Gloves Off!

High school juniors feeling TAKS tension. "The TAKS video created at Jefferson, done with a "Matrix" theme, is trying to calm students by breaking down the kinds of questions that will appear on the English language arts exam today." Isn't part of the low-test-score problem that kids have gotten quite enough TV already?

In the same article, "You know how in high school some things come and go? TAKS is always there." You know, TEAMS (Minimum Skills) was "always there" when I was in school, but all that test really proved was that you had a pulse. TAAS ("Academic" Skills) took the place of TEAMS when I was in high school, and it was supposed to notch the challenge up a bit. I figure that was around for another 10 years or so. The challenge was staying awake. It had been deboned by the time it got to students.

I don't know about TAKS. These start off difficult but the Cult of Self Asteem and Graduation Rates, including the San Antonio Expressed-Views and pretty much all Texas media, start the drum pounding early. Standardized tests are always too hard because some kids don't do well on them. It doesn't really even matter how many kids.

Insert teacher slander here. It's really too early for me to get the bile flowing.