Sunday, February 10, 2013

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Apparently, I'm Not the Only One

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Apparently, I'm Not the Only One:


Apparently, I'm Not the Only One

In the continuing saga over opposing the BEX because of the interim plan vote, I have seen some new e-mails.

One interesting item to note is that BOTH the Eckstein PTA as well as the Seattle Council PTSA support both levies.  It would seem Eckstein's elected parent leadership is for the BEX.  And, if the Seattle Council PTSA had serious issues with either levy, you'd think they would have brought them up.

One PTA president (who will remain nameless) asked Ms. Sweet to cease and desist sending out the emails, calling them "unprofessional."

(Ms. Sweet had sent out an e-mail to the presidents of the Seattle PTAs (all that she could find - I know, it's tough trying to find them all and the Seattle Council PTSA won't help you).  But she did say something telling:

"Based on what we have learned, we imagine that other schools may be facing similar issues related to capacity 


Testing - What Does it Reveal?

Psychology Today put forth this article by researcher Susan Engel, "What Test Scores Don't Tell Us: The Naked Emperor."  Ms Engel reviewed over 200(!) studies of K-12 standardized tests.

What I have discovered is startling- most tests used to evaluate students, teachers, and school districts predict almost nothing except similar scores on subsequent tests. I have found virtually no research demonstrating a relationship between those tests and measures of thinking on the one hand, or life outcomes on the other. To grasp what we do and do not (yet) know about standardized tests, it’s worth considering a few essential puzzles: