While browsing a blog last night I happened to notice that I was not listed in the author’s blogroll anymore. It’s a weird feeling (for me anyway) to notice that you are deemed no longer worthy of the precious link space on a website. Thinking about it, I believe I know why I was removed. I think I was removed because this person and I disagreed on a third party issue. That makes it even more curious that a disagreement like that would cause my site to be removed. I respect this author a lot and never thought they would remove someone because of their opinions on a subject (if that’s what they indeed did). Of course, I could just be imagining things. It could be that they just don’t like what I write about anymore. I don’t know.
Having a bad day. Very bad. Oh, by the way September 19th is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. The FSM will be pleased.
From the state education department comes reason for Missouri high school students to rejoice: The gradual demise of the Missouri Assessment Program — or MAP exam — is under way.
That’s the good news.
The bad news is that MAP by any other name is still a test. In other words, a replacement is imminent.
Beginning in 2008-09, the state’s 10th- and 11th-graders will take “end-of-the-course” exams to gauge their knowledge in algebra I, biology and English II.
Bottom line: State and federal education officials really want to know what high-schoolers know.
Wait, it gets worse.
By the end of the 2009 school year, student proficiency in algebra II, geometry, integrated math II and III, English I, government and American history also will be put to the test.
The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education announced this week that Riverside Publishing of Rolling Meadows, Ill., had been awarded a $28 million, six-year contract to oversee development, publication and scoring of the tests.
Company President Richard Swartz said he was excited about the opportunity.
Response from high-schoolers is expected to be more subdued.
Now, I don’t think standardized tests are completely evil. I think they give us a great snapshot of what the students are learning so it can tell us our strengths and weaknesses. What I do have a problem with is No Child Left Behind and taking away funding if schools don’t meet the requirements. If a school is doing poorly (and usually these are schools in poverty) you shouldn’t take away what little money they have. That’s going to put them at an even bigger disadvantage and create more stress for the already heroic teachers that teach in such areas. It’s a becoming more and more of a trend for teachers to teach for the test. Pressure from administrators, the school district, the state, and the Federal Government all force teachers to teach the test. The best way for a child to learn is to relate the material to them. Tests (which have been accused for a long time of being culturally biased) don’t do that. I hope the next White House does something a little better for education.
I’ve been blogging a lot more lately, mostly because I have the time to do so. I’ve also been reading a lot more blogs recently, again, because I have the time to do so. One thing I noticed with the blogs I subscribe to and read via Google Reader is that most people don’t blog until late afternoon/early evening. Personally, I blog whenever something hits me. I may be reading something on the net and find it interesting so I post about it so my readers can see it too. An example would be yesterday’s post on ” Brain Differences In Liberals and Conservatives.” I saw it, I wanted more people to see it, and less than five minutes later I published it. This was done early morning, before 9:00. It seems most of my posts of late have been written early in the day, I’d say 90% of them have been published before lunch.
Another habit of mine is that if I see something and want to talk about it, I may make a post about it shortly after I see it. I don’t want to sit there and think about it too long. I do this with a lot of news articles. Since I wasn’t the one writing the article and only offer brief commentary, it is very easy to publish it quickly. Posts that are more personal, I will mull over for a bit. Sometimes it may sit in draft status for several hours before I decide to publish it. On the other hand, I’m a fan of saying what I have to say quickly and publishing it as soon as possible. This doesn’t just go for blogging, but any kind of writing. I feel that I’m more clear and honest when I say what I want to say without reading it over and over and criticizing my every word. I don’t know. Just something I was thinking about. What about you? How do you blog? Do you post in the mornings or in the afternoons or evenings? Do you write something and publish it without really thinking about it or are you one to read it over and over going over every word with a fine-tooth comb?
(By the way, this post was written and published in 6 minutes)
Seen on Slashdot:
“Scientists from NYU and UCLA report in Nature Neuroscience that the brains of Democrats and Republicans process information differently. This new study finds that the differences are apparent even when the brain processes common information, not just political topics. From the study, liberals were more likely to be accurate and showed more brain activity in the region associated with analyzing conflicts. A researcher not affiliated with the study stated, liberals ‘could be expected to more readily accept new social, scientific or religious ideas.’ Moreover, ‘the results could explain why President Bush demonstrated a single-minded commitment to the Iraq war and why some people perceived Sen. John F. Kerry… as a flip-flopper.'”
Very interesting. I think we all knew some of this though. That’s why Conservatives are unable to accept things such as gay marriage, religious tolerance (didn’t Jesus preach love for everyone?), the planet being more than 6000 years old, etc.