Standardised testing: why politicians need to look at the teachers and students behind the numbers

Rod Pitcher

By Rod Pitcher
Community contribution / January 19, 2017

Politicians and bureaucrats love standardised testing. After all, if everyone in a group does the same test, then any differences in results must indicate differences in the people’s ability.

The people can then be sorted by their results and treated according to their ranking.

The numbers are a reliable ...

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By Rod Pitcher

Community

Rod lives in Waramanga, a south-western suburb of Canberra, Australia’s capital, with a black cat named Dog to keep him company. He has six university degrees, including a PhD in Education, and has a number of academic publications including five ebooks. He spends a lot of his time reading all sorts of things about all sorts of topics.

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Wow, yet another teacher using poor pedagogical practice, blaming technology. I have heard this argument so many time...

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As long as the number is big enough and said with enough emphasis, it trumps all the real facts.

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