Don't panic, it's just a static...image that is.

In my last post I informed you all that I will be creating a multi-modal project that will persuade my audience that standardized testing is useful but should not be used as an exit exam.  Here is one static image that I will most likely be using in my presentation.

This is a satirical cartoon that actually makes a very important point.  The point of standardized tests is to make sure EVERY CHILD has learned what they "should have" learned by a given point in time.  They do this by giving as many children as possible the exact same tests as all the other children get and tell them if they don't pass, they don't get to go with all of their friends to the next grade, which in my opinion is frighteningly insensitive and horrifyingly un-american.

Don't we as Americans supposedly take pride in the fact that everyone here is allowed to be their own individual.  Their own individual who may be enthusiastic about math and science but never really cared too much for history or map-reading.  This individual may want to go on to higher education and become a scientist or a doctor, and this individual may also pass the standardized tests in math and science with no trouble, but as soon as this individual fails the social studies exit exam they are told that their dreams must be put on hold until they pass, even after they've completed 12 years of coursework and passed every single semester of that coursework.  Imagine how hearing that would feel?  Now imagine how hearing that would feel if spoken in a language you weren't quite proficient in?

I don't understand how this can be thought of as fair or in line with our country's principles at all.  High school diplomas are extremely important in this country and a person can feel crippled and discriminated against for not having one.  Maybe exit exams entail what one would need to know if a great deal of higher education is desired, but these tests are keeping an important survival tool from these children.  So thank you to the US education system for trying to return our country to the forefront of education, but don't do it at the expense of those individuals who may just have a different skill-set from the norm.  It doesn't mean they don't deserve a chance to reach the top of the tree as well.