03-25-2012, 05:15 PM
This cheating has been going on for years probably nationwide. A very good friend of mine in another county was given the test (ahead of time) and put the entire test on the board and taught her kids the answers. Her excuse was that they were so dumb that they wouldn't even remember being taught the test or the answers. Well, when test scores were announced the following fall, guess which class had the highest scores? Made her look like a wonderful teacher - so very wrong. She is but one example. It was also the principal's fault for handing her the test early. You're supposed to get the test the morning testing begins. I would venture to guess that some type of cheating happens in almost every school.
One other thing - some of the questions are more than ridiculous. One year one question was missed by all of my 4th graders as well as the other 4th grade classes in my school. Months later it was discovered that a mistake had been made - the question was meant for seniors in high school. It's all a joke. To me the most accurate way to gauge how your child is doing is to look at weekly tests - sometimes report cards are altered (to make the teacher look great).
Well, I said one other thing but have to add this. At my school a mentally challenged student (special ed. and needed more than that) ended up having the highest math score in our entire school. I taught this young lady the year before - needless to say, she did not take the test "alone". Things like that burn me up. I know extreme pressure is put on teachers to get certain test scores but what happened to honesty and integrity. (sorry so long)
One other thing - some of the questions are more than ridiculous. One year one question was missed by all of my 4th graders as well as the other 4th grade classes in my school. Months later it was discovered that a mistake had been made - the question was meant for seniors in high school. It's all a joke. To me the most accurate way to gauge how your child is doing is to look at weekly tests - sometimes report cards are altered (to make the teacher look great).
Well, I said one other thing but have to add this. At my school a mentally challenged student (special ed. and needed more than that) ended up having the highest math score in our entire school. I taught this young lady the year before - needless to say, she did not take the test "alone". Things like that burn me up. I know extreme pressure is put on teachers to get certain test scores but what happened to honesty and integrity. (sorry so long)