What You Need to Know About the International Test Scores by Diane Ravitch

[xchrom]

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/12/04


"The more we focus on tests, the more we kill creativity, ingenuity, and the ability to think differently," says Ravitch.

The news reports say that the test scores of American students on the latest PISA test are "stagnant," "lagging," "flat," etc.

The U.S. Department of Education would have us believe -- yet again -- that we are in an unprecedented crisis and that we must double down on the test-and-punish strategies of the past dozen years.

The myth persists that once our nation led the world on international tests, but we have fallen from that exalted position in recent years.

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

Here is the background history that you need to know to interpret the PISA score release, as well as Secretary Duncan's calculated effort to whip up national hysteria about our standing in the international league tables.

The U.S. has never been first in the world, nor even near the top, on international tests.

[Smarmie Doofus]

1. We don't need no stinkin' *history*. It's a lot easier ( And more fun!) to run around....

... like stampeded cattle.

K and R

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. "Does it matter?" It may explain the widespread US belief in creationism and global warming denial

so, yes, the poor scores of the USA in the past 50 years may well matter. It may explain the number of people who still vote Republican. People who are unable to apply mathematics in real world situations, or understand basic scientific concepts, make lousy decisions based on that. Such as whether the Republican budgets make sense, or whether the data show the world is warming.

[knightmaar]

3. You'd have to compare to China and S. Korea, then

See if kids and adults in China and S. Korea and other high scoring nations are more rational.

I would guess not, based on what I've read of "fan death" in Korea and the resurgence of "Traditional Medicine" in China.

Even a good mathematical education doesn't prevent people from overloading their credit cards and buying lottery tickets.

[Bandit]

4. How many in China and South Korea die from gunshot wounds every year?

That should give you a clue as to their intellect compared to the USA.

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. BBC global poll, 2007, human activity is a significant cause of climate change

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/25_09_07climatepoll.pdf

USA: 71%
South Korea: 91%
China: 87%

Countries with a lower poll result than USA: Turkey, Egypt, India
Other countries higher than USA: Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Great Britain, Kenya, Nigeria, Australia, Philippines
Same as USA: Indonesia

So, yes, it does look like there's an association between climate change literacy and the test scores.