Comments on: FCAT Results Released For Escambia, Santa Rosa

By: JohnMolino

JohnMolino — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 18:39:42 +0000

I posted this on another thread, but it applies here as well.
The FCAT is used as a collective grading scale for schools in Florida.
Notice the word collective? That’s a socialist and communist term used to describe the masses and forgetting the individual.
Not good.
As Americans, we think of the individual first and foremost.
We are NOT a democracy….Also known as mob rule.
We are a country of laws that protect the individual. A Republic.

Any time you start seeing this type of collective creep into our methods, you should be worried. Very worried.

Schools should be ranked or graded by the individual students grades. To rely on the government to rank our schools or collectively award or discipline a certain school is not good.

I trust our schools teachers to teach my children. If you think about it, that’s a boatload of trust I give them. Fact is, we have outstanding teachers in Escambia County. My experience with Ernest Ward Middle School, with two kids attending there, has been outstanding. Not to brag, but one is straight A’s Honor Society (just graduated,on her way to West Fla. Tech HS) and the other is AB Honor roll. I don’t want my kids collectively categorized. If they are having problems, I want them addressed as an individual and not as some sort of community collective agreement.

Now, having already said I trust the teachers, let us now ask the question, “Do I trust the Government?”
No. Sorry.
As a 50 yr old conservative American, I have been watching the Government for a very long time. My own party has let me down recently causing me to now become an independent voter. Our President is a admitted Socialist and at best a conman, so this entire collective ranking system fits him quite well.

Rank our childrens schools on the individual students GPA, Not by some institutionalized government sponsored test.
Last I heard, Florida is still in the USA.

By: NewThough

NewThough — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 12:09:49 +0000

Yea let’s stop the FCAT and any other way of measuring how well or not well our public education system is working.

If we don’t keep score then no one will worry, complain, or advocate change.

Powerful Teachers Unions would love that

By: pm

pm — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 19:11:07 +0000

gonna catch a lot of flack for this – but my sister (a retired teacher) told me the 2 worst things schools ever made her do was 1.) Teach self-esteem – every one is special – well when they get out in the real world they learn they are not special and most employers will not treat them as Special. Kids should learn good values at home and have loving parents that teach them proper behavior and how to learn (help with homework, etc. 2.) Teach exclusively for scores on FCAT – then kids learn how to take a test (maybe) and the teacher has lost their ability to bring new ideas and challenges to thier pupils. Then when the FCAT scores come in parents claim bragging rights – ” Nanny Nanny boo boo – my kids smarter than yours.” She tells me that happened a lot. Too bad for the average or below average kid. She is very happy to be retired and not have to do any more of this kind of teaching. But, she is a better person than I, she did it for 34 years.

By: sick of this fcat

sick of this fcat — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 17:53:09 +0000

all you people want to see is numbers how about the human side of it ? are kids are being effected does anyone care about them??

By: sick of this fcat

sick of this fcat — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 17:50:56 +0000

do away with the fcat then no one will have to worry about it !!!!!!!!!!!!!

By: Rob O

Rob O — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 17:08:09 +0000

When we register our children for school we submit our email addresses, how about you just send them to us and save the paper, gas, time. Those who didn’t submit an email address can then go pick them up.