Chris Barclay, left, vice president of the Montgomery County school board, chats with student member Tim Hwang at a budget meeting. (Susan Biddle For The Washington Post)
The road he travels to and from school each day is not easy. As the sun rises, he walks past run-down homes, graffiti-filled walls, and boarded-up buildings. The backpack he carries holds his AP United States history notebook, a dog-eared copy of The Great Gatsby, and calculus practice problems for the upcoming exam. Also tucked away, are his khaki pants and blue polo shirt. He has learned some lessons the hard way. After suffering from hard thrown punches and a black eye at the hands of neighborhood bullies, the school uniform stays hidden away until the bus doors close and he is safely seated.
As he enters my classroom about twenty minutes before our morning class starts, I can tell immediately it has already been a tough day. Besides the deep circles under his eyes, the usual boisterous greeting that announces his arrival – “Mornin’ Ms. Kovacic!” – is subdued. His hard mornings are starting to outnumber the good. The last few months have been difficult. His older brother was fatally shot late last year in a gang related drive-by-shooting. His younger brother was arrested a few weeks ago for drug possession and attempted robbery. His mother lost her job last month. And the electricity in their one bedroom apartment was finally
Primary school SATs tests are robbing children of their human rights, the leader of the National Union of Teachers claimed today.
Children have a right to a broad education under international law and should not be made to continually sit exams, Christine Blower said.Her remarks came as a committee of MPs warned that SATs - taken by 11-year-olds in English and maths every spring - were promoting a culture of 'teaching to the test'.The testing regime encourages teachers to drill pupils to pass tests, damaging their education, said the Commons Schools Select Committee.The NUT is in the process of balloting members over a boycott of this year's SATs, due to be taken just four days after the election.The National Association of Head Teachers, representing thousands of primary heads, is balloting its own members over the boycott, which would involve refusing to administer
An Essay Review Focused on Gerald Grant's New Book
