Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Working online

Well, I started working on another project scoring academic achievement exams online for 8th grade math. I am not allowed to divulge much more than that, but just can say that this is a pretty doggone easy way to make money.

It's pretty pathetic that many of these kids, I would say nearly a third or more, get the answers completely wrong. They don't understand a simple math word problem. I get all kinds of answers, the longer the answer usually means the more wrong it is. It's a reflection of the failure of our public school systems. Instead of teaching for tests, they need to get back to teaching the basic reading, writing and arithmetic. If a child can read, he or she should be able to understand how to figure out a simple math word problem. The problem is that many kids today cannot read, and lack the motivation to even try. Memorization and regurgitation is what they know, but how to use their minds for critical thinking and figuring out problems is difficult. The state of our schools is sad.

The saddest responses are the ones where the kids write "I don't know and I don't care". That is the attitude of many young people today and why quality of service and production in this country is in such sad shape. No one gives a damn, and it starts at the elementary school level.

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