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I Passed, But...
"I passed the test, but I didn’t do a great as I assumed."
Listen
to this Commentary!
By Laura Holtan
My junior year I enrolled at a public school for the first time. Within the
first three weeks, I got a notice that I needed to take the California exit
exam.
To my surprise, the test was not exactly easy. When the teachers gave out the
results a few months later, they told us not to worry…that the scores
were a reflection of the education system, not of us students. They were referring
to the public school system, but I had been in private school all my life. I
passed the test, but I didn’t do a great as I assumed.
Now, state officials are worried about the high failure rate of students, particularly
poor and minority ones. The public schools and uncredentialed teachers are being
blamed, but I’m not sure about that.
It isn’t fair to limit educational problems to race, income, or uncredentialed
teachers. After all, I didn’t ace the test, even though some people would
look at my educational background and assume I would.
I hope they think of the many different stories and experiences of students
when they look at how to improve public schools.
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