Rigorous Testing

Daryl Cobranchi links to a review of the TEXAS TAKS from EducationNews.org.

Here's a sample of one of the easy questions that 86 percent of 10th graders can answer:

At a candy store, chocolate costs $0.35 per ounce. Hector bought 8.25 ounces, Jeanette bought 8.7 ounces, James bought 8.05 ounces and Shanika bought 8.42 ounces. Which list shows these weights in order from least to greatest?

A. 8.05 oz 8.25 oz 8.42 oz 8.7 oz.

B. 8.42 oz 8.05 oz 8.25 oz 8.7 oz

C 8.05 oz 8.7 oz 8.25 oz 8.42 oz

D. 8.7 oz 8.05 oz 8.25 oz 8.42 oz

When I first skimmed the question, I was assuming that it would ask the sophomores how much each piece of chocolate costs.