crt=chaos

What do you get when you take 70+ students and a library, a 22-question test, and a 50 minute class period?

You get CHAOS!!!

The English department started CRTs yesterday (CRTs are the big state mandated, NCLB driven, end-of-year-test). My classes were assigned to take the tests in the library, where a total of 70 computers had been set up for this purpose. This is the first year we've done the CRTs online instead of paper-based. There were a few technical difficulties but nothing that couldn't be solved quickly. Each student was given a piece of paper with their login information and after they logged in, the teachers had to walk back around and pick them up.

Last year, the first time I administered the test, each section (there are 3) had about 70-80 questions, and it took the students pretty much the whole period, 50 minutes. This year, online, the sections (3 again) each only have about 18-25 questions. And, of course, the darlings refuse to actually read everything ("It's too long...I'm just gonna guess."), so the majority of them this year have finished the days section in, oh, about 15-20 minutes. So then they are supposed to sit there for 30 minutes. Kind of a joke.

Tomorrow is the last day for the English CRTs. I will be able to get a report of my students' scores soon there after. I'm anxious to see how they did, but, sadly, I probably won't be surprised when a lot didn't do too well. As I was walking around monitoring their work, I noticed several working on questions about things we learned this year (some things we just reviewed last week!) and they missed the question! Then I had several come up to me after the test and say, "you never taught us simile!" Again, we reviewed similes LAST WEEK!!!!

I have planned out the rest of the year. Starting next week, I'm going to have students "write" a different type of poem each day (but these are fun poems...like cut words out of the newspaper/magazine and glue them on a paper). This will take about 2 weeks. Then, they will each create an ABC book. That will take a few days. Then a few other random things. I'm hoping it will keep them all entertained.

We're off to Sweet Tomatoes for dinner tonight! Yay!!