd grade assessment was low? What if my 2nd grade test was normal? My point is that children should be assessed as a whole, and not parts. For example, I use to have a student that was smart and capable of completing his work. He went to public school, and they are trying to place him in a special needs class for the wrong reasons. He was assessed and has behavior problems. Yea, we know he has behavior problems, but is placing him in a special needs class the way to go because he was assessed and his teacher said so. I had this student before he went to public school) for 2 years and his work was well, and I was able to control his behavior. I think it could be overused.
Children in the UK get assessed in somewhat the same way as they do in the US. The teacher assesses them in the classroom, during particular age groups. They also use 3 National curriculum levels that assist them. They aim to make sure that everything is balanced in the classroom. The systems are similar to how our educators do things, which could have its perks.
Children do need to be assessed, but it is a thing called over-measured. The child should be looked and assessed as a whole and not in parts.
Kelisha,
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that children need to be assessed holistically, I also hear negative connotations about "special education" in your post. I think that "special education" has gotten a bad rep and that many people have misconceptions about the entire program.
I strongly advocate these programs. I do acknowledge that some children may be over-measured or placed into resource classes when it may not be evident the child requires it. However, I believe these cases to be rare and on the polar end of the spectrum in comparison to the number of children the programs do help. I also believe that everyone can benefit from a little help in areas that are more challenging than others. To be fair, I think the special education program should be assessed holistically as well.
I would just like to say thanks for all of my posts and blogs that you responded too. Thanks for sharing your experiences with me, and gining me new insight of the world of teaching. I wish you the best throughout the rest of your courses, againg Thanks Melanie
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