Sabra has a point

And I'll discuss some of what she covers but first go HERE and read what she wrote, then come back here and read what I'm going to write. I'll wait.
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Back?

Ok, lets start.

I've talked about my dislike for standardized tests on my show before, and my exact reasons for my dislike. The main reason is teachers will stop actually teaching, and will only teach "THE TEST". They will only teach the items that will be on the "Standardized" Test. That isn't what I want my kids to learn. I have said for years that a teachers main job is to teach a child to "THINK" If a child cannot think properly how do we expect them to function in society? If they suddenly find themselves outside of the teaching they received, how will they deal with the situation? The "TEST" is no help when you find yourself confronted with a situation which wasn't in the textbook, wasn't in the notes you took and it wasn't on the "Test". What are our kids going to do? These days when a child doesn't understand something the teachers practically give them the answers, then drill them so they remember the answers, all so they can pass "The Test". I'm sorry but when my kids ask me a question I have a standard response. "Look it up." I have 5 sets of encyclopedias in the house, 2 sets of Britannica's, a set of Grolier World Books, a set New Book Of Knowledge and a set of Schoolastic Encyclopedias. Then we have the internet, with sources such as Wikipedia, Britannica On-line and many other sources. There is the Kahn Academy for help with math, and other web-sites that a quick search can turn up. There is also the public library in town where the kids can check out a particular book on a subject they need help with. All of my kids are A and B students. There are a few areas where each has difficulty, but for the most part all of my kids are close to straight A students. I'm not bragging about, it's the truth. Because in my house if you ask a question, you will have to look it up, and my kids have found out a lot of things besides what they were looking up. Think of Wiki-wandering only with encyclopedias. One subject is connected to another, so you read up on that too because it looks interesting, my largest problem with my kids believe it or not is getting their noses OUT of a book to do their chores, well that and they demolish my pantry on a regular basis.

Granted in some cases the parent does have a lot to do when a child under performs at school, but not always. I'd look at all of the students in a teachers class. And he/she has many students under performing, I would seriously look at just how that teacher is doing their job. Because if they aren't teaching the students to actually think, just what are they teaching?