"Testing for Intelligence?" & Lithuania

On the subject of measuring or assessing children’s minds, I’m a bit on the fence. I think that there should be a way to figure out if a child needs help in some areas, or if there is even an issue at all that needs attention, however I personally do not believe that the tests that are out there, fully cover what needs to be monitored. It does not show that much of an obvious flag of any possible problem or learning concern, and what the tests does, is just add anxiety and pressure to children. In my past experience, when I was having trouble in school, my mother had to bring it up to the school and ask questions of the teachers of what could possibly help me learn better or have it absorb. Later they met with me and I had to do some exercises for them to see how I process information. I was later told, or my mother was, that I had difficulty processing auditory instruction, which then caused me to “visit” the “special ed room” to help with that issue. I basically learn better visually, I still do, however I found that “visiting the special room” did not help me at all, and I just had to adjust or teach myself in another way along with textbooks and my note taking in class which meant nothing to me at the time of taking them, I struggled but I kept working at it with the help of my mother and I eventually got over “the hump” sort of speak. At a totally different time, after I took the regular state required assessment tests, there were no follow up and no one used those tests as a basis for what they needed to do for me. In my state of Massachusetts, right when I was getting out of public schools, they incorporated MCAS testing as a requirement for college acceptance, which I thought was just ridiculous. Why would they need that as well? They would have SAT scores, so where was the extra need for these types of testing as well? Well, I was already in college by the time they decided that, but as a mother now, it worries me for what my son will eventually have to deal with come that time. I strongly feel that it is important to be aware of how a child is learning in a school setting, no matter what the situation and address it in a way that is not threatening and allow them to understand what is going on with their own learning. At the time when I had trouble, I was not aware at all, I just thought I had some problem but never truly knew what it was. In addition to the knowledge of any existing issues, I think teachers need to be more aware of what is going on with the kids and HOW to help them and try to focus on not separating the individual from their classrooms, they need to focus on individualized teaching in general. Every child is different and they learn different, one could compare to the fact that we do not all act the same, so why should we learn the same?

Since I’m a quarter Lithuanian I decided to look into their assessment of children. In my research I found a fabulous website for “European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education” (http://www.european-agency.org/) where you can look up any country. I found that in Lithuania, it is a group effort when it comes to assessing special needs for individuals; teachers, parents and the students themselves, discuss on what could be done and what to go over so the child is aware of what is going on with their own learning and why, and they all come up with a plan together. “Pupils (with teachers help) are trying to analyze their strengths and weaknesses, social skills needed for their socialization and positive relationship with classmates”( http://www.european-agency.org/agency-projects/assessment-in-inclusive-settings/assessment-database-of-key-topics/lithuania/people-involved-in-assessment) This, along with the child performing his or her own self assessment as well as the teachers doing one as well, seems to create an atmosphere that is not so alarming or scary. I personally found this process in Lithuania quite enlightening, and I think that more countries should follow their lead. I know in my experience, I had no idea what was going on and why, with how I was learning or why I was having such difficulty, this is definitely a fantastic approach to assessment. However as the teacher’s perspective, they are given too much work and they find it difficult to focus on or actually carry out each individual plan all the time or “method” of teaching for each child because of lack of time and overload of personalized work for the teacher. When reading this section at the very end, my excitement for those individuals came to a halt. The realization of the issue being resolved, just stopped before it could truly make a difference. If you have such a positive plan in place, why aren’t they all figuring out a plan to actually follow through with it?

There’s always some questions about what to spend money on, (when you have it) in each country with each law maker but I strongly believe that regardless, if I’m in education or not, I feel that a real big issue today, is to focus more on education and better prepare individuals to seek the very best. Regardless if they have a plan already or not, it should be able to be carried out. After all, children are our future and how else to best improve our future, is to support our kids, and provide them with a positive learning experience with an “I can do it” attitude and fully carrying out, in detail, the “no child left behind” message.