Essays and Tests

My spring break consisted largely of writing papers for UNM, so it was a joy to take a break and read my students' Compare and Contrast Essays. The difference from student to student in writing and comprehension was astounding. Some kids really "get" this book. They push past the superficial details and relate to the core of the story. Other kids don't even realize Scout is a girl. Some students think Calpurnia is a slave and started talking about the Civil War (instead of Civil Rights Movement), while other did not realize she is black. One of the most challenging things I have come across is to teach each student at his/her particular level. By taking time to grade essays and write lots of comments, I am pushing the kids who already undertsand to look deeper and helping those who are behind to catch up a little. By this time in the year, I feel like I know my studnets and what they are capable of. Only sometimes do I worry that this student or that student is capable of doing more, they are just lazy and have me fooled into thinking they cannot produce really excellent work. I looked at students' DBA scores, hoping it would help me understand my kids better, but the scores were all over the board. Some kids who turn in awesome work did poorly on the test, while others who never turn in anything in class scored extremely high. I think this only confused me more. Talking to the kids and getting to know them is much more beneficial than looking at any test scores.