In response to Friday's letter by Marshall Printy, the author seems to feel that the intent of the educational system is to "teach students to find the correct answer" on a standardized test. Reality and the world around us do not consist of a single set of questions that every person must answer. Some sixth and eighth graders who performed poorly in their last standardized test are now, by state law, only taught reading, math and science each day.
These students are certainly not receiving a complete or useful education. This robs these students of education in social studies, art, music, computers and other specialized classes that are important to developing a well-rounded education.
Even worse, if there is significant merit pay based on standardized test scores, teachers in the arts, social studies or special education will never have a chance at that merit pay. Ultimately, the only people that are capable of genuinely assessing a student's achievement are the actual teachers and administrators that work with the student on a regular basis.
If we cannot trust a teacher that works with a student each day to make this assessment, I really don't understand why we trust non-educators in Tallahassee to do the same thing.
