URl for Del.ici.ous

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Standardized testing

Patricia Deubel, the author of , “Accountability, Yes. Teaching to the Test, No, “quotes Rick Stiggins who said, “Unfortunately, such testing has become synonymous with NCLB. The consequence: What gets left behind in the key decision making are the ‘day-to-day’ classroom assessments, which represent 99.9 percent of the assessments in a student’s school life.” The article was about standardized testing. Deubel writes about the flaws of the old and new systems, and her opinions on how to fix standardized testing. I found that I agree with the article on most arguments. I believe that standardized testing is meaningless. I agree with Deubel that there are other ways to show a student’s knowledge and improvement (i.e. portfolios). I think states should find other ways to test students, and I think states should make testing worthwhile by implementing consequences for teachers and students. Deubel wrote that states test students with the cheapest and easiest tests to grade.
The questions I have about the topic would be is there ever going to be a change in testing? So many people and educators want to see a change in the way students are tested so will we ever see a change happen? The only way to make change is to advocate for the cause. When I become a teacher I will voice my opinions on standardized tests.
I would say I am a smart person. I always did well in school, but on standardized tests I would always do really badly. When I was younger I would try on them, but I think I lost focus half way through the test. As I got older I would not do well on the tests because I did not care about them. Teachers did not care about how we did. The only test that I cared about passing was the test I needed to pass to graduate. I only cared about it because I wanted to graduate. The article mentions that most teachers do not stress standardized tests so most students do not try their best. That is how it was when I was in elementary school. My teachers always said, “try your best, but it does not count.” I work with elementary kids and I know that they take two standardized tests a year. I personally think they are over testing children now. I understand that the state wants to see improvement in the children over the school year, but it takes two complete weeks out of the school years to do this. This is taking time away from valuable learning. Also, most children do not care about the test, but rather the snacks and drinks they receive during testing week.
I am not a huge fan of standardized tests, but I do believe we need to evaluate a student’s knowledge somehow. I hope that in the future states change the way tests are administered, and I hope more people advocate for less test taking.

Podcasting

I did the gabcast thing for my podcasting technology. I still am getting use to gabcast. I cannot figure out how to get it to my blog. I had to download the RSSowl program so I could transfer my entry to it. I could not transfer it though. I do not think Gabcast it the most user friendly site, well at least not for technologically disinclined people. It took me awhile to understand what a podcast even was and what it was for. I still am not quite sure what the point of it is. I am someone who does not rely a lot on websites and technology to get through my day. Computers actually give me headaches. Podcasting will definetly be an experience, and I will have to get use to it a little more. As soon as I figure out how to post my podcast I will. Just give me a little time.

First official posting

Hi Everyone!My name is Elizabeth Rice. I am 19 years old. I am a sophomore at IUPUI. I graduated from Greenwood Community High School in 2009. I was in the Greenwood marching band, and I am a two time state marching champ. My major at IUPUI is elementary education with a dual license in special education. I am thinking about minoring in History because I love history. I love kids. I work at the YMCA Before and After School Program. I get paid to play games with kids. This summer I will be returning to the YMCA day camp as a camp counselor. I will be working with six and seven year olds which is who I want to work with later on in life. I just got engaged to my boyfriend of two and a half years.
As I was setting up my blog I found that it was easy to create after I did some exploring. I had no idea before today how to set up a blog so I just explored the site. I am still editing my blog, but I think that it looks good for now.