The results of math skills testing for New Brunswick students, aren’t a true reflection of what they really know, that according to members of the Anglophone East District Education Council.
Vice-Chair Angela Lawson says test scores were extremely low, but it was brought to their attention, that the questions on the test were very difficult and were not typical of what the students would normally see, “As of right now, it appears they are falling really short, but we question whether the testing accurately reflects what students are capable of doing.”
Lawson says they plan to write a letter and have a meeting with the Education Minister, “We’d like to have a meeting with Brian Kenny and find out why the to find out why the questions were developed the way they were, and how the department of education plans to help our students hit the targets that have been set.”
When asked whether students are struggling because of the “new math” that is being taught in schools, Lawson doesn’t think so. She says there is a lack of education to the parents on what the purpose of the new math is and how students use it, “When you have students going through the system at first, it’s difficult. As they get through grades 4 and 5 , it is amazing to see the difference in their abilities. They can go into the grocery store with me, and they can quickly do math in their head that most people are unable to do.”
