Reply #31: I think that's only part of her point....

[aikoaiko]

She wrote:
Among those policies are: Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) testing four times a year – with each testing round taking a week, with the goals of providing the District with more "data" to improve their curriculum focus, and also to predict what the students’ CSAP scores will be. Each high school teacher must also follow rigidly structured curriculum documents which focus on Colorado state standards – excuse me – the standards most tested by the CSAP. More on that to follow.

Its really the redirected focus of her class time that is the issue for her.

I suppose my take on this is that students (particularly disadvantaged students) are failing basic skills tests -- really basic skills. Basic skills tests, flawed as they are, provide standardized assessments between different public schools (and this is a good thing). When groups of students fail basic skills, then focusing on those basic skills (including test taking skills) is needed. Because by the time high school students start taking SATs and ACTs, if they can't score well on those tests they lessen their chances for scholarships and even getting into college.