Tuesday, June 28, 2016

What does high stakes testing do to children's desire to participate in democratic society?

Since 1996, 47.9% (www.electproject.org) of eligible U.S. voters have participated in presidential and mid-term elections. That is an abysmally low number. We know that voter suppression and the violation of civil rights is a problem historically in the U.S.

Still, there are other factors at work here. Why do young people of all classes in US society, avoid participation in voting?

Why aren't voters under the age of 25 turning out in droves to participate in the electoral process?

There is an x-factor at work here. It has everything to do with how children are educated in the U.S.

What does that say about state and federal legislators capacity to implement legislation that promote the most important part of being a U.S. citizen?

It says that legislators do not listen to educators who understand the affects of standardized testing are not benign to the well-being of children or to society.

What does 16,000 hours of test-centric behavior modification do to a child during their formative years with respect to developing an outlook and attitude for participation in the social arrangement we call democracy?

Robert F. Kennedy once said, "The youth of our nation are the clearest mirror of our performance."

What does that mirror reflect when looking at the way K-12 education prepares children for participation in democratic society?

For the World's most important and most powerful democracy, it's not a pretty reflection:
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/05/21/u-s-voter-turnout-trails-most-developed-countries/


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