The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) is a pain in the ass. It is the state standardized testing and it is a real bear. It would be one thing if the kids had a day or two of testing, but this thing goes on for months. The kids are tested in just about every subject every year or every other year. It sucks.
It throws every single school into total scheduling hell and turmoil.
My kids had the ELA test this week. My 8th grade special ed kids had to go test with this jackass who calls himself a resource room teacher. Apparently, he sat there talking with the other teacher in the room for the entire first day of testing. The other teacher kept trying to physically distance herself from the guy, retreating to the far corner of the room, hoping that he would shut the Christ up. This was to no avail. Finally she convinced the jerk to go take a coffee break, and the kids got a few moments of peace and quiet.
Yesterday the kids came back to my homeroom from his class and reported that he had been talking on his cell phone to his insurance company about a car accident the entire time. When they asked him to hang up because they could not concentrate, he told them, "You're not doing well anyway." He brushed them off and continued talking. And let me just say that this man is hardly discreet. Everything he does his slovenly and loud. He's disgusting.
As I was taking my class to lunch, this really good kid M.M. called me from the other end of the hall. He had apparently decided to stop taking the test and wait until 11:30 when he knew he would see my class filing to lunch. He took it upon himself to dismiss himself from that room and come to me to tell me that he was unable to complete his work. I was livid.
Under normal circumstances, teachers present a united front to the kids, even if they disagree with each other. However, this test is just way too high stakes. I marched the kid right into the vice principal so he could tell her what had happened. He was so frustrated. He said, "Mrs. H., if you don't believe me, I can even tell you what street the accident happened on and what Mr. F.'s doctor said because HE WAS TALKING ABOUT IT THE ENTIRE TIME."
We managed to calm MM down and the VP made space for him to sit and work in her office.
This is just so F'ed up on so many levels. First and foremost...as I mentioned, this test is so freakin' high stakes. All the kids have to be given the chance to succeed. I get a kick out of this a-hole ruining this test for the kid. What does he care? The kid's test goes under my name, not his.
But perhaps the most important element at play here is the fact that this alleged special education teacher would tell a special education student that he might as well endure his endless phone conversation because he's not going to do well anyway.
WTF???
I might not be the best teacher ever. Occasionally a lesson bombs, or the kids did not get from point A to point B in a timely manner. Sometimes the activities get convoluted or whatever. Sometimes the kids don't connect to the lesson the way I had anticipated. But Jesus, I have never just told a kid to give up because he has no chance of succeeding. That's disgusting.
4 comments:
I was just this morning talking to a teacher about those tests (which in Missouri are called MAP tests.) She was saying the same thing, that they're very high stakes, and the results reflect on the teacher. All things considered, I think you did well not to strangle him! You didn't strangle him, did you?
whenever you feel stressed, check out the beautiful photos I recently posted on my blog. Another way to relieve stress is to trash your local Target store. After the stiffed me on my return last week, even with the receipt, it's open season on that DUMP!
I know this man you speak of because he used to work at my school. He is disgusting. He used to fart in the elevator on his way out so you were stuck in there tasting it... the kids would tell me that he would wipe dried nose mucus on their papers... well, not in those words.. but still. He would say things loudly like the kids would never go any where and get pregnant any way, so why teach them.. I'd get livid too. I know he is really hard to deal with. - Jules
OK...where to begin????
That so-called SPED teacher needs to be fired and blacklisted. He needs to never work in education again. Can't the principal listen in on the intercom?
Those tests ARE ridiculous. NCLB is a nice idea. I mean...could you choose which child would be "left behind"? (the SPED teacher apparently could) HOWEVER, six weeks of testing is outlandish. That's six weeks of suspended instruction time. They've got to figure out a better way.
Juanita, the MAP tests and the state assessments are different animals. Our district is going to do BOTH. Ugh. The State Assessments are mandated federally by No Child Left Behind. MAP is a progress test. Our district is doing both because we have a high number of at-risk families (poverty, single parents, no college...). If we don't "meet standard" according to the State assessments, we can use the MAP scores to show that, although low, the kids are making progress.
I think that initiating MAP testing was in response to our SPED kids not doing well on the state assessments. There's only a certain percentage that can take the alternate assessments. I'm not sure what the criteria for that is...but we've got a ton of SPED kids and not enough slots for alternates.
AND FINALLY...my particular school did well (met standard or whatever) on the State assessments, but GET THIS...last year, they reallocated kids from a school that DIDN'T do well and brought our overall score down. That was about district politics...making sure we weren't flagged for accreditation issues or something.
Bottom line: it's all bullshit.
Nants, I'm sorry about your buffoon of a SPED teacher.
Post a Comment