27% Of Math Teacher Candidates Pass Elementary Math Exam

[UNTflyer]

MALDEN, Mass. (WPRI) - According to state education officials, nearly three-quarters of the people who took the state elementary school teacher’s licensing exam this year failed the new math section.

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education is releasing the results Tuesday. They say that only 27 percent of the more than 600 candidates who took the test passed. The test was administered in March of this year.

The teacher’s licensing exam tested potential teachers on their knowledge of elementary school mathematics. This included geometry, statistics, and probability.

Tom Scott, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents , says "The high failure rate puts a shining light on a deficiency in teacher-prep programs."

A deficiency in teacher-prep programs?? No sir, it puts a shining light on the deficiency in brain cells! They could not pass an elementary math exam, sample questions are found here (http://www.mtel.nesinc.com/PDFs/MTEL_fld53TIB.pdf)!!

But when you pay teachers among the lowest salaries of 4-year degree recipients, this is what you should expect.

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

--- Did you actually look at the sample problems... ??? The word Elementary is a bit misleading. Not one of those problems would ever appear in a elementary school school setting and few even in a junior high class. . Most secondary teachers should do ok on it but even then most of them are well past what anyone would encounter even in Algebra I. This should be a rather easy (aka elementary) exam for those with a math degree but maybe not for some who are just certified to teach junior high and below. They would not need to know how to do most of them anyway to be effective at that level.

--- I would not have any trouble with them but then again I teach college mathematics.

--- I also hate the testing program in Texas.. a lot of what is tested on is "horse manure" and not really all that practical to many people. It takes away from real instruction and is in place mostly so politicians can brag that they are doing something about education... They are .. they are ruining it. Besides... not every kid in public high schools is bound for college and those students will never have any use for much of items tested.

--This is coming from a person that has nothing at stake in the public school testing... I don't teach there... I just get to teach those that graduated under this idiot system.

---Teachers don't need math degrees to teach elementary math, but they do need a very good knowledge of basic mathematics...that is not what this test was testing.

Edited May 19, 2009 by SCREAMING EAGLE-66

[UNTflyer]

I did look at the sample problems, they are not that difficult. While our elementary school children would sadly not learn at this level, these are math problems being taught to elementary age children in Japan.

We are not challenging our children, and part of the problem is that our teachers can't teach at this level.

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

I did look at the sample problems, they are not that difficult. While our elementary school children would sadly not learn at this level, these are math problems being taught to elementary age children in Japan.

We are not challenging our children, and part of the problem is that our teachers can't teach at this level.

--I can promise you that the average elementary or likely middle school student in Japan never sees this type of problems ... very advanced students maybe a few of them. That is BS put out by a few people. Granted they do better than we do but politicians likely let teachers teach.. Also comparisons are a bit strange too since most scores reported from other countries are not from the masses of population. Some have "college bound tracks" and that is what you are often seeing as typical scores.

--- I really haven't noticed that the students that I have had from foreign schools have excelled in my classes.. A few yes... but so have many of my American students also.

PS: if you have kids I welcome you to explain to them how to work those problems with all those fractional and negative exponents plus the more complicated geometry problems..... good luck. ..after all you said they were rather easy so you should have no trouble explaining them to your elementary kids who no doubt also has the great mathematics genes you have.

Edited May 19, 2009 by SCREAMING EAGLE-66

[Guest JohnDenver]

Also, it is misleading to say "Math Teacher Candidates." I read it as ALL teacher candidates... doesn't bother me a bit if a PE teacher, or music teacher, or preschool teacher can't do those problems.

[yyz28]

Are you people serious?!?!?!?

...you don't have a problem if the people teaching our kids these skills can't do these problems?

....What difference does it make if an elementary school kid would see the problem? How about a Jr. High student? Should we demand that our teachers can do math at a Jr. High level in order to be able to teach? Or, maybe a HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL EVEN?!?

The bar is set WAAAAAAAAAAAY too low if you guys are just OK with this. THIS is why our Public Schools are failing. THIS is why.

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

Are you people serious?!?!?!?

...you don't have a problem if the people teaching our kids these skills can't do these problems?

....What difference does it make if an elementary school kid would see the problem? How about a Jr. High student? Should we demand that our teachers can do math at a Jr. High level in order to be able to teach? Or, maybe a HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL EVEN?!?

The bar is set WAAAAAAAAAAAY too low if you guys are just OK with this. THIS is why our Public Schools are failing. THIS is why.

Are you people serious?!?!?!?

...you don't have a problem if the people teaching our kids these skills can't do PHYSICS problems?

....What difference does it make if an elementary school kid would see PHYSICS problem? How about a Jr. High student? Should we demand that our teachers can do PHYSICS at a Jr. High level in order to be able to teach? Or, maybe a HIGH SCHOOL PHYSICS LEVEL EVEN?!?

The bar is set WAAAAAAAAAAAY too low if you guys are just OK with this. THIS is why our Public Schools are failing. THIS is why. They don't understand basic PHYSICS.

_______________

---------same difference----- everyone should be able to understand electricity, electric currents, and atomic material, it is around them everyday..even this computer and the internet is based on those principles.... everyone you should obviously fully understand anything they use..!! How can teacher's possibility teach using computers when they can't really understand them and how they work. ... LOL ... English teachers should be able to explain the inner workings of the internet... since they obviously have good writing skills. Even electricians and computer techies who have no college educations understand a lot about these things.... therefore it is expected teachers should know them as well. ........ get real.

Edited May 19, 2009 by SCREAMING EAGLE-66

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

--Should we require all police to get a law degree first... after all they deal with America's laws every day.????

---Perhaps they just need to know the laws that they are asked to enforce... just as teachers need to know well the content of the subject they are to teach... and not everything about subjects they do not teach. I manage to teach math (includes Calculus) without knowing much the about advanced studies of Chaucer and Wadsworth (thank goodness) or the history of Tibet.

Edited May 19, 2009 by SCREAMING EAGLE-66

[greenminer]

Well, this is Mass.

/obligatory.

[UNTflyer]

--Should we require all police to get a law degree first... after all they deal with America's laws every day.????

Apples and oranges... police officers don't teach law.

[Censored by Laurie]

Are you people serious?!?!?!?

...you don't have a problem if the people teaching our kids these skills plagiarize?

....What difference does it make if an elementary school kid plagiarizes? How about a Jr. High student? Should we demand that our teachers plagairize at a Jr. High level in order to be able to teach? Or, maybe a HIGH SCHOOL PLAGAIRISM LEVEL EVEN?!?

The bar is set WAAAAAAAAAAAY too low if you guys are just OK with this. THIS is why our Public Schools are failing. THIS is why. They don't understand plagairism laws.

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

Apples and oranges... police officers don't teach law.

Lawyers don't either... at least most don't. Also English teachers don't teach math and elem. teachers don't teach the items on that test. It is a stupid test and has nothing to do how good a teacher the person will be.

[ personal note... oldest son passed the bar this month... took the oath at Texas Supreme Court last week. ]

Edited May 20, 2009 by SCREAMING EAGLE-66