tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1337206901491734394.post7087690959417258962..comments2024-03-22T01:00:38.320-04:00Comments on I.N.K.: Speaking to the TestLinda Salzmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17217322360480267856noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1337206901491734394.post-69953612416514167342010-09-30T13:44:46.859-04:002010-09-30T13:44:46.859-04:00I'd never heard of this before, David. On one ...I'd never heard of this before, David. On one level I find it sad that a school/district would retrofit an author visit as test material, but then again, at least kids get enrichment with their testing. We have all seen how much kids can get out of a vibrant presentation without the pressure of having to "study" it. I feel the most valuable takeaways from author visits are not the kind of thing tests test anyway: persistence, confidence, hope.Marc Tyler Noblemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10732005290440645718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1337206901491734394.post-70525034015346072862010-09-29T14:05:54.877-04:002010-09-29T14:05:54.877-04:00Grr... I was just asked to provide a set of notes ...Grr... I was just asked to provide a set of notes for kids to follow as they heard my presentation. I said no, that's not what I was about. But this post makes me wonder whether schools' purpose in inviting nonfiction authors is changing.Karen Romano Younghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17247467378375997627noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1337206901491734394.post-88500430150460268032010-09-27T17:09:48.854-04:002010-09-27T17:09:48.854-04:00I have spoken at a zillion schools and that's ...I have spoken at a zillion schools and that's how many times I've heard teachers complain about teaching to the test. David, it's a no-brainer - you're doing your visits exactly the right way. <br /><br />If teachers are forced to spoon feed long boring lists of facts to their students so that they can pass a test, what goes out the window? Love of learning. Curiosity. Creative thinking and thinking outside the box. Ability to honestly evaluate different points of view. Love of reading. Excitement and passion about all the wonderful and amazing and terrifying and substantive and important things out there that are not included on the tests. <br /><br />In short, kids will lose out on everything they need to know in order to make their education and count. And we will lose the very future Teach to the Test is trying to preserve.Rosalyn Schanzerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11605814379256096903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1337206901491734394.post-56261931013607624362010-09-27T12:24:50.385-04:002010-09-27T12:24:50.385-04:00Good for you for sticking to your beliefs.Good for you for sticking to your beliefs.Linda Zajachttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11930130216892471502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1337206901491734394.post-17413604538314244912010-09-27T11:57:31.414-04:002010-09-27T11:57:31.414-04:00Terrific post.
The perfect accompaniment to seein...Terrific post. <br />The perfect accompaniment to seeing how many books a child can read in a day event.<br /><br />Books and their Authors and Illustrators as torture and torturers. And we wonder why kids get turned off by reading.CChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12653106775702366387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1337206901491734394.post-11659612446207155872010-09-27T11:46:55.606-04:002010-09-27T11:46:55.606-04:00I maintain that if you teach the material in an in...I maintain that if you teach the material in an inspired way, and give the kids a few practice tests before the BIG DAY, the kids will do just fine. I'm glad you didn't change your program. Anyone observing your program KNOW that 1) the kids are engaged and 2) they're doing math. <br /><br />If the test doesn't measure this, they should reexamine the test.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07214356318088069618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1337206901491734394.post-4002380408096178282010-09-27T10:31:36.907-04:002010-09-27T10:31:36.907-04:00Fabulous post, David. How weird to try to quantif...Fabulous post, David. How weird to try to quantify an author's visit like that anyway. The whole point of bringing us into schools is more inspirational than straight content. Kids see we are real people like them, which means that they can write too. And, as you say, showing the love. I was just at a school where a teacher said that the week or two after an author's visit, the quality of student writing spikes. Measure that on a multiple choice quiz.Susan E. Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08439239997410273932noreply@blogger.com