January 20, 2006
FOUR FOR FRIDAY
Q1 - Teachers: The Houston Independent School District (HISD) is about to become the largest public school district in the United States to tie teachers' pay to their students' standardized test scores. How do you feel about this? Do you feel HISD and other school districts around the country should be able to tie teacher pay to student performance, or should merit or something else aside from student performance figure into the equation?
Q2 - Osama: Do you honestly think Osama bin Laden will ever be captured or killed by U.S. troops?
Q3 - Emotion: When and why was the last time you screamed at the top of your lungs?
Q4 - Your Bed: Is your bed really comfortable, or do you live with poor sleep caused by the quality of your bedding?
Posted by Mikal at January 20, 2006 12:02 AM
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1) Well it's been shown that when this is in effect, teachers focus on how to take the tests, not really about critical thought or learning. It doesn't address the real problems in education, it's just a dumbed down boilerplate politicians can point to.
2) Nope, and if he is, another will just take his place
3) UH vs. Oregon game when we jumped out to a 21-17 halftime lead
4) Better now that I invested in a GOOD mattress, I lived for 10 plus years with a cheap mattress and a futon and I wondered why I never slept. A cheap mattress is just awful. A futon is nothing more than a floor with a sheet on it.
Q1: Teacher pay based on student test scores is a real mistake, in my humble opinion. ëTeaching to the testí is nothing but a threat to individual student progress. The very idea of this sort of pay is based on several faulty premises, one being that teachers, like salesmen, are motivated by money, and that poor educational results are the fault of teachers, not learners and their families and the resources the schools themselves provide. Students/learners are not empty vessels to be filled; they are either active participants in the learning process, indifferent to it, or hindrances to it. Thereís no great mystery to improving education: reduce student-teacher ratios, provide skilled classroom para-professionals, provide up-to-date plant (buildings) and software (books, curriculum, etc.), and do more to actively require parent participation and support. The idea of teacher pay based on student test scores is just another example of republicans and democrats alike trying to apply privatization to education, just as they do to nearly everything else.
Q2: No, I donít. In fact, unless he has already been captured and killed by usóand we just havenít been toldóI think thereís very little chance anyone will ever see this guy again.
Q3: This past Sunday afternoon, when the Indianapolis Cots recovered a Pittsburgh Steelers fumble on the three-yard line with a minute nineteen left in the game. I leapt off my couch, screamed at the top of my lungs in celebration, going as far as to open my front door and scream and yell into the hallway (just to make sure everyone in the building could hear me). The moment was short-lived though.
Q4: My bed is truly comfortable. About nine years ago I invested in a handmade mattress, one thatís stuffed with organic cottons and other 100 percent organic materials. The only bed that even comes close to the comfort of my own is the ìHeavenly Bedî at the Westin Hotel chain (which you can order for your own home at a total cost of nearly $3,000.00). For now, Iím sticking with my own heavenly bed, but someday Iíd like to trade up for the Westin Hotel version.
I'm up on my site http://blogfleurdelisa.blogspot.com/
Mine are up! Thanks for the questions.
1) Bad idea. Test teaching only dumbs down the entire student population. Also, many students test poorly in general, and teachers shouldn't take the fall for forcing students to learn and test in a way that cripples them academically.
2) No. But by god, in the meantime we're going to crack down on p*rn! Ass-hats.
3) When my cat pulled down a Christmas tree.
4) I need a new pillow. That would solve several problems.
1. No. Teachers don't get paid enough as it is, their salaries shouldn't be jeopardized by student test scores. The school system needs overhauling, and maybe that includes better training for teachers.
2. I have no idea.
3. I don't scream very often, but I guess it would have been while watching a scary movie.
4. My pillow sucks. I usually sleep on my right side, and my right ear always hurts when I wake up. I just can't get comfortable. The bed and sheets and comforter are cozy, though.
Q1: Merit pay for teachers is ridiculous. A student's success in school hinges on multiple factors outside the control of the teacher, such as the environment at home. I think the state should reward the parents... provide cash bonuses to parents whose children perform well on standardized tests and behave properly in the classroom. That would probably have more of an impact.
Q2: Osama is going down... I predict in the next 6 months.
Q3: I only scream internally.
Q4: I could sleep on a cold rock under a four-lane highway and wake up feeling refreshed.
1. In the words of the old SNL mock commecial, "Bad Idea Jeans." The proof is in the ever weaker schools systems. As we choose to teach to tests, we choose to teach a cirriculum that lacks an engaging hook. We are loosing our kids, one standardized test at a time. The lose of critical thinking is a crucial element for the wacko neo-cons. They need sheep, and they are forcing their hand across the entire public system.
2. Osama is a necessary component in the "War on Terror." Without Osama, King George doesn't have a reason to continue killing our troops. We need to go back into Iraq with MORE troops, clean house, allow the government to get a start on a solid, peaceful foundation, then move them all to the Afghan/Pakistan border to hunt down Osama. Again, none of that will happen, because Curious George loves to play GI-Joe with the sons and daughters of men and women that unwisely put him in power.
3. It was in my truck. I just needed a good yell. I was frustrated, pissed, confused, sad, and just needed an outlet. Since I don't own a gun, I'm not a member of a militia, and I don't get off on beating homeless people...I figured I'd yell.
4. The bed is great. It's a plush top.
1. Just plain bad for all the reasons others
have listed.
2. I don't know. My gut says, "I sure as heck
hope so" but my brain says "Even if they do, it
will serve only to make him a martyr and he'll
just be replaced by someone else."
3. I can't remember -- does singing count? If so,
when i was singing along on New Years Eve.
4.I love my bed. I love sleep. I love pillows.
Ahhhh, peaceful sleep.
Q1 - Teachers: I agree with all the other comments, the teachers will only be teaching the test and will stifle any independent thinking. Which is what I think the Bushís administration wants mindless little robots that donít think for themselves.
Q2 - Osama: Only if he does something stupid, like talking on a cellphone and gets caught.
Q3 - Emotion: Last night when I tried to talk to a friend over the music at the bar and still couldnít be heard.
Q4 - Your Bed: Yes, my bed is very comfortable, it is a water bed.
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