"Georgia high schoolers who performed poorly on the end-of-course coordinate algebra test given earlier this year will face another big challenge in the coming school term: a tough new analytic geometry course."They continue by proclaiming this geometry course will include an end-of-course test of similar rigor to that of the algebra test that exposed such glaring lacks of student knowledge and teacher competence. But these tests carry no consequence for either and are consequently meaningless. Students move on to the next course steeped in ignorance and teachers get a pass on not being able to, well, teach. Officials console themselves with the predictability of the outcome but excusing the crushing failures as a direct consequence of some minor change in material sequencing, presentation or evaluation depicts an educational house of cards in an intellectual room of fans. Their advice? Don't touch anything, no matter how bad it is as this will cause it all to fall apart.
This isn't cutting edge knowledge chasing the latest revelations of the Large Hadron Collider yet the response is "more teacher training". Gobstopping, eh? Yes indeed, explaining that y=mx+b is fluid. It gets better. The Cobb County School Superintendent declares:
"We've had so many changes in math. That could have something to do with it. Our teachers have had so many changes in the math curriculum. They're so confused right now. We need some stability in math. If you keep changing it, it's hard to get everybody prepared."Oh dear!
Just what was that college education all about then?
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