<p>"Puts on flameproof garments"</p>
<p>We see a lot of wheel spinning and angst from the standardized testing in our little corner of AL, but we are also beginning to see glimmers of improvement in some of the lowest, most poorly supported schools that were flirting with state takeover. The school board "reconstituted" 4-5 of the schools - all faculty and principals had to re-interview for their jobs at that school - and gave bonuses for working at these schools, and in turn required teachers to follow a remedial program that included extra prep for the tests. You must understand that the faculty of these schools was made up of a core of teachers who had taught there for years (maybe 1/4 or 1/3) and the rest, the majority, were inexperienced, teachers who would come and go (my husband taught his first year at one of these schools, in and out, that's the history). So the "reconstitution" actually stabilized the faculty with folks committed for 5 years - that is showing progress. Now I know some will say, the kids are just demonstrating test taking, not learning - but as far behind as these kids are, there is some genuine learning going on.</p>
<p>The problems we see are bureaucratic - when new testing comes along it doesn't substitute for the old test - just more days of instruction missed. The richer suburban districts - it is just a pain, and an expense. some students in these districts don't do well, but there is no big push to help them because their numbers are small, andthe money has run out. And my favorite, the school has to have a high level of attendance on the day of the test for the school to pass - too many kids absent, automatic failure. Almost 2/3rds of the schools in the state that failed, failed on this one thing - what has that to do with quality?</p>