On his blog, Conservative MLA, Edmonton Calder MLA Doug Elniski has written an accurate and insightful assessment of the debate over grade three achievement tests. Here it is:
A day that proves the back bench has will
A private members motion does not compel the government to do anything. Motion 503 certainly does not compel the Minister of Education to scrap the grade 3 provincial tests. Yet in making this motion, Mrs Leskiw accomplished a great deal.
The teachers might be happy, or they may not. The ATA will make their list and check it twice to see who stood For and who stood Against. I expect Frank B. to give those of us on the pro side particularly nice Christmas presents.
It does not compel action, I cannot say this enough, I like Mrs. Leskiw but I understand if the Minister does not take action. This would be a very hard bill to pass and simply for the reason that as a society we have an obligation to children to make sure they get every chance for success and in order to manage their educations we have to measure their educations.
As soon as you measure children the Hawthorne efect takes over and you find clusters of unrelated people who score better and clusters who score more poorly. Aggregate testing tells you nothing, or at the most it measures the child's ability to memorize.
Parents have abdicated so much of their responsibility that teachers are now the primary educators. I think this is terrible. The primary educator of the child is the parent, the family and the community, then after all is said and done, the teacher is there to put some structure around it.
I supported the bill because I also believe that a memorization test is pointless, and any standardized test is going to be taught to. Teachers will teach to the test because you have already told me that you blame teachers if kids fail. Don't blame the teachers, there are good ones and crappy ones today as 30 years ago. I had brilliant educators and I had some dip sticks. Fortunately more of the former.
Tell the parents to get off their lap tops and take the kids for a walk, or better yet go build a bookcase with them, geometry, hand eye coordination, measurement, division, fractions, chemistry, physics it's all there in a bookcase. and if you build one, your kid will still use it when they are 30.
Education is not about the Department of Education or teachers, it is about kids.
Support the kids, the world has some problems they need to be smart enough to solve.
Posted by Doug Elniski at 8:36 PM
We will have to ask Frank B. what sort of Christmas gift he has in mind for Elniski and the other MLAs that get it. But perhaps the best gift is knowing that they are making a real difference in the quality of education for our children.
