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Many struggling students in high schools throughout New Jersey must take test-prep classes in place of electives like music or art, according to The Record.

With all students required in the state to pass the High School Proficiency Assessment in order to graduate, those deemed at risk of failing must often enroll—sometimes semester after semester—in intensive review courses that use workbooks supplied by testing companies and instruct them in test-taking strategies.

While critics of standardized testing decry the trend as yet another example of curriculum narrowing, educators in New Jersey appear to have more mixed feelings.

"It's all about the tests—it's unfortunate, but that's the way it is," said Joseph Mastropietro, a math supervisor in the Hasbrouck Heights district. "The key is we want them to graduate from high school and move on to college."

Mastropietro added that the separate courses have the benefit of allowing teachers in regular core courses to limit the amount of time they have to spend on test preparation.

Others noted that the testing regimen has improved schools' ability to ensure that all kids are at an acceptable skill level before they move on. The focus on tests has "made everyone's job a little more difficult, but I think the kids have these essential skills now, for the most part," said Elmwood Park schools Superintendent Joseph Caspulla.

Posted by Anthony Rebora, teachermagazine.org at 3:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

After receiving complaints from parents about two books assigned to students, the Wyoming school district in Ohio has decided to implement a review system to evaluate all books (other than textbooks) on teachers' reading lists, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Under the system, a panel made up of school staff will rate each book based on criteria ranging from subject-area relevance to how likely it is to generate controversy.

By reports, principals would be expected to reconsider the assignment of books that receive low scores.

The new policy came in response to complaints from two parents about a pair of books that had been assigned to high school students, The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad and The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.

Some teachers and parents have criticized the district for caving into "intellectual bullying" and essentially overriding teachers' judgment in recommending books. They charge the district could be veering uncomfortably close to censorship.

"When a district puts a book on its 'Not Welcome' list, it's censorship and banning," said one parent.

However, Todd Levy, the school board president, stated that the district "will not shy away from controversial books when they have educational merit." (Obvious follow-up question: Then why are you bothering to score books on whether or not they might be controversial?)

Posted by Anthony Rebora, teachermagazine.org at 4:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)