The state Common Core tests that children in grades 3-8 in New York are supposed to take are shrouded in secrecy.
Last year, a teacher posted a couple of items to show how confusing and tricky they were, and the testing company went on a tear, threatening legal action against the teacher and against the blogger who posted the questions. They went to Twitter and had tweets referring to the post deleted. They went to WordPress, which hosts this blog, and removed my description of the events.
Nonetheless, Leonie Haimson has invited teachers, parents, and students to comment on the tests. You can find her invitation and responses here.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
The reading passages about the ” plinth of space” on a previous sixth grade test and the “talking pineapple” on an eight grade test will be hard to top.
But we should not misunderestimate the capacity of the test makers for nonsense.
LikeLike
If you have 350K followers, why don’t you put out a call for a Pro Bono attorney to help defend against these gag rules? Ask your readers to share, please.
LikeLike
The website and the invitation to post absurdities is great. This reading passage boggled my mind.
8th grade reading passage excerpt:
Pepper pungencies are also compared by using chromatography. Chromatography is an analytical technique that separates the chemical components of a mixture. After separation, the amounts of each component are quantified. Chromatography can determine how much capsaicin is in a pepper. It can also determine how much allyl isothiocyanate is in wasabi. If two chili peppers have the same amount of capsaicin, it can be assumed that those peppers are equally “hot.” But the same assumption cannot be made when comparing chili peppers to wasabi. There’s no way to know if equal amounts of capsaicin and allyl isothiocyanate cause equal degrees of pain. So chromatography cannot definitively judge this contest……
LikeLike
Laura, I agree. That passage is the most extraordinary word salad.
LikeLike
Oy! This is for 8th graders? Look, I have at least an understanding of what the he!! they are talking about, but I took chemistry in both high school and college. I know what chromatography is, and I also
know what capsaicin is (although that is mainly because I am also a cook).
But 8th graders? Give me a break!
LikeLike
Laura, why did you leave out the fun part?
It isn’t even possible to directly measure and compare nerve responses, since two different types of pain receptors are involved. Wasabi and chili peppers are like pungent apples and oranges. There’s no objective way to declare one more potent than the other. This friendly competition won’t be shared anytime soon. Everyone is free to chime in with an opinion. You just have to try both of these pungent powerhouses, then root for your own favorite flavor of pain.
I do not understand “This friendly competition won’t be shared anytime soon.” What does sharing a competition mean?
LikeLike