Monday, August 24, 2009

Berkeley Unified Schools and Test scores

As a former educator I could rant all day about ow we mis-use educational tests. They honestly measure very little, as they are norm referenced,and so are designed to have winners and losers; and our dependance on the scores put pressure on teachers to teach to the test thus taking a great deal of the joy and creativity of teaching out of the classrom. We're always comparing our tests to other countrys' test scores and bemoaning the fact that we're losing the competitive edge. And as I see ths preference for tests and teaching to the tests as one of many problems with our system, I, nevertheless am the one who will rip open my cild's test envelope and pour over the scores within. I want my child to be in the 90th percentile, damn it!

Well this is a small preamble to announce the fact that Berekely's test scores have demonstrated minor shifts this year, a four percent increase in english/Language arts and a 1 percent drop in math. Both scores by the way are well above the state average. So I guess if you believe that test scores are a significant way of measuring a school or distrcit this is another good reason to consider Berkeley as a home-buying option if you have or plan on having children.

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