Does anyone else think that the school inspections based on data are soul destroying ?

Question

Children in our school achieve things that are not measurable or are a great personal achievement yet compared to their peers they are still way behind.

Answer 1

Inspections? As in Tests?
Sure it's tough to get a bad,... nevermind,.. I'm not sure that I understand the question. BUT I do get the impression that you may be one of these who leans towards this "no red pen", "no right or wrong answer" approach to teaching,.. all to preserve the "self esteem" of the kids. You're not doing them any favors because when they get out in the world no one is going to give a rats *** about their self esteem. Believe me it'll be much better for them to take a ding in their self esteem when they are young than to venture out into the dog-eat-dog world that will tear them apart at the first sign of vulnerability. And believe me there's nothing that screams vulnerability louder than an inflated, hollow, unrealistic air of "self esteem".

There are other ways to note those "qualitative" achievements while effectively and "quantitatively" monitoring their academic achievements.

If I "read you" wrong, then please pardon.

Answer 2

Sorry, no sympathy here--I've seen too many victims of that attitude struggling in college.

It is great when a student achieves something in addition to classswork--and should always be supported and encouraged in such efforts. But to pretend that is an adequate substitute for a good basic education is to cripple the student later on.

And it is --to be curelly blunt--a poor excuse for inadequate performance on the part of the school and teachers in teaching children what they need to know for success later in life. That some students may have non-acedemic skills is fine--it is not an excuse for poor quality education--and does not exonerate the failure of the school to do its job.