Ethan's Story. Commentary on high stakes test obsession.

[madfloridian]

Crossposted in General Discussion for visibility.

The story is from 2013. It was told so well by the Orlando Sentinel's Scott Maxwell.

Florida's test-obsessed style of education hits disabled families hard

Just teaching Ethan to say "yes" or "no" — or even keep his gaze focused — was an accomplishment.

So the idea of asking this 10-year-old to solve math equations on an FCAT test seemed ridiculous.

But this is Florida — where the standardized test is king.

So the state made Ethan take it anyway. He spent six hours over the course of two weeks being led through a test.

And then he was asked about eating a peach.

That was the question that set Andrea on fire.

Ethan, after all, can't eat peaches. Or any fruit. Or food at all.

He gets his food through a tube.

Ethan passed away in February 2014. I have not seen the video until now. I found it at the
blog of the NEA president.

Scott Maxwell heard of another child who was blind being shown pictures of animals and being asked which one was the monkey, the elephant, and so on. So he asked some questions about it. He went to the state with his questions. The response.

"These summative assessments used in Florida are one way to measure student mastery of these standards," came the email response from a spokeswoman.

Mastery of the standards?