Posted by
Jason on Wednesday, May 07, 2008 2:21:39 PM
Here's a nice little story about Duvall County in Florida, where 54% of their 10th graders couldn't read well enough to pass a standardized test. Parents are pissed!
This Ribault High School sophomore - is about as quiet as a teenage girl can get. She barely speaks. But the tears streaming down her face say a lot.
"I am not going to be successful," says the 17 year old student.
She thinks that – because she can't read well enough to pass the 10th grade FCATS.
"I was sad. It made me feel like I'm dumb,” she says.
Her score is as low as it can get – a 1 out of a possible 5. All that says is she's at least two years behind in reading comprehension. If she can't catch up and pass the FCAT - she may not graduate high school. That's news to her grandmother Eunice – who's become guardian of her education.
"They were going to wait until we thought she was getting ready to march across the stage to tell us?" says Eunice.
[...]
"I want heads to roll. I want someone to be held accountable for what they have done to this child," says Eunice.
Uh, if your 17-year-old student can't read and you haven't even invested enough time in her education to know that before the tenth grade, then that's your own fault! Yes, it's obviously an awful school district (open enrollment and vouchers anybody?), but the government can't even balance a budget... why in the world would you make them the sole trustee of your child's education?
Take a little responsibility...