My son has been on lockdown the last two days, and it's hardly the reason one might think. Michael doesn't attend a school where I fear for his safety or wonder if there are going to be huge fights going on at lunchtime among different factions of students. Instead, Michael's school is on CAHSEE lockdown. Michael passed the CAHSEE exam last year on his first try to no one's surprise, grumbling both days about how long he was forced to sit and stare (ok, Michael actually just took a nap between exams) while other kids suffered through the same test and apparently didn't all pass. Now it doesn't look so bleak for the eleventh and twelfth graders that didn't pass the first time around, because at least those kids had something to do the last two days--retaking the test.
Passing the CAHSEE was the intended goal, or so I thought, but now I wonder. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the kids at Michael's school were forced to sit in a classroom all day doing nothing. The tenth graders actually were taking the test, so even though they might have been bored after they finished, at least they were doing something for part of those days. But the ninth graders who have yet to take the test and the unfortunate eleventh and twelfth graders who passed last year have been staring at walls waiting for it to be all over.
In the school's defense, they need the biggest classrooms for the test takers. So the teachers in those classrooms became proctors for the test. Then the other kids are farmed out to other rooms to sit and wait for the two days to pass. During these two days, does the school encourage the kids to get together and work on their ridiculous service learning project? Do the teachers even attempt to give the kids any work that could benefit them? Does anyone get smart and have field trips when there is no conflict with classroom time? In a word: no.
We could have gone to Disneyland. He could have slept in until noon. Instead I sent him to school to sit in a strange room and stare at four walls. Why? So the school could get their funding. I realize they need the funding, but perhaps in the future they could, ohhhhh, think about what they're doing to these kids and give them something to do for those two days instead of pretending it's actually instructional time.
In my son's defense, he found out where some of his classmates were being housed, and he asked to move to that room. They did work a little on their service learning project, but why is it that a parent and a 16 year old can figure out what an entire school full of people with education degrees can't?
Gotta split,
Angel
Posted by Angel Zobel-Rodriguez at March 21, 2007 01:13 PM