Oklahoma's School Testing

[SwitzerFan]

When I was in high school, I finally asked the question of one of my teachers whether or not the state testing figured into my grade in the class. I learned that it didn't. Being the teenager that I was I decided to just not worry about it and mark all of the answers C. I figured that if it didn't factor into whether I was getting an A or not then I really didn't care. Same thing happened in college right before I graduated. I had to take a Math test for the department. I asked if it factored into me graduating or not. The answer was no.

So my question is, why should kids care and how in the world do educators even think the results on the tests are accurate? Am I missing something? Just something I was pondering.

[frankensooner]

I think you should have 100 posts before you can start a thread, but that is just me. ;)

[SwitzerFan]

I think you should have 100 posts before you can start a thread, but that is just me. ;)

Well I don't post alot. I have been reading posts on this board for about 4 years. What is wrong with posting a question that you have?

[soonermix]

frankensooner i am sorry but the 100 post thing is just silly because then people who want to post a legit question will only start posting complete nonsense until their number gets to 100.

as for the original poster

the standardized tests i believe are more of a way for the state to see how teachers are doing. if you have an entire class that can't do basic algebra the state will lose funding and other things that i really have no idea about. but i also believe you are in the minority of people that don't actually try on the tests. i know that when i was in school me and some friends would always compare results and laugh at the dumb one.

[SwitzerFan]

frankensooner i am sorry but the 100 post thing is just silly because then people who want to post a legit question will only start posting complete nonsense until their number gets to 100.

as for the original poster

the standardized tests i believe are more of a way for the state to see how teachers are doing. if you have an entire class that can't do basic algebra the state will lose funding and other things that i really have no idea about. but i also believe you are in the minority of people that don't actually try on the tests. i know that when i was in school me and some friends would always compare results and laugh at the dumb one.

Thanks for explaining what they are for. I am not saying what I did was right. I wonder if they account for non participating students like I was. I think part of my problem was that in high school, I was pushed so much to get the A so I could go further in life, that it was more of an art form of learning how to get good grades instead of learning. Basically, do what you need to do to get the most money after college. These tests didn't stand in my way of achieving that goal. I wish grades where not as much as a factor and learning was.

[sooneron]

Put me in the "made zig zag patterns" group upon a few occasions. I didn't do it every time, but I did it when I could care less.

[soonerinabilene]

Must be nice. In texas, if you dont pass the state test, which was the TAAS when I was going and is now the TASK, you dont graduate.

[sooneron]

Hell, I remember doing it once and it caused me to be put in a lower math class. Same thing with a friend of mine. I didn't care. I had at least figured out how applicable algebra II was going to be to my everyday life. I had already planned on not taking another math class after HS graduation.

[47straight]

Algebra II is very valuable.

[SanJoaquinSooner]

In my district, the new policy (in response to otherwise good students blowing off state tests) is one must score proficient or advanced on a test to be allowed to take the AP course in that subject area.

[SanJoaquinSooner]

Algebra II is very valuable.

damn straight it is.

[GottaHavePride]

frankensooner i am sorry but the 100 post thing is just silly because then people who want to post a legit question will only start posting complete nonsense until their number gets to 100.

There IS a post count requirement, but that's only part of it. I think how long you've been registered is also a factor. And something to do with the mood of a cat named Steve.

Solve for kitteh.

[Ike]

In my early years, I didn't care much about the standardized tests...until I learned that they were used to determine which classes I was in. I was pretty bored in a lot of my classes, and wanted to take more difficult ones. I was told that the better I performed on the standardized tests, the more likely it was that I would be in more difficult classes. When my counselor told me that, I think my response was something like "why do you keep telling the students that these are just a waste of time then?" (meaning, why do you tell them that they aren't graded on it, and to just shut up and take the test.)