Friday, March 20, 2015

Royal Commandment


The AP had a simple demand.  Everyone had to pass.  Even one failure meant the teacher was no good and not doing her job properly.  The teachers did the best they could to do his bidding.  They did not want to be subjected to his verbal abuse and they certainly did not want to risk their jobs.  In order to fulfill this commandment the teachers pretty much gave up teaching and focused on test prep.  They taught their students how to work backwards from multiple choice and to use guess and check instead of thinking through the problem.  This method worked rather well since it is possible to pass a regents by only getting some multiple choice questions correct.

The AP was happy with the group of teachers who followed his order.  He rewarded those teachers with praise and good programs.  He had parties for them.  Those teachers basked in his praise, never once realizing how much they were hurting the students they passed along.

Now those students are in college where they actually have to produce to pass.  They don't possess any basic algebraic skills, can't solve an equation or even add and multiply signed numbers.  They don't know how to study.  They want second, third, and fifth chances.  They are angry because getting by with no work is no longer an option.  They don't understand how life is so different now than it was when they were in high school.

The AP is not concerned with these students.  He did his job.  He got them out of his school and had great statistics too.  Their future was not his concern as he would not be judged by whatever happened to them next.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Yet, the high schools are being blamed for sending such unprepared students to college, and the college admins are pointing their finger at the AP and his merry band of teachers.