Sinful

Just before I arrived at the park this morning for my early morning exercise routine, I heard the news that today was the day for the final exam for high school students. The Exit Exam. I’m afraid that thought dominated all my other mental wanderings as I circled the park.

One; I’m against it. If that high school student, a child, has to take the exam to receive a diploma, he or she should be taking it with the dozen or so teachers that passed him on through the years from kindergarten to high school in attendance. Where are they? He or she will pass or fail depending on how well they did their job. And his or her parents…where are they? Shouldn’t they have some responsibility? These students are children and yet we’re prepared to punish them for the sins of others that failed to do their job.

I’m particularly disturbed by this Exit Exam because if they had such an exam when I was graduating, I would have failed. To this day, I can remember the math teacher that did his best to humiliate anyone that couldn’t stand and deliver a verbal explanation of how they arrived at the answer to an algebra problem. I received a D- in that class. And I know what my IQ score is as well; I was beaten (verbally) by my high school counselor on a regular basis. She would flail me with that IQ score, “Why can’t you do better?” but she never suggested an alternative for me.  I was on a college prep path and that was all there was to it.

And this morning, as I listened to comments from teachers and administrators, I was disturbed further when I heard a teacher say, “Well, I know they have to learn this to be competitive…” Wait! No one has to be competitive. One only needs to be happy.

The state superintendent still defends this ugly exam and I can only hope that I have a chance to vote him out of office.