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Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Louisiana Educator: The Real Truth About VAM in Louisiana

Louisiana Educator: The Real Truth About VAM in Louisiana:


The Real Truth About VAM in Louisiana

Readers: It gives me great pleasure to present this guest post by Louisiana teacher Mercedes Schnieder, which includes a link to an excellent 5 minute video by Louisiana teacher Herb Bassett. This post and the Bassett video demonstrate exactly how VAM is being misused in our public schools. I am so proud of these Louisiana teachers! We have great talent and expertize in our teaching force.

For the Teachers Feeling Low Because of VAM
By: Mercedes Schneider

I would like to take this opportunity to write a post for my teaching colleagues who are feeling bad about themselves because of value added modeling (VAM). I too am a public school teacher, and I too have a standardized testing “passing” quota that I have been told I must reach in order to be considered “effective.” One advantage I have is that I hold a Ph.D. in statistics, so I know the lie that VAM is, and I do not allow any VAM