State Senator Dan Patrick is trying to ram through thelegislature his master plan to improve public education by fast laning his
bill to severely curtail the number of End of Course exams a high school
student will have to take, remove all requirements that the test count 15% of
their grade, and allow a college-bound student the option of graduating with a
basic or Minimum diploma.
Thus addressing all of the parent concerns that their
brilliant children are being sorely tried and tested with high stakes testing
in Texas schools.
Not surprisingly, this flawed bill is being steamrolled
through the legislature so that the TEA Commissioner can tell schools that they
need not have to administer most of the 15 End of Course exams that they are
now required to give this spring.
And as pointed out by one of Patrick’s colleagues, the bill
says nothing about whether or not a student who graduates with the most basic
diploma may apply for admission to a university, having avoided taking some of
the more difficult high school courses that applicants must now take.
In other words, it lowers the bar of expectations right to
the ground.
You know, as an educator I guess I should be glad that
Patrick is making all of our lives easier. No testing, No expectations. Nothing
really need be taught or learned.
Except that as an educator, I would not like to live in a
world where everyone has the same knowledge and skillsets that Senator Dan
Patrick seems to possess.
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