Thanks

Thanks to all  my colleagues that took the time to read and comment to my posts.  I wish you all success in your future courses and career.

Marta Laos

Child Developmental Milestones

Child Developmental Milestones

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oxe3-ijvZDs

Assessing Children

Assessing children:

The most popular way in USA to assess children is through standardized testing.  Nowadays standardized tests are used more to determine the effectiveness of the school staff than the children testing.  In several occasions, there is profit behind the results of a standardized test.  For example in Florida if a school is graded " A"  that school gets a very nice and substantial bonus that it is split between the school staff.  Also, the school gets more resources than other schools.  Usually the schools that are graded “A” are the schools in the middle and high class neighborhoods.  The children that attend those schools are children that have been exposed to many experiences in life.  Parents  can afford computers and technology and can pay for private tutoring sessions.  Many of the children in these neighborhoods have parents whose level of education is high. They typically have stay home mothers who can be more involve in the child’s education.  If you take the same staff and put it in a low income neighborhood… do you think that the results will be the same in the standardized test?    This is the reason why I do not agree with standardized tests.  Assessing children should be an individualized process.  Every child is unique and should be given the opportunity to show his strengths in a unique way and  not in a standardized test.  I also believe that every child has different ways of learning, but, unfortunately, because of these tests many teachers are left, with the only option, to teach to take the test.  I will suggest that we assess children by their strengths and not as they are all the same.

Standardized testing is also done in Puerto Rico.  The no child left behind act law of 2001 that attempts to close the gap between white, middle class children, and minority and low income children, is also enforced in the island.  Standardized tests in Puerto Rico are designed to meet the needs of USA continental children which are not necessary the needs of Puerto Rican children.  Puerto Rican children are the majority Spanish speakers and of Latin American culture.  These standardized tests are failing in Puerto Rico because the tests do not meet the needs of the children in the Puerto Rican schools. The majorities are from low income families, and they are not meeting the needs of children with disabilities.

Resources:

http://www.kon.org/urc/v9/medina-rodriguez.html