why don't you test this.

I am hoping that with a new governor and a new, possibly smarter Congress, someone will change this whole No Child Left Behind fuckfest and realize that the ONLY benefit from these stupid tests goes to the Educational Testing Service of Princeton, New Jersey.

The president of Educational Testing Service was the CEO of Dupont until 2000, at which point he became head of the non-profit ETS. Dupont contributes to the GOP campaign.

On their website, ETS claims non-profit status. Uncoincidentally, the President/CEO believes in our President's NCLB extravaganza. Excerpted from his 2001 testimony before the Senate Subcommittee on Education Reform (and Destruction):

As the president of the nation's largest educational measurement institution, I understand the value of testing and the vital role it should play in education reform.

Good testing, done right, is a good thing. Without standardized testing, parents and taxpayers can't know how much their students have learned relative to standards or to other students.

He goes on to say that the only way you can do testing right is to update and individualize the tests to each state's standards. Also, give him all your money.

Developing a high quality test, even in just one subject for one grade, is a lengthy multi-step undertaking. Unreliable data and costly mistakes keep reminding us that we should spend what it takes to get it right the first time.