Explain to me how 98% of U.S. 12th graders could miss this question??

[Halcyon]

I really don't understand this. A recent national test of thousands of 12th graders, 8th graders and 4th graders demonstrated that only 20% of students have a 'proficient' grasp on U.S. History. And 98% of 12th graders missed a basic question that had the answer pretty much included in the question itself!:

 

"Diane Ravitch, an education historian who was invited by the national assessment’s governing board to review the results, said she was particularly disturbed by the fact that only 2 percent of 12th graders correctly answered a question concerning

Brown v. Board of Education

, which she called “very likely the most important decision†of the United States Supreme Court in the past seven decades.

 

Students were given an excerpt including the passage, “We conclude that in the field of public education, separate but equal has no place, separate educational facilities are inherently unequal,†and were asked what social problem the 1954 ruling was supposed to correct.

 

“The answer was right in front of them,†Ms. Ravitch said. “This is alarming.†"

 

The link to the entire NYTimes article is right here.

[mom31257]

My dh is a public school teacher. He said that kids will not study anymore. There are usually enough other grades for projects, in class assignments, and extra credit that they can pass without doing well on tests. He said that memorization is also becoming taboo in the school system.

[Laura Corin]

Churchill didn't really exist.

 

Laura

[Halcyon]

My dh is a public school teacher. He said that kids will not study anymore. There are usually enough other grades for projects, in class assignments, and extra credit that they can pass without doing well on tests. He said that memorization is also becoming taboo in the school system.

 

 

But this question isn't about memorization, is it? I mean, a basic familiarity with Brown v Board of Ed is something my kids have already learned in elementary and I am sure most kids in 12th have been exposed to...so isn't this a reading comprehension question--as in, they don't understand the excerpt itself?

[HappyGrace]

Okay, I feel much better now about my dd11 not knowing the Brain Quest card answers ;)

[Halcyon]

Well my thought is how many freaking tests does a person need? Was this a test on top of all the other tests they are given? I think I'd just start drawing pretty pictures on the page.

 

 

I agree for younger grades. But a twelth grader should be able to handle this question, brain fatigue or not.

[Jean in Newcastle]

While the answer seems obvious to us. . . if you have no educational framework then the "separate but equal" isn't so obvious -

 

is it PE classes

is it bathroom facilities?

 

You could make some pretty whacky assumptions just on the "separate but equal" line if you had no idea that Civil Rights issues (or more specifically - the events that led up to the Civil rights movement) were the topic of the day in the 50s.

[Halcyon]

While the answer seems obvious to us. . . if you have no educational framework then the "separate but equal" isn't so obvious -

 

is it PE classes

is it bathroom facilities?

 

You could make some pretty whacky assumptions just on the "separate but equal" line if you had no idea that Civil Rights issues were the topic of the day in the 50s.

 

 

Yes, but the very phrase "separate but equal" in and of itself refers to the legal doctrine of segregation.

[twoforjoy]

Given that I thought our schools were being overrun by PC ideologies and that all students learned about was black history, that just makes no sense at all.

 

I think the real reason is probably because very few U.S. history courses make it past WWII, if they even get there. In all my years of history classes, the only time I ever studied the civil rights era was in AP U.S. History, when my teacher made it a point to focus on mid-to-late twentieth century history because she knew that none of us had covered it before. In other classes where we were supposed to cover it, we never made it that far into the textbook.

[Dobela]

Given that I thought our schools were being overrun by PC ideologies and that all students learned about was black history, that just makes no sense at all.

 

I think the real reason is probably because very few U.S. history courses make it past WWII, if they even get there. In all my years of history classes, the only time I ever studied the civil rights era was in AP U.S. History, when my teacher made it a point to focus on mid-to-late twentieth century history because she knew that none of us had covered it before. In other classes where we were supposed to cover it, we never made it that far into the textbook.

I didn't make it past WWI in school, until college that is. Students don't know about it because it isn't taught. When I was teaching in public elementary school we were lucky if we made it to WWI. With all the time spent teaching character and social skills, prepping for tests, and focusing on Math and reading, some weeks we never opened the history book.

[Perry]

Two percent? Wow. This must not have been a multiple choice test. Makes me wonder how it was worded and how it was graded.

 

I started a similar thread a few days ago, but I don't think the article I linked included that bit of information.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Yes, but the very phrase "separate but equal" in and of itself refers to the legal doctrine of segregation.

 

Yes! but they don't have the background to know that. I agree that it is appalling but I think what is appalling is that they weren't given the background, not that they couldn't figure it out per se.

[In The Great White North]

The real issue might be reading comprehension, not history.

 

The other issue is that she sees Brown v. The Board of Education as the most important Supreme Court case of the last 50 odd years. Others may not. Cases such as: Miranda v. Arizona (self incrimination,) Mapp v Ohio (warrantless search,) and Roe v Wade (abortion) jump right to mind.

[Parrothead]

You know, it wasn't something I learned about in school either. I might have been able to figure it out if given a multiple choice test, but the specific phrase "separate but equal" would have meant little to me.

[garddwr]

Read Jane Healy's books--"Failure to Connect" and "Endangered Minds"--they discuss the impact of visual media--video, computer, etc., on the way children's brains develop. Basically, our society is losing the ability to process verbal, linear thought--the kind of thought that is necessary to read, understand, and analyze. I bet a lot of the students struggled to understand the sentence included in the question.

 

People who are drawn to homeschooling tend to be readers themselves--we are a verbal community. Much of America has lost that ability to use and process language. And without language, our ability to THINK is greatly impaired...

[twoforjoy]

Read Jane Healy's books--"Failure to Connect" and "Endangered Minds"--they discuss the impact of visual media--video, computer, etc., on the way children's brains develop. Basically, our society is losing the ability to process verbal, linear thought--the kind of thought that is necessary to read, understand, and analyze. I bet a lot of the students struggled to understand the sentence included in the question.

 

 

There is no indication that students history knowledge has declined; it's simply remained low. That is exactly what the findings of this test were. Student scores have been abysmally low since the test was first administered; there is no decline. In fact, there's actually been an increase in the performance of the lowest-performing students, albeit a modest one.

 

I'd venture to bet that, if you showed the same question to adults, they'd fare about as well (particularly if they weren't alive in the Brown era) as these students did.

[MrsBasil]

Reading comprehension was probably an issue.

 

I also think we are probably underestimating the amount of students who phone it in when it comes to standardized tests that have no effect on their grades, diploma, or college acceptance.

[Amy in NH]

The real issue might be reading comprehension, not history.

 

 

 

:iagree: I had never heard of Brown v. Board until I started taking classes as toward a degree in education.

 

Students were given an excerpt including the passage, “We conclude that in the field of public education, separate but equal has no place, separate educational facilities are inherently unequal,†and were asked what social problem the 1954 ruling was supposed to correct.

 

 

The answer is bolded.

[justamouse]

There is no indication that students history knowledge has declined; it's simply remained low. That is exactly what the findings of this test were. Student scores have been abysmally low since the test was first administered; there is no decline. In fact, there's actually been an increase in the performance of the lowest-performing students, albeit a modest one.

I'd venture to bet that, if you showed the same question to adults, they'd fare about as well (particularly if they weren't alive in the Brown era) as these students did.

 

Doesn't Jay Leno do that with Jaywalking? You sit there, watch and cringe at what people don't know? :D

[Penelope]

I agree that history education is poor, but if 98% missed it, I'd think there was a likelihood something could be wrong with the question.

[bettyandbob]

I don't like the wording of the question. I think some kids could stumble just on the wording.

 

I also think many kids don't have context in their own lives onto which to hang this bit of history. So, that makes it harder to memorize. My kids know Brown v. Board of Ed, but I wouldn't be surprised if others did not. For one of my dc the concepts involved are so completely foreign they are absolutely unfathomable, so to her it's just a fact to memorize. To elaborate my kids do not think about race at all and they don't make assumptions based on race at all. I know this because we talk all the time about everything. They go to public school now in an area which is quite mixed racially and financially. So, they are interacting with all kinds of kids all the time. When I was a kid I had many stereotypes and I knew some people hated people simply because of race and I knew people who were discriminated against because of race. I used those experiences for my brain filing the concept of separate but equal. My dd has no experiences and has seen no friends have experiences with discrimination (although I am sure some have and I am sure their parents have) so she can't relate to it. She is horrified by the idea and there are many things in history that were very hard for her to learn because she just couldn't understand humans behaving that way. When we homeschooled history was sooo hard because of this.

 

Now, I know everykid isn't like this, but I think there are some kids who learned enough to pass 8th grade civics or 11th grade history and promptly forgot simply because they don't have backdrop of experiences to put it on the right peg in their memory.

[Impish]

While the answer seems obvious to us. . . if you have no educational framework then the "separate but equal" isn't so obvious -

 

is it PE classes

is it bathroom facilities?

 

You could make some pretty whacky assumptions just on the "separate but equal" line if you had no idea that Civil Rights issues (or more specifically - the events that led up to the Civil rights movement) were the topic of the day in the 50s.

:iagree:I'm not American. I thought it had something to do with religion in ps. Reading the answers made me go, "Duh" but religion was my first thought.

[texasmama]

I wonder if some people with very little history knowledge or background could come to the correct answer by applying logic.

 

One of my most important goals for my kids' education is that they understand how to apply logic to any situation. I add it a logic component quite naturally to most subjects, including math. "When you aren't sure of what to do, read, reread, start with what you know and eliminate what is obviously incorrect."

 

I think this is missing in most educational settings and when kids/teens realize they never memorized the specific answer, they are unable to reason out the question logically.

[ChandlerMom]

I think it is only a comp question of the reader knows what segregation was. I don't think that NOT knowing is such a terrible thing -- they aren't absorbing it because inequality is foreign. During the last election my then 6yo asked me why the news was making such a big deal about the president's hair color. :D

 

I would LIKE kids to know the history of the battles for equality, including BvB, women's suffrage (another one that most would prolly miss), japanese american internment during WWII, native american exp during US expansion, etc -- mainly so they don't take the hard won (and imperfect) equalities for granted. And yet, the fact that the need for these changes is difficult for a teenager to comprehend isn't ALL a bad thing. Taking equality as a given is a victory, too.

 

I think this type of social "amnesia" may be part of the healing process as one generation's current events morphs into another's ancient history. I think/hope if returns into broader social consciousness in the next generation or two.

[In The Great White North]

:iagree:I'm not American. I thought it had something to do with religion in ps. Reading the answers made me go, "Duh" but religion was my first thought.

 

Or same sex schools

[Impish]

Or same sex schools

I think the reason I thought religion is b/c of our ps and ss boards.

[Halcyon]

And yet, the fact that the need for these changes is difficult for a teenager to comprehend isn't ALL a bad thing. Taking equality as a given is a victory, too.

.

 

 

I disagree. Those who don't know their history are doomed to repeat it. These are the sort of things that I would hope no culture "takes for granted", and is a major reason why I feel the study of history is so important.

[OrdinaryTime]

I simply cannot fathom the idea that highschool seniors are not familiar with our country's history of racism and segregation. Surely, they did cover the Civil War and the role slavery played in it. Surely, they have at least seen some popular movies addressing these issues, I.e. Malcolm X, Remember the Titans. Goodness, current cultural debates still rage on the role of affirmative action in education and employment. For heaven's sake, they have Martin Luther King Day off of school each year! I understand a student not knowing the particular case in question, but not to understand our country's history of segragation is ridiculous. A basic knowledge of this, along with the text given, seems very sufficient for more than 2% of students to answer correctly.

[MeaganS]

I'm with some of the other people who think this may have less to do with them not knowing the answer and more to do with not caring about the tests in general. I graduated in the last 10 years and I remember some of my friends deliberately not doing well on tests that weren't going to affect them for a grade, simply because they were bored and thought it would be funny. I doubt that's what all the students did (far from it), but it could explain some of it.

 

Also, I remember that part of history being drilled into us. Like, I remember learning more about the history of Civil Rights than any other part of history, hands down.

[Momling]

I'm surprised at the result... not because of the lack of knowledge of high school students, but because it is statistically weird to have only 2% of students identify a correct answer. I'm assuming this is multiple choice with three distractors? I'd like to see the test and see how the question was written.

[merry gardens]

What specific question did 98% miss?

If it was a multiple choice test, what were the answer choices?

[MeaganS]

What specific question did 98% miss?

If it was a multiple choice test, what were the answer choices?

 

Yeah, that's what I'm wondering too.

[I.Dup.]

The real issue might be reading comprehension, not history.

 

I agree (although history is obviously an issue...I wouldn't have known what "Brown vs. Board of Education" was although I could figure it out by reading the snippet...obviously these kids have very poor reading comprehension.)

[OH_Homeschooler]

I'm surprised at the result... not because of the lack of knowledge of high school students, but because it is statistically weird to have only 2% of students identify a correct answer. I'm assuming this is multiple choice with three distractors? I'd like to see the test and see how the question was written.

 

This is what I was thinking. My concentration may not be great today but I didn't see an actual description of the question in the article. If it was multiple choice with 4 options, then BY CHANCE 25% of the students would get the answer right. It's possibly a scoring error (test banks are notorious for this) and most of the students actually did pick the correct answer, with only 2% picking this very obviously wrong answer choice. I would hope this would be investigated before letting the media make a big deal about it...there are testing experts who look at individual items for this sort of thing.

 

And if they did poorly on this item, what about the rest? If no other item had such a low correct answer rate then that would again suggest a scoring error.

 

If it was an open-ended response then I wonder how the scoring was done. Were actual people doing the scoring? There is software available for scoring now. Were they just looking for key words/phrases? Were students getting at the correct idea without using the "right" words?

[twoforjoy]

I'm surprised at the result... not because of the lack of knowledge of high school students, but because it is statistically weird to have only 2% of students identify a correct answer. I'm assuming this is multiple choice with three distractors? I'd like to see the test and see how the question was written.

 

I agree. I find it hard to believe that a 98% error rate would indicate anything other than a poorly-written question or a scoring error.

 

I tend to assume, when I give my students quizzes, that if 40% or more of the class gets a given question wrong, it's possible that the problem was my wording, and I'll review the question to make sure. If 90% of my students got the question wrong, I'd take that as a clear, definitive sign that the problem lay with my question, not with the students.

 

Even if you were to have every student randomly guessing, you'd still expect to have at least 25% of the students get the correct answer. To get a wrong answer rate of 98% is very, very strange.

[AK_Mom4]

Even if you were to have every student randomly guessing, you'd still expect to have at least 25% of the students get the correct answer. To get a wrong answer rate of 98% is very, very strange.

 

Or one of the distractors sounded more correct than the proper answer. When I asked DD17 about "Brown", she knew what it was, but gave me a pretty slanted politically correct answer and thought it applied to disabled students as well. I suspect the whole racial seggregation thing gets slid over due to political correctness.

[twoforjoy]

Or one of the distractors sounded more correct than the proper answer. When I asked DD17 about "Brown", she knew what it was, but gave me a pretty slanted politically correct answer and thought it applied to disabled students as well. I suspect the whole racial seggregation thing gets slid over due to political correctness.

 

I really, really doubt that "political correctness" is the problem. But, it's a shame we don't seem to have access to the text of the actual question.

[nukeswife]

I'm the camp of those that feel it may have something to do with never even really getting to this area of history. I'm among those that in my 4 years of high school never once made it past WWII. Everything I learned about the Vietnam Conflict was what my dad who was drafted into it told me about it. I know next to nothing about The Korean War, the Cold War Era, etc. other than what I've picked up through watching shows on it or movies and that all happened in my adulthood.

[K-FL]

I'm 49yo. I was in 5th grade when they started busing. Today's kids have no concept of a school of one demographic just because of race. You go to a school because of where your district is. Unless you've been taught about BvB or what the phrase "separate but equal" referred to specifically, it could mean anything.

[Kate CA]

Churchill didn't really exist.

 

Laura

 

You got my jaw to drop on that one. Good grief!!!!

[6packofun]

True, and vocabulary (partly comprehension) is key as well. Segregation has a very specific meaning and use. If the answer was simply "Segregation" and the other options also contained vocabulary words that a student is unfamiliar with, he could easily choose incorrectly even though knowing basically what the question was looking for.

 

Not saying that a failure in comprehension, vocabulary or anything is acceptable, just looking at aspects of testing that can be difficult for some.

[LibraryLover]

That doesn't seem statistically plausible.

Edited June 18, 2011 by LibraryLover

[stripe]

Yes, but the very phrase "separate but equal" in and of itself refers to the legal doctrine of segregation.

Of course it does, but who knows that anymore?

 

But this question isn't about memorization, is it? I mean, a basic familiarity with Brown v Board of Ed is something my kids have already learned in elementary and I am sure most kids in 12th have been exposed to...so isn't this a reading comprehension question--as in, they don't understand the excerpt itself?

I studied key Supreme Court cases in 12th grade (American government) including Plessy v Ferguson, Miranda, Roe v Wade, Korematsu v US, Bakke, Griswold v Connecticut, Loving v Virginia, the one to do with the Amish's exemption from high school, and yes Brown v Board. Granted, I probably got more excited about the cases than was required by the course, but I definitely studied them in class. I think this is an important part of learning US history! But then I recently read something that showed what a tentative grasp Americans have of even understanding separation of powers. Most people believed the president has all sorts of powers that don't go with the office, and I read a survey (of adults) to do with the 1st Amendment, and most people thought religious freedom was quite a bit narrower than written, and was designed to protect the majority group, not minorities.

 

I personally was very disturbed to see with my own eyes that for most children, Black History Month was about doing reports on one person: Martin Luther King. A distant second was Rosa Parks and then came (a bit to my surprise that there was so much interest) Ruby Bridges (maybe those kids know about Brown v Board!). Honest, no child ever wanted to read a book about anyone else! Children absolutely should know about those three people, but they should also know about others! The African American experience is vastly more diverse. Notice that all of these three are from the same time period! Where is George Washington Carver? Harriet Tubman? Langston Hughes? Barbara Jordan? Thurgood Marshall? Phyllis Wheatley? Gone. It's all become this flatland where only Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks (and maybe dear little Ruby Bridges) matter. It's sort of like learning history from cartoons or something.

[jujsky]

How sad! I posed the question to my 7 year-old and asked him to think about the time period and which people they used to keep separate. He said, "Black and white?" Totally sad that a 2nd grader can figure it out just based on the context and a 12th grader can't.

[stripe]

Okay, I think I've got it.

 

Questions 11 - 13 refer to the excerpt from the Supreme Court decision below. (11 is rated easy, 12 medium, and 13 hard)

 

To separate them from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority . . . that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone. . . . We conclude that in the field of public education separate but equal has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.

—1954

 

11. The quotation is from which Supreme Court decision?

 

1. Miranda v. Arizona
   
2. Gideon v. Wainwright
   
3. Mapp v. Ohio
   
4. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
   

 

 

12. The 1954 Supreme Court decision overturned which earlier decision?

 

1. Marbury v. Madison , 1803
   
2. McCulloch v. Maryland , 1819
   
3. Dred Scott v. Sandford , 1857
   
4. Plessy v. Ferguson , 1896
   

 

13. Based on the quotation and your knowledge of history, describe the conditions that this 1954 decision was designed to correct. Be as specific as possible in your answer.

 

(Lines for writing)

http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/itmrlsx/detail.aspx?subject=history

 

Here's the scoring guide:

 

Score & Description

Complete

 

The response may explain that the decision aimed to end legalized school segregation that was common in the South, or may simply refer to segregated schools. The answer uses specific references from the quotation or other historical knowledge in the answer. The answer may refer to "separate but equal" systems of schools.

 

Partial

 

The response explains that the decision aimed to end segregation or to bring about integration but may not relate it directly to schools OR gives specific references but lacks "segregation." Specific references in the answer are absent, weak, or incorrect.

 

Inappropriate

 

These responses do not explain that the decision was aimed at ending school segregation or copies words from the decision.

 

 

Credited responses could include:

 

 

• South had a dual school system that was legally segregated
  
• Feeling of inferiority being conveyed to African Americans because of the separate schools
  
• Specifics of case: Topeka Kansas African American girl not allowed to attend the school closest to her home; or specifics of decision: feeling of inferiority, separate schools are inherently unequal.
  

 

The website has sample answers (with an image I can't easily copy here) and the results.

47% inappropriate

26% partial

2% complete

23% omitted

3% off task

Edited June 17, 2011 by stripe

[Perry]

Okay, I think I've got it.

Thank you for looking that up. Looking at the written responses, it's clear that the students knew what it was, but didn't explain it well. Here are some sample responses.

 

Complete - Student Response

Questions 11 - 13 refer to the excerpt from the Supreme Court decision below. To separate them from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority . . . that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone. . . . We conclude that in the field of public education separate but equal has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.

—1954

 

 

 

 

 

1. Based on the quotation and your knowledge of history, describe the conditions that this 1954 decision was designed to correct. Be as specific as possible in your answer.

 

 

 

Questions 11 - 13 refer to the excerpt from the Supreme Court decision below. To separate them from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority . . . that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone. . . . We conclude that in the field of public education separate but equal has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.

—1954

 

 

 

 

 

1. Based on the quotation and your knowledge of history, describe the conditions that this 1954 decision was designed to correct. Be as specific as possible in your answer.

 

 

 

Scorer Comments:

The responses explain the decision aimed to end legalized school segregation in the South. The answers use specific references from the quotation or other historical knowledge. The answers refer to "separate but equal" systems of schools.

 

Partial - Student Response

Questions 11 - 13 refer to the excerpt from the Supreme Court decision below. To separate them from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority . . . that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone. . . . We conclude that in the field of public education separate but equal has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.

—1954

 

 

 

 

 

1. Based on the quotation and your knowledge of history, describe the conditions that this 1954 decision was designed to correct. Be as specific as possible in your answer.

 

 

 

Questions 11 - 13 refer to the excerpt from the Supreme Court decision below. To separate them from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority . . . that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone. . . . We conclude that in the field of public education separate but equal has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.

—1954

 

 

 

 

 

1. Based on the quotation and your knowledge of history, describe the conditions that this 1954 decision was designed to correct. Be as specific as possible in your answer.

 

 

 

Scorer Comments:

The first response mentions that having separate schools for African American and White students is supposed to be equal, but that it is not really equal. However, it does not say that the Brown case was meant to desegregate schools specifically, making this a partial explanation and not a complete explanation. The second response says that the Brown case was “designed to correct segregation in schools,†but it does not directly explain what that correction would be. Their reference to schools and segregation indicate a partial understanding of the question.

 

Inappropriate - Student Response

Questions 11 - 13 refer to the excerpt from the Supreme Court decision below. To separate them from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority . . . that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone. . . . We conclude that in the field of public education separate but equal has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.

—1954

 

 

 

 

 

1. Based on the quotation and your knowledge of history, describe the conditions that this 1954 decision was designed to correct. Be as specific as possible in your answer.

 

 

 

Questions 11 - 13 refer to the excerpt from the Supreme Court decision below. To separate them from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority . . . that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone. . . . We conclude that in the field of public education separate but equal has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.

—1954

 

 

 

 

 

1. Based on the quotation and your knowledge of history, describe the conditions that this 1954 decision was designed to correct. Be as specific as possible in your answer.

 

 

 

Scorer Comments:

This response does not provide enough information to indicate an understanding of the Brown case. The phrase “separate but equal†and word “segregation†are present, but the response makes no attempt to indicate whether the Brown case supported or struck down these ideas. The second response could just as easily be provided for a question about the Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson. The response does not convey an understanding of what specifically the Brown case was designed to correct: segregation in public schools. “Racism,†“prejudice,†and “injustice†are vague references but this cannot be inferred based on the information provided.

[merry gardens]

Okay, I think I've got it....The website has sample answers (with an image I can't easily copy here) and the results.

 

47% inappropriate

26% partial

2% complete

23% omitted

3% off task

...

 

Thank you for looking that up. Looking at the written responses, it's clear that the students knew what it was, but didn't explain it well. Here are some sample responses.....

 

Thank you to both of you.

 

It's not as bad as the news story implied. Far more that 2% of students knew about Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education. Most students didn't write everything that the testers wanted, but that's not the same as saying that they didn't know about a major historical judgement from the Supreme Court.

[Daisy]

Oops, I didn't read this last page of replies. Yes, it makes more sense now.

Edited June 17, 2011 by Daisy

[akmommy]

At what point in the school year was the question asked. When I was in HS here we took society/sociology the second semester of 12th grade and that is where we studied the civil rights movement in depth. Absolutely fascinating time in history. That was one of my favorite classes.

 

That being said my younger DD, who went to PS for the first time last fall,was amazed at how many kids just don't bother to do their homework which my DD usually had done in a half hour and that many think reading for fun is dumb.

 

At parents night last fall (this was about 3 weeks into the school year) her English teacher commented that he already had 17 students failing his class all because they didn't turn in homework. This is not a school that gives out too much home work and all students have a 45 minute study hall in school. I won't even go into the fact that they use edline where parents and students can go online and see exactly where they are and what isn't getting done.

Edited June 17, 2011 by akmommy

[Farrar]

Okay, I had a little bit of trouble following that with the responses... but it seemed to me that while those responses weren't all great or well written, that many of them did answer the question. This is where I have a problem with poorly written tests. I'm not sure what the expectations were for answers on this test, but it begins to feel like the kids are being forced to play a game where they have to read the minds of the graders. When statistically you only end up with 2% getting the answer marked as correct, then that's time to look at your scoring system.

 

It also just surprises me that Diane Ravtich who apparently saw and reviewed the tests then drew this very overarching conclusion from it that the kids couldn't infer the knowledge from the quote in the question. Many of them did - just not in the way full way the graders wanted.