by KYW's Dr. Marciene Mattleman
President Obama recently asked states to develop assessments “…that don’t simply measure whether students can fill in bubbles on a test.”
E.D. Hirsch, in an article in the New York Times, affirms the validity and reliability of those tests. However, he points out that the multiple-choice questions kids must respond to have little to do with their lives--that the content has no meaning for them.
Kids who never left big cities are asked about Appalachia, never having studied about that region. He believes that if the content were something familiar that the kids would be more motivated and would achieve better in the annual reading tests.
He cited a study in which 7th and 8th graders in two groups, both strong and weak readers, were divided according to their knowledge of baseball. Low level readers who knew a lot about baseball outperformed strong readers with little baseball knowledge.
Since it’s been shown by research, and any teacher knows, that the key to comprehension is familiarity and context, reform in test material seems indicated and maybe of curriculum, too.
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