(This is a continuation of a previous blog)

Out here in California, the minions of teachers are skitterring and cramming for the California Standards Test April 30th.

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has produced an arena where teachers are pressured to make kids score 75% or higher on this annual standardized test. The standards that comprise this test are explicitly laid out at the California Department of Education website, and teachers see this as their “Bible” in performing a successful job in 2007.

In 185 days of instruction, there are thankfully about 25 that can be dedicated to the arts, science, and social sciences.

Some say that NCLB leaves the low kids behind. Others say it is a good approach to education. I say it’s a narrow focus for guaging the effectiveness of education. If 50% or more of the class scores 75% or higher, then the teacher probably did a half-quality job (some might argue). Others might say the class that has 80% proficiency excels only in academic prowess and that at the expense of artistic social development. In 2 weeks, the state will be done testing and the papers will report the results to a curious world. Every teacher should have a goal, but one might question if one annual standardized test should be the only measurement of public education.