Why do Liberals hate standardized Tests?

Discussion in 'Science & Society' started by Carcano, Oct 27, 2007.

  1. Exhumed Self ******. Registered Senior Member

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    2,373
    Is the economist prone to left wing slant? (honest question) If you want to see support, look at the source it provides...
     
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  3. madanthonywayne Morning in America Registered Senior Member

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    Liberals do not want any objective standards. They want wiggle room, so they can fudge the results any which way they like.

    Also, when you give a standardized test, certain minorities will do poorly (while other minorities do well). That means the test is racist.

    And, students of some teachers will do better than students of other teachers. Why, that could lead to a merit based pay system! We can't have that!

    Furthermore, objective standards lead to winners and losers. That might hurt somebodies self esteem.
     
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  5. superstring01 Moderator

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    No. The Economist is one of only two subscriptions that I've had for most of my adult life. The Economist tends toward slight conservatism. That said, however, the Economist didn't compile the data or administer the tests. Moreover, the Economist isn't beyond publishing information that is politically enticing-- no matter what the slant. I'd like to read the entire article from which you draw that chart to gain a frame of reference.

    Again, I refer you to the fine print at the end.

    ~String
     
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  7. Carcano Valued Senior Member

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    Thats pretty much why I'm in favor of universal standards.

    High schools are cranking out legions of students who cant compose readable paragraphs.

    Meanwhile swallowing oceans of cash for computers, swimming pools, and sports equipment.
     
  8. maxg Registered Senior Member

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    Actually a number of tests have found higher IQs in the NE US than in other places (going back to the Army tests in 1918). As for who won the election in those states, its a matter of public record.

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

     
  9. VitalOne Banned Banned

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    Because liberals are pussies, they want everyone to take care of them and do everything for them

    THere's really no other practical effective way besides standardized tests
     
    Last edited: Oct 28, 2007
  10. maxg Registered Senior Member

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    Actually standardized tests are really poor for evaluating things like writing ability or critical thinking. That's my biggest problem with them (or at least with using them as the sole determinant of the quality of education). When teachers "teach to test" what you get are students who learn to take a particular type of standardized test well, not students who can write well or think about an issue to which they haven't been exposed by their teachers.
     
  11. Carcano Valued Senior Member

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    Thats the explanation I always heard from the hippies who educated me back in the seventies.

    I never learned how to spell adequately until I got out of school.

    In fact, I've learned more about spelling from my Firefox spellchecker...which cost nothing.
     
  12. Carcano Valued Senior Member

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    Thats like saying aspiring carpenters should skip over learning how to use hammers, saws, levels, measuring tapes, etc...

    And get right into the more creative stuff like architectural design.
     
  13. Enmos Valued Senior Member

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    God takes care of all of us.
     
  14. mountainhare Banned Banned

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    It's because the whiny liberals have no strength of character. Everything is always someone else fault (unless we're talking about white males), and we need to make exceptions for these 'poor bastards'.
     
  15. GeoffP Caput gerat lupinum Valued Senior Member

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    Well, having taught at the university level, I'll say that standardized testing is not a trivial issue in education, but a core, critical requirement. I'll give an example: I taught first year bio at one point (having been exiled there...curses!) and there was kind of a difference in experience and background among the students. Some of those from the rich districts had already done gel electrophoresis of DNA. Some of those from the poor districts didn't know what a protein was. The Ritchie Rich types did well and several went on to medical programs (which I can't name because that might give away one of my home universities...sorry). The students from the other districts did poorly. I'm from a rural area originally, so I'm a bit sensitive to this issue. Standardized testing is needed, at the least at the secondary-high school level; so, thereby, is standardized teaching.
     

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