posted August 05, 2003 04:18 PM            

Monday, Aug. 4, 2003
Taxachusetts Educrat Fails Literacy Test

This explains a lot about America's failed government school monopolies: The superintendent of schools in Lawrence, Mass., who recently put "two dozen" teachers on unpaid leave for "failing a basic test" of English proficiency, has flunked a required literacy test three times.

Oh, It's the Test That's 'Stupid'

Superintendent Wilfredo T. Laboy complained: "It bothers me because I'm trying to understand the congruence of what I do here every day and this stupid test. That's what, emotionally, I'm so upset about."

He blamed his failure to concentrate and prepare for the "stupid test," and his ignorance of English, which just so happens to be the language spoken in Taxachusetts, at least by most people. Spanish is Laboy's first language, and what with the federal and state and local governments constantly abetting those who refuse to learn English ...

State Education Commissioner David P. Driscoll claimed that Laboy had done an "excellent job" but said that "he's going to have to pass." Until then, he's still getting paid.

In fact, Laboy will receive a 3 percent pay increase this month that will put him on the taxpayers' dole for $156,560 a year, according to the Eagle-Tribune. Who said illiteracy didn't pay?

See Jon run. Jon runs fast. Run Jon run.

posted August 05, 2003 05:44 PM            

Well at least neither of them pulled a Dan Quayle and spelled potato
po-ta-toe.

Poor Dan, except for that little lapse of spelling in front of a Spelling Bee audience, he might have been President of the United States.

Sue, you pop out of a box from time to
time? How are you with cakes?

jwhop

posted August 05, 2003 06:37 PM            

The box is a doddle.....

But getting past those candles on the cake's a bit tricky......I need more practise

posted August 05, 2003 07:34 PM            

Very sad indeed Wevil! It seems payment and reward for failure is becomming the way of life.

jwhop, now, do you really really feel sorry for ol Dan?

posted August 05, 2003 08:09 PM            

Adore practice and all that frosting. Candles optional

juniperb, can't say I'm really sorry for Danny Boy. He broke the number one rule of the military---never, ever volunteer, for anything. Besides, that was only one in a long list of gaffes.

posted August 05, 2003 10:02 PM            

She related to me that several taking the same test, cheated to pass it.
And one fellow approached her after the test and said, "Whew, that was pretty hard! How about that question, what's 25% of a dollar? Did you get that?"

He passed. He's teaching somewhere now.

*sigh*

posted August 06, 2003 12:16 AM            

I guess the thing that annoys me most is that the teachers unions resist testing of teachers to the utmost degree possible. Of course, they also resist any testing of students, such as a test like the FCAT which Florida students must pass to graduate from high school. These tests only highlight the fact that the public school system is a dismal failure. The Florida test, FCAT, is an easy 10th grade level test and the fact that lots of high school seniors didn't pass that 10th grade level test had the teacher unions and school districts attacking the test instead of checking the qualifications of Florida teachers. How about that, you only have to be educated to a mediocre 10th grade level to graduate from high school in Florida.

Some of the students who failed the FCAT were already accepted by major universities.

Yeah, right, how much is 25% of $1.00 Well, the guy that didn't get that one is probably head of the math department by now.

posted August 06, 2003 09:44 AM            

Jwhop, my command of the English language isn't perfect, but I am so frustrated with the education system, as are you. I too am disgusted with teachers who strike for salary raises, and yet can't pass these simple tests. Of course they protest testing the students, as you indicated, the students' inability to pass IS a direct reflection on the teachers' ability (or inablility) to teach adequately.

We all end sentences with prepositions now and then, it's become part of our current vernacular. But the problems with syntax and simple sentence structure, I don't know jwhop...I just get so frustrated and disappointed. Language, our English language is so varied and beautiful. Complex and odd sometimes it's true. I don't know if people realize that not every language has, for instance, so many varied words for 'blue.'

posted August 06, 2003 07:25 PM            

I know you're ticked silverbells and you have every right to be. Your parents and really, all the rest of us paid for a quality education for you and every student. For the rest of us, we were cheated out of money but you were cheated in a far more serious way. The situation isn't going to change until parents everywhere are permitted to take their education dollars and send their children to private schools. That's the only way I can see to reform the public school system---competition.

All is not lost at this point silverbells. You're ahead of the curve in realizing something is amiss. You have time to make up whatever deficiencies exist in your education.

posted August 07, 2003 01:18 AM            

8th Grade Test 1895

Could You Have Passed the 8th Grade in 1895?

This is the eighth-grade final exam from 1895 from Salina, Kansas. USA. It was taken from the original document on file at the Smoky Valley Genealogical Society and Library in Salina, Kansas and reprinted by the Salina Journal.

8th Grade Final Exam: Salina, Kansas - 1895

Grammar (Time, one hour)

1. Give nine rules for the use of Capital Letters.
2. Name the Parts of Speech and define those that have no modifications.
3. Define Verse, Stanza and Paragraph.
4. What are the Principal Parts of a verb? Give Principal Parts of do, lie, lay and run.
5. Define Case, Illustrate each Case.
6. What is Punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of Punctuation.
7 - 10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar.

Arithmetic (Time, 1.25 hours)

1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft. deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3942 lbs, what is it worth at 50 cts. per bushel, deducting 1050 lbs. for tare?
4. District No. 33 has a valuation of $35,000. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and have $104 for incidentals?
5. Find cost of 6720 lbs. coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7 percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 ft. long at $20 per m?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per are, the distance around which is 640 rods?
10. Write a Bank Check, a Promissory Note, and a Receipt.

U.S. History (Time, 45 minutes)

1. Give the epochs into which U.S. History is divided.
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus.
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States.
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas.
6. Describe three of the most prominent battles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton, Bell, Lincoln, Penn, and Howe?
8. Name events connected with the following dates:
1607
1620
1800
1849
1865

Orthography (Time, one hour)

1. What is meant by the following: Alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication?

2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?

3. What are the following, and give examples of each: Trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals?

4. Give four substitutes for caret 'u'.

5. Give two rules for spelling words with final 'e'. Name two exceptions under each rule.

6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.

7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: Bi, dis, mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono,super.

8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: Card, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last.

9. Use the following correctly in sentences,
Cite, site, sight,
fane, fain, feign,
vane, vain, vein,
raze, raise, rays.

10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate pronunciation by use of diacritical marks and by syllabication.

Geography (Time, one hour)

1. What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America.
5. Name and describe the following: Monrovia, Odessa, Denver, Manitoba, Hecla, Yukon, St. Helena, Juan Fermandez, Aspinwall and Orinoco.
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the U.S.
7. Name all the republics of Europe and give capital of each.
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in the same latitude?
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
10. Describe the movements of the earth. Give inclination of the earth.

Hey, where's all the true/false and multiple choice questions
http://www.rootsweb.com/~tnweakle/1895test.htm

posted August 07, 2003 12:44 PM            

I am 4 years older and went to school in a city that drilled into our little formative minds reading, writing and arithmatic. I was reading fairly well in Kindergarten as we learned by phonics and had hefty homework assignments. Then we moved to Irvine and my younger bro was part of the "Let the little children become one with the words". They hooked up my bro to a headset, gave him a book and felt he could just follow along and learn to read. It didn't work. Neither did the lame attempt to teach my ex-husband to read when he was a kid in New York by tracing the words. LOL...

Well, luckily we moved to Laguna Hills and my bro caught up, but he almost had to repeat 3rd grade as his skills were so horrible. He is a teacher now and really works with his students, but to this day he HATES reading for the heck of it. He will read a book every couple of months, but he never caught the book a week passion that I have. He still makes fun of me for coming home from school only to read encylopedias for fun.... well.... I felt they were keeping valuable information that I just HAD to learn.

posted August 07, 2003 02:05 PM            

Those schoolgirl days of telling tales and biting nails are gone

But in my mind I know they will still live on and on

But how do you thank someone who has taken you from crayons to perfume?

It isn't easy, but I'll try

If you wanted the sky I would write across the sky in letters

That would soar a thousand feet high 'To Sir, With Love'

The time has come for closing books and long last looks must end

And as I leave I know that I am leaving my best friend

A friend who taught me right from wrong and weak from strong

That's a lot to learn, but what can I give you in return?

If you wanted the moon I would try to make a start

But I would rather you let me give my heart 'To Sir, With Love'

< instrumental interlude to end>