Deck 12: How Should Education Be Reformed

Question 1

Authentic assessment grew out of a concern that

A) student performance was declining on standardized tests.
B) the emphasis on standardized test scores caused a narrow application of lower-order thinking skills.
C) multiple-choice tests were too difficult for the majority of students.
D) students were focusing on critical-thinking skills and not performing well on competency tests.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following is not listed as a key element of true school reform as defined by Ryan and Cooper?

A) Active learning
B) Lifelong learning
C) A sense of community
D) School choice

Answer 2

D

Question 3

A major reason explaining the difficulty in implementing educational reforms and achieving it desired effect is

A) they take so much financial support, and taxpayers are unwilling to raise budgets.
B) American education is a giant institution with standard operating procedures that set certain expectations.
C) teachers are set in their ways, and they refuse to change unless they can make all the decisions.
D) no one gives the changes enough time to take effect before they start assessing success or failure.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Ryan and Cooper contend that the "Tools for Learning," a set of academic learning skills, ought to be a major component of school reform because these skills

A) can train students' thinking so as to make them more efficient learners.
B) provide job training to make high school students more marketable.
C) keep students from mixing up facts.
D) help students do better on standardized tests.

Question 5

Any successful reform of education will require

A) the approval of Congress.
B) funding from the federal government.
C) the active participation of the teachers involved.
D) the creation of a new body to oversee the changes.

Question 6

Reformers criticize large schools and fault them with being partly responsible for the decline in academic achievement because they

A) foster poor discipline and classroom management problems for new teachers.
B) are so costly to run that money cannot be spent on updating books and school supplies.
C) cause students to be constantly late for class because of the distance between classrooms.
D) create an aura of impersonality in which students feel lost, disengaged, and unmotivated.

Question 7

Portfolio assessment allows the teacher to determine a student's progress toward certain learning goals or standards. Still, concerns about authentic assessment remain, in particular

A) the feasibility of quantifying scores from authentic assessments.
B) the reliability and validity of the assessments from site to site and evaluator to evaluator.
C) the ability of the students to complete the portfolio on time.
D) the interest of teachers in authentic assessment.

Question 8

In a constructivist approach to learning, learners

A) actively make their own meaning from new knowledge.
B) learn new facts and knowledge without questioning them.
C) question all new information.
D) believe that there are no universal truths since all truths are relative.

Question 9

One of the most frequently debated components of educational reform is character education. The debate revolves around two important questions. Identify these two questions and present the opposing positions on each.

Question 10

Smaller schools are often a recommended component of school reform because they

A) are less expensive to operate.
B) require a smaller administrative staff and less cost.
C) allow for a greater sense of community within the school.
D) make it easier to keep track of books and supplies.

Question 11

Ms. Mildred teaches a fifth-grade class in which she applies a constructivist approach to learning. What would Ms. Mildred's classroom probably look like?

A) Students sit quietly in their seats and work independently on worksheets.
B) Mildred does a lot of whole-class instruction, presenting lecture-type lessons.
C) Students make frequent use of library resources to prepare written reports on various topics in social studies and science.
D) Students work on projects in small groups or independently. There are a lot of hands-on activities.

Question 12

The "call to excellence" movement places high expectations on both students and teachers. The focus of this movement is to

A) set higher standards for both students and teachers.
B) set high standards and earn self-esteem by achieving them.
C) help students succeed on standardized tests and in life.
D) individualize education and build self-esteem.

Question 13

Character educators would like to redefine a "good" student as being one who

A) has a good sense of right and wrong.
B) excels in a particular sport.
C) gets good grades in school.
D) is considered a good kid by his or her teachers.

Question 14

Which one of the six key elements of reform described in the text do you think is the most important and will lead to the greatest improvement?
Which one of the six key elements of reform described in the text do you think is the most important and will lead to the greatest improvement? Which one of the six key elements of reform described in the text do you think is the most important and will lead to the greatest improvement? Which one of the six key elements of reform described in the text do you think is the most important and will lead to the greatest improvement?

Question 15

Many believe that the movement for statewide standards testing has resulted in all of the following except

A) state educational policymakers directing financial assistance for underperforming school districts.
B) federal policymakers taking over control of underperforming schools.
C) curriculum becoming more narrowly-defined and tightly focused.
D) lower socioeconomic communities failing tests at higher rates than higher socioeconomic communities.

Question 16

Describe the history and essential components of the No Child Left Behind Act.

Question 17

Although much debate revolves around whether schools should teach values - and if so, which values -c haracter educators maintain that students

A) have a moral "Teflon coating" and absorb little teaching of values.
B) are constantly and unavoidably learning values from their teachers, so it would be beneficial to formalize this instruction in the curriculum.
C) practice good moral behavior already and have little need for character education.
D) have such a narrow focus on academics that they block out any other instruction.

Question 18

Joshua is a high school history teacher who believes that his role as teacher extends to teaching his ninth-grade students certain core values, such as honesty, justice, kindness, and respect. Which of the following would most likely be found in Joshua's classroom?

A) A multiple-choice test on important events in World War II
B) A geography unit identifying the locations of all the major battles of World War II
C) A fine arts unit in which students develop appreciation for the music and dance of the United States in the 1940s
D) A discussion of the responsibilities of the United States toward Europe in the early 1940s

Question 19

Explain why school choice is viewed by many as the best approach to enhance educational quality for all students.