http://www.truth-out.org/the-loneliness-long-distance-test-scorer65845 I was naive about this at one time as well. After I quit teaching, and while looking for something other than McDonald's, I thought about scoring tests. When I realized I was basically being hired on the spot to work at home for an out of state test, doing a job I wasn't qualified to do (different subject area offered than my major was in college), and with the hours I was told I'd be required to work, I backed out without ever scoring a single test.
I'm not even sure what to say. I DID think those tests were scored by a machine. The essay answers get me though... pretty sad that the kids think only in terms of what their goals are RIGHT NOW, and nothing beyond that. Also wondered if some of the creativity issues are related to the fact that our country is doing a horrible job teaching kids to READ, and many HATE to. Reading and being able to creatively write go hand-in-hand. Just overall, a very sad article.
This was only one of the eye-opening truths I learned from this article. I would encourage anyone out there who feels they are a slave to standardized testing, yet still has doubts, to read this article. It will give you a new perspective on the entire industry.
A lot of states are now requiring a written section for the old bubble tests we're used to. So even if you do well on the bubble section, you can still get a lousy score on the written section, which would throw off your entire score.
It's a shame, but all I can think about it my LA4 teacher in highschool. He told us ALL of it was graded by machine. That they had machines that analyzed handwriting and selected words from the essays. If there was a word the computer didn't know then it was marked and someone would check it. LOL, isn't that funny?! Nobody believed him, but he was firmly convinced. He was an odd duck.
I remember being told that, too. Teachers always had conflicting info because none of them really knew what they were talking about.
What an eye opener!!! I wonder who grades GED's! Now I wonder if I really scored higher on my test when I was I kid!
WOW! I thought it was machines too. I had old ducks teaching me too and told us things I believed. I think it is funny how we are told things that aren't even true just to shut us up.
Every person I have talked to about this has said the same answers...a machine or computer! They are shocked when I tell them about this article. Even one of my friends who happens to be a teacher thought that it was machines or computers!
