Anyone get this reaction from non-hs'ing friends?

[Julie Kirkwood]

Happened again yesterday. A non-hs'ing friend asked about what the state/county requires from us. I live in Virginia. It's pretty easy. You test at the end of the year. My friend was appalled that parents can administer a standardized test. What if they cheat or let their child cheat?!

 

My response was, why? Why would I do that? I'm curious to know where my child is at, although since I'm here learning with him all the time, I already have a pretty good idea.

 

Although, on the other hand, if I didn't have to use a standardized test for the state, I wouldn't use it just for my own purposes but this is basically all we have to do to comply with the state so we do it. I don't think it really shows a true picture of all the things my child has learned for the year (it only tests math and reading). It also follows standards that I don't necessarily subscribe to (for example, our math program only teaches addition and not subtraction in the first grade year so I had to "teach to the test" and have my son learn subtraction prior to the test).

 

This is not the first time I've gotten this reaction from non-homeschooling friends. I wonder if they think there are homeschoolers out there who just let their kids sleep and play video games all day, then fudge the test at the end of the year. I haven't met anyone like that, it's usually quite the opposite. Most homeschooling families I know, including my own, have more of a "learning all the time" environment in their homes: lots of books, educational t.v. and computer stuff, incorporating museum trips and other learning opportunities into family vacations, etc.

 

But anyway, I feel like I'd like to have a better response for this type of reaction. It just catches me off guard every time. Anyone else gotten this reaction? How do you respond? What are your thoughts about end of year standardized testing as a state requirement?

[T'smom]

Not a great response....but you could always mention that teachers seem to cheat on standardized tests quite frequently.

[Ginevra]

I have fielded similar questions. One friend, who is a teacher, asked, "How do you know what they're supposed to learn?" It did catch me off guard. I ended up telling her about the "What Your X Needs to Know" books, even though that isn't really a measure I use.

 

I live in Maryland, which doesn't require standardized testing. If it did, I would go along with it, and I would "teach to the test" some, as you said. I do test my kids though. I didn't for the first few years, thinking tests were bad. I don't think that way anymore. I'm glad MD doesn't require testing, but it wouldn't be the end of the world if that was the requirement here.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I think your response was spot on. Turn it back around on the asker. "Why would a person do that?"

[Margo out of lurking]

No, I don't get that reaction. However, we are quite insulated, and I honestly don't have many conversations about hsing with people who do not hs, or who are not familiar with it.

 

I wonder if they think there are homeschoolers out there who just let their kids sleep and play video games all day, then fudge the test at the end of the year.

 

Yes, my dad thinks that many hsing parents are too lazy to get their kids off to school in the morning. Seriously.:lol:

 

But anyway, I feel like I'd like to have a better response for this type of reaction. It just catches me off guard every time. Anyone else gotten this reaction? How do you respond? What are your thoughts about end of year standardized testing as a state requirement?

 

 

"I don't have to worry about my kids, but you know, there have been several instances in the news lately about public school teachers and entire schools cheating on the tests to make themselves look better."

 

I have mixed feelings on testing. My kids do it to satisfy the state requirement. Although we have the option to evaluate, testing is much simpler. Over the years, it's become a tangible affirmation that my kids are doing fine. They like knowing.

 

I understand the intentions behind mandatory testing, but it's false reasoning, false assurance. When my kids (by law) must perform in the fourth stanine or above, it angers me that the district has any say over what I do--when it means that 1/3 of the public school kids are performing below that level. Who's helping them??

[regentrude]

I wonder if they think there are homeschoolers out there who just let their kids sleep and play video games all day, then fudge the test at the end of the year. I haven't met anyone like that, it's usually quite the opposite.

 

Unfortunately, these do exist.

My neighbor teaches at a learning center for high school drop outs and troubled students - she encountered a 17 y/o homeschooled girl whose parents did not even teach her to read (and no, she did not have a mental disability; she learned to read just fine as soon as as somebody actually taught her). So, while these families are clearly a small minority, they do exist.

 

But anyway, I feel like I'd like to have a better response for this type of reaction. It just catches me off guard every time. Anyone else gotten this reaction? How do you respond? What are your thoughts about end of year standardized testing as a state requirement?

 

I live in a state where there is no testing requirement at all, and as much as I like it because it gives me personal freedom, I think there should be some kind of accountability.

Most homeschoolers will go above and beyond. But I can understand somebody worrying about the kids whose parents do not make the effort and who fall through the cracks.

I wish I had a good solution that balanced parental freedom to educate their kids with some measure that would catch the kids who are educationally neglected.

 

When I get asked questions about the non-existence of tests, I answer that I DO acknowledge that the system can be abused, but that I have not personally met homeschoolers who did not try to provide a good education for their kids. I usually say something along the lines that parents who don't care about their kids have it easier if they send them off to public school - why would they bother to keep them home.

[ByGrace3]

I wonder if they think there are homeschoolers out there who just let their kids sleep and play video games all day, then fudge the test at the end of the year. I haven't met anyone like that, it's usually quite the opposite.

 

You would be surprised at how many of these families are out there. :glare:

 

When asked about homeschool/testing etc, I normally just comment about how it is my personal responsibility to prepare my child for college and the future, and I plan to do a really good job with that! ;)

[Harriet Vane]

My in-laws have this perspective, bless their hearts. I have spent years arguing with them about it, and just this summer decided to just change the subject. They have been supportive of homeschooling on the whole--they think it's okay for *me* to do it, and acknowledge (reluctantly but determined to be fair) that my kids are doing well with homeschooling, but they think most people shouldn't "do that." :tongue_smilie:

[MeaganS]

In your state, do they require that the score actually mean something? Like, do they have consequences if someone scores poorly? Because if they don't, then there is no reason to cheat, because who cares? And that would be my answer.

[Spryte]

I've had this question recently. I live in VA, also. It wasn't aimed at me, it was from a friend (a gifted ed teacher) who knows I would not cheat or fudge results. But she was shocked that parents can administer a test. We were in the midst of a long conversation, not a surface, small-talk conversation, and our musings led us to realize that in a school setting - teachers administer tests. Homeschool is similar - the teacher administers the test. We are parents, yes, but in this scenario we are teachers, and that's the more important role.

 

MeaganS, yes - in VA, the kids have to score within the 4th stanine to show academic progress, or the homeschool will be put on probation for a year. If the scores don't improve, the parents will lose the option to homeschool. So there *could* be temptation to cheat, but the requirements are so low that the kids really would need to be watching TV all day not to pass!

[Denise in Florida]

I think your response was spot on. Turn it back around on the asker. "Why would a person do that?"

 

:iagree::iagree: Stick with your first reaction. Why would I? what would be the point?

 

Sadly, our society has reached the point that everyone assumes everyone else is cheating, lying, etc.

 

In my opinion, the 'prove it' people are usually the ones who are not trustworthy themselves.

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

Not a great response....but you could always mention that teachers seem to cheat on standardized tests quite frequently.

 

:lol:

[J-rap]

On a side, we need to take the standardized tests here, but do not need to show the school district our results.

[mom2scouts]

I get that question quite often. We can opt for a test or portfolio review and I do the review. People seem shocked that we don't have to use school textbooks, take all the tests or check in with what we're doing. I finally started telling people that I homeschool so my child can have a *better* education. If I was going to have the school dictate everything, I would just put him back in school and use the time for myself.