http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/2011/05/half-of-adults-in-detroit-are-functionally-illiterate/
posted May 5, 2011
accessed May 8, 2011
Summary: Yglesias cites a study by the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund in suggesting that, if half of the adults in Detroit are "functionally illiterate," then it follows that districts should be "checking to see if the kids are learning anything..." He contends that "that means tests," and standardized tests for comparison purposes.
Intended Audience: everyone who reads his blog I guess, and because Ed Week reposted it, teachers as well?
Relevance: The tenuous connection the blogger tries to make between testing and objective assessment of skills should be an easy one for us to point out as flawed by this point. It is good to see what, if any, arguments there are on the "opposing" side; if they are all this shallow, then I can't see why the march to more standardized testing continues!
When I saw the Ed Week posting I was hoping for a bit more reasoned, evidence-based argument... oh well.
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