VIEW FROM HERE - I am totally speechless about everything that is happening in the world of education. I can tell you that I am losing trust in our public education and think that it is doomed to fail if there are no quick fixes soon.
I’ve been reading a lot about the Atlanta Public Schools test scandal because the story fascinates me. How can a school system commit test fraud for almost 10 years without being detected?
Furthermore, how can a school system of that size manage to keep these acts of cheating tamed and under the radar of officials and policymakers?
I don’t know about you, but this is mind blowing.
This scandal is a prime example of schools losing their trustworthy and honesty values. Building students intellectual abilities are not important, creating a façade of academic improvement and high performance is.
I find it ironic that the focus is cheating on a standardized test because the real travesty is the children in a corrupt school system that lacks morals.
As the details continue to unfold, I am angry that hundreds of students and parents are cheated out of knowing the student’s true skill level and competencies.
If education has a deficit, it has one now because the Atlanta Public School students will not have the opportunity to address any academic performance issues and will be shuffled along without any assessment.
I hold schools to the same honor system as I hold religious institutions and their leaders. I truly hope that schools realize their fundamental purpose. That purpose is to educate our student and build a foundation for morality, not lose integrity.
(Janet Denise Ganaway-Kelly offers more than a decade of accomplishments in the housing and nonprofit sector. Janet brings valuable insight in the areas of community and economic development. Additionally, she brings knowledge regarding the leadership and management challenges faced by large and small nonprofits that are struggling or growing organizations. She blogs at jdkellyenterprises.org ) –cw
Tags: education, integrity, morals, Atlanta
CityWatch
Vol 9 Issue 57
Pub: July 19, 2011