Currently in the state of Georgia, students are required to pass tests at the end of each year from grades three through twelve called the Georgia Milestone Assessments. Elementary and middle school students are tested on their English Language Arts Skills and their math skills, while the fifth and eighth graders are also tested in science and socials students. In high school, students must pass evaluations at the end of every course, for the ten courses mandated by Georgia’s Board of Education: Ninth Grade Literature & Composition, American Literature & Composition, Algebra I, Coordinate Algebra, Analytic Geometry, Geometry, Biology, Physical Science, United States History, and Economics. These assessments are meant to inform students of their overall learning of the required material as well as their level of “college and career readiness.”
At Classic City High School, our group has observed many incidents leading us to believe that the Georgia Milestone tests are not helping the students at all, but instead hindering their ability to learn in the classroom. For example, the students are only interested in …show more content…
Do you feel as though you have enough time to learn everything you need to know throughout the year?
Do you feel as though what you are learning will be useful for you to know in your future career?
We asked Ms. Knight the following questions:
What is your opinion of the EOCT/GA Milestone test?
Do you feel rushed to teach the students everything that will be on the EOCT?
Do you feel as though the curriculum you are given to teach is too difficult for the students?
How does core curriculum impact student achievement? Does it impact the student’s motivation (i.e. they are unmotivated to be curious because they only want to learn what will be on the test)? Do you feel as though the students’ scores on the test adequately reflect their actual academic