Do Androids Dream of Computer-Graded Essay Tests?
In a recent opinion piece in The New York Times, “When the Circus Descends,” David Brooks derided opponents of Common Core Standards, implying that they were clownish ideologues on the far left and far right making “hysterical claims and fevered accusations.” But as I visit classrooms across the city talking to teachers about the Common Core, I don’t hear any hysterical claims or fevered accusations. I do hear one deep concern:
That the test will be a disaster.
Here’s the thing: I haven’t talked to anybody—anybody!—who objects to the actual Common Cores Standards. The Standards are incredibly general; basically, they value the processes of analytical reasoning, reading, writing, speaking and listening. Teachers I’ve talked to are excited about pushing their students to read thoughtfully and support their claims with evidence. In other words, the Standards are like the education version of Peace, Love and Understanding. Who could possibly object?
The problem is that we are about to test the standards—and people do not like the tests.The teachers on the East Coast who are protesting, the children fleeing classrooms in tears, the parents forming an “Opt Out” movement are not a bunch of ideological clowns. They are angry because this new Common Core test, which has been implemented sight unseen by almost any teacher or principal, may have enormous power over their future Do Androids Dream of Computer-Graded Essay Tests? | Gatsby In L.A.:
