I plan on doing that, but since I won't see results of the
testing until I get back to school in August, I can't really PLAN
based on that. What I would love is if there was some curriculum
that I could "tweak" based on results so that I had an idea of
what I was doing prior to the first day.
On 7/02/09, Sara wrote:
> On 6/30/09, Froggybee wrote:
>> Hello! I am seeking some input from all the wonderful GATE
>> teachers out there!
>>
>> Next year I will be teaching an "intervention" course to my
>> GT middle school kids. They will be divided into grade
>> levels (7th graders first quarter, 6th graders second
>> quarter, 8th graders third quarter). I am supposed to look
>> at the state testing scores (in math and LA in particular)
>> and find ways in which to get the kids to improve. Critical
>> thinking skills should be incorporated into whatever it is
>> I choose.
>>
>> Last year I did the "This I Believe" essay writing through
>> NPR as well as "WordMasters." Any thoughts on how to go
>> about improving the math portion? I have the kids about 45
>> minutes per day for the entire 8-week quarter.
>>
>> Thanks!
>
> To avoid shooting in the dark, if possible, what weaknesses did
> your GATE students display on your state tests? The very task
> of how to do better on any standardized test is a task of
> critical thinking so critical thinking overlies what you're
> doing and what they're doing. You're brainstorming.
> But to do it effectively, it would be Very helpful to know
> where they went wrong?
> Maybe in math they need more drill but - are you sure that
> you're covering in class all the operations the test tests?
> I've seen many cases where the tests are asking students to do
> operations we haven't even covered and didn't know would be on
> the test.
> First, read carefully the list of operations that the test is
> to cover. And share openly with the kids the whole thing
> without of course making them feel blamed - teach them what
> aggregate score means and teach them the history of these tests
> - why our government has mandated them. I've often thought that
> if kids could really understand that these tests are totally
> unlike all of the other tests they take in school, they might
> try a bit harder on the state tests.

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