AYP standards are unfair in how they evaluate schools

Our world necessitates that adults not only be able to read and understand essential content, but also be capable to function in the workplace, pay bills, understand legal and financial documents and navigate the ever revolutionary world of technology. Advanced reading comprehension skills are required to pursue postsecondary education and the opportunities a higher education will provide. And just because you can read this article, this post, and heave a few sentences of hate back out, does NOT make you completely literate. In fact, most newspapers are written below an 8th grade level, many at a 5th grade level. This article was written on an 8.7 level.
The International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS), indicates that only about 20% of American adults performed at top literacy levels. It also pointed out that those in the lowest performing literacy levels earn less than $250 a week, average less than 20 weeks of work every year, and are recipients of food stamps triple the rate of literate people, and almost 50% are living well below the poverty lines. Juvenile court systems report that 85% of those entering the system are functionally illiterate.
The crisis is mounting. It is not the sole responsibility or burden of the schools and educators, nor, as much as I would love to blame it on our government, not them either. It is time parents FORCE their children into the real world, and not the illiterate one it is becoming. It is time the school and government to FORCE the citizens to seize concern of their children and their education.
All children are individuals and perform at different rates based on copious factors. Unfortunately, there is this “thing” called cultural-familial retardation, which consists of 80% of all kids in special education. The fact is that these 80% are only in special education because of the families they were born into. Those children wouldn’t be in special education if they had been born into better circumstances.
Someone explain to me the rationale of holding every child to the same standard when we know even our own children are completely different and learn differently than each other. You cannot expect a child born with a genetic predisposition to learning deficiencies, lack of parental involvement and support, lack of financial, nutritional or medical care, lack of language (English) skills, no vocabulary enrichment exposure to score in the same range as a child from an affluent family. Families who have read hundreds of books to their kids, explained the world by answering every “why” question, traveled the country or abroad, had balanced nutrition for brain development, quality healthcare, etc. have an advantage. They are beginning the race closer to the finish line during this marathon. Do any of you know how HARD you would have to run in that marathon to catch up to those in front if you started hours behind, were not wearing quality shoes, had no one cheering you on, had nobody handing you things to replenish your body throughout the race? How many of you would even sign up to run this race, or would have the drive to finish it? Why should our children be expected to do this?
Perhaps instead of continually bashing your teachers and your schools, you put the blame where it begins: AT HOME. The schools should not be considered failing because a sub group or two do not have the scores you “think” they should have. Stop expecting children with disabilities such as mental impairments to score the same as a child who is of average intelligence. Stop expecting a child who has limited English to pass the same test. Could you pass a test in German, Hmong, Russian, Chinese? Make it illegal to leave school at 16 even with a parent’s signature. Put parents in jail for not sending their kids to school. Make it mandatory that if you are receiving welfare to BE at school with their child if they are failing due to their economic circumstances. If you do not show up for parent conferences, you don’t get your check. There are NO REAL consequences for this disregard of their own children.
Test scores do not mean anything! Children sit and bubble in the entire section in 15 seconds, and teachers cannot say anything to that child. Children make themselves so ill over these tests that each school usually has one they have to turn in inside a Ziplock baggie because a child has puked all over it. Is this truly how you desire to assess your youngster. I do not, which is why I gave up teaching several years ago, and began volunteering instead.