tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post3912950290487147787..comments2024-03-24T11:39:28.574-04:00Comments on NYC Public School Parents: The Pineapple and the Hare: Pearson's absurd, nonsensical ELA exam, recycled endlessly throughout countryPatrick Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10631038958645725010noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-18133465779473499982012-06-06T17:55:29.233-04:002012-06-06T17:55:29.233-04:00I'm going to go ahead and suggest that there i...I'm going to go ahead and suggest that there is way too much drug usage by professional educators.<br /><br />That story is nonsensical, not clever. The only thing more absurd than the story itself are the questions, which were obviously written by the author. It's as if somebody stripped Lewis Carrol of his wit and he was only dependent on the opium.<br /><br />Nobody, I repeat nobody, in their right mind should have allowed this to end up on a standardized test. A national embarrassment.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-45813918468957783832012-04-27T14:56:43.869-04:002012-04-27T14:56:43.869-04:00This is a tragic waste of time - the students are ...This is a tragic waste of time - the students are forced to take these ridiculous exams and teachers spend time out of class grading them. How ridiculous. Even though the passage is dropped from the scoring - how many kids wasted their exam time trying to figure it out? How many kids didn't spend enough time on other passages because they wasted time on this? What a colossal failure.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-40034751540993032532012-04-26T19:41:50.949-04:002012-04-26T19:41:50.949-04:00See, the thing here, guys, is that stories don'...See, the thing here, guys, is that stories don't have to have a point! I'm a short story writer, and I often make funny, random short stories with an irrelevant moral at the end. I thought the story was funny and clever, as it had a nice twist to an old folktale. <b>I LIKE IT, PERIOD! </b>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-68746221751512402752012-04-23T20:57:25.052-04:002012-04-23T20:57:25.052-04:00Thank you
Yes, it would be very nice if they woul...Thank you<br /><br />Yes, it would be very nice if they would be a little more understanding and insightful of how much stress we go under to take these silly tests.lilynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-31840969006654800002012-04-22T19:22:51.874-04:002012-04-22T19:22:51.874-04:00On Twitter, reform ace @GideonStein has been insis...On Twitter, reform ace @GideonStein has been insisting in an I'm-the-smartetst-kid-in-the-class style that the passage is totally appropriate and the questions are easy. I don't buy it. <br /><br />The NY Ed Dept says the owl was the wisest but what did he really say, that the pineapple had no sleeves? That's obvious. <br /><br />The hare saw through the nonsense from the outset although he was a bit brash. Is he wise? Wise like a hedge fund guy.<br /><br />The coyote is actually the creature who could have beaten the hare handily. And coyotes are clever. But notice how he simply places the pineapple on the starting line. He gets it, the whole Taoist nature of the pineapple's non-action. The coyote understands the pineapple can win the race without running. He's the wisest.Patrick J. Sullivanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08492185889267123863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-12735182990547219292012-04-22T19:09:03.472-04:002012-04-22T19:09:03.472-04:00NY State Commissioner John King has sought an end ...NY State Commissioner John King has sought an end to the pineapplegate debacle by removing the passage and associated questions from what will be counted in the scoring. But rather than simply take responsibility for the poor quality of the test he was sure to deflect some criticism onto a "committee of teachers from across the state" who purportedly reviewed the questions. It seems those who preach accountability don't like to be held accountable themselves.<br /><br />Here's his statement:<br /><br />http://www.oms.nysed.gov/press/CommissionerKingStatementonTheHareandthePineapple.html<br /><br />Here's a link to the version used on the test:<br /><br />http://usny.nysed.gov/docs/the-hare-and-the-pineapple.pdf.Patrick J. Sullivanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08492185889267123863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-363372134093828982012-04-22T18:37:28.096-04:002012-04-22T18:37:28.096-04:00Doesn't anyone see the senseless violence here...Doesn't anyone see the senseless violence here. Ithe pineapple could talk, it was magical. So they killed it and ate it. Did it scream and plead for its life?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-91111446414227754962012-04-22T13:55:11.159-04:002012-04-22T13:55:11.159-04:00Im a Straight A 9th grade english student and this...Im a Straight A 9th grade english student and this story does not make any sense. The moral is complete bullshit. This story is a rip off from the Tortoise and the Hare. Not even. The moral of the story makes no sense and if you had any common sense, you would know that pineapples can't move. This story never said that the pineapple could move. It only said that the animals and fruits could talk. The author never said anything about the fruits being able to move. This story in invalid and should not be on any type of New York State ELA test. This story should not count on this ELA test. I feel bad for all the 8th graders who had to go through this.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-89977707526961758102012-04-21T23:36:42.777-04:002012-04-21T23:36:42.777-04:00Leonie, you wrote: "If you would like to read...Leonie, you wrote: "If you would like to read the nonsensical story, by Daniel Pinkwater, it is online." You do not say "adapted from", you say "by." Those are not equivalent, and I would argue that you would BOLSTER your point by the correction because it shows that Pearson couldn't even recognize that they made the story SO much worse by the adaptation. And also, well, it's just true that The Pineapple and the Hare isn't by Pinkwater but someone else paid by Pearson! If folks want to read the actual Pinkwater excerpt from his novel Borgel (not a standalone story) here it is: The Story of the Rabbit and the Eggplant<br /><br />Once there was a race between a rabbit and an eggplant. Now, the eggplant, as you know, is a member of the vegetable kingdom, and the rabbit is a very fast animal.<br /><br />Everybody bet lots of money on the eggplant, thinking that if a vegetable challenges a live animal with four legs to a race, then it must be that the vegetable knows something.<br /><br />People expected the eggplant to win the race by some clever trick of philosophy. The race was started, and there was a lot of cheering. The rabbit streaked out of sight.<br /><br />The eggplant just sat there at the starting line. Everybody knew that in some surprising way the eggplant would wind up winning the race.<br /><br />Nothing of the sort happened. Eventually, the rabbit crossed the finish line and the eggplant hadn’t moved an inch.<br /><br />The spectators ate the eggplant.<br /><br />Moral: Never bet on an eggplant.Long Live Young Larrynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-90855068806938364062012-04-21T23:33:24.637-04:002012-04-21T23:33:24.637-04:00Fantastic insight from a 7th grader, too bad the p...Fantastic insight from a 7th grader, too bad the powers that be aren't as insightfulTom Lhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08593069012534775096noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-66649871271252342192012-04-21T16:24:23.211-04:002012-04-21T16:24:23.211-04:00You just being contrary about the questions, or ar...You just being contrary about the questions, or are you really that stupid?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-17373834288485937092012-04-21T11:22:26.076-04:002012-04-21T11:22:26.076-04:00I got c and dI got c and dmeicahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06889568299031488494noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-81567770652068670442012-04-21T10:17:50.475-04:002012-04-21T10:17:50.475-04:00He did write the original story that was adapted f...He did write the original story that was adapted for this use.Leonie Haimsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17317355552298136811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-49175782805276966672012-04-21T01:29:52.091-04:002012-04-21T01:29:52.091-04:00The reason Daniel Pinkwater didn't remember wr...The reason Daniel Pinkwater didn't remember writing the Pineapple and the Hare was that...he didn't write The Pineapple and the Hare. He wrote a novel in which one character related having been told the story of an eggplant and a rabbit. Pearson "adapted" that story into the P & the H (decimating the original's economy of wit, I might add).<br /><br />It would be great if you corrected the misattribution. He's a brilliant writer who shouldn't be maligned by Pearson's rapacity.<br /><br />(My info fr WSJ interview with Pinkwater.)Long Live Young Larry!noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-17057026281859258982012-04-20T23:18:45.040-04:002012-04-20T23:18:45.040-04:00I remember this one. When I finished reading this,...I remember this one. When I finished reading this, I was cracking up on the inside; I couldn't laugh out loud because I was in the middle of the test. Personally, I loved this story, and I believe that this story wasn't as confusing, despite what others say. Basically, it's just saying not to overestimate things at times. Stories don't always have to have a point to it, they can be written just to entertain. The questions for the story were actually pretty easy, like the rest of the test.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-48561640597178681442012-04-20T22:56:56.752-04:002012-04-20T22:56:56.752-04:00i am in 7th grade in NYC and i just took the state...i am in 7th grade in NYC and i just took the state tests too...and there were definitely questions on book 2 that could have had several answers!!! <br />i bet if i was in eighth grade i would be laughing if i read this passage! <br />these tests are so stupid. they do not test any knowledge. they will never count for anything. no one, in lets say, 20 years, is going to ask you how you did on your 7th or 8th grade standardized tests. no one! and that is why the amount of pressure that students are put under to do well on these tests is so silly and horrible! in the end, this will never count! for anything! it won't matter!!<br />the point of school is to learn, and not to spend half the year on prepping for a silly state test that will not be of any use in the future. <br />i don't even think kids that are trying to get into good colleges go through this amount of stress. AND IT MOST DEFINITELY SHOULD NOT BE THIS WAY!!!lilynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-10468408531334167572012-04-20T14:40:19.852-04:002012-04-20T14:40:19.852-04:00I agree with you! Bloomberg should be asked to rea...I agree with you! Bloomberg should be asked to read the story and answer those stupid questions. It took me like 10 mins to answer these stupid questions. I hope it doesn't count and it was like a field test.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-64951130566486860682012-04-20T11:31:49.557-04:002012-04-20T11:31:49.557-04:00Bloomberg should be asked to read this story &...Bloomberg should be asked to read this story & answer those ridiculous questions.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-51504881052565733722012-04-20T08:01:35.970-04:002012-04-20T08:01:35.970-04:00The real sad part of this story is the importance ...The real sad part of this story is the importance we place on this ridiculous exam and the harm it does to everyone involved in education. We need to spend more time teaching and less time testing,not worrying about the validity of each item placed on this test.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-11487010071142981312012-04-20T03:17:56.140-04:002012-04-20T03:17:56.140-04:00The story on the link is not the exact story that ...The story on the link is not the exact story that was on the test. It looks like a students' rewrite of the story and has that students' thinking embedded in.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-45807703674871276512012-04-19T20:03:53.260-04:002012-04-19T20:03:53.260-04:00Don't forget that on the state test, at the en...Don't forget that on the state test, at the end of the story it said "Moral of the story: Pineapples don't have sleeves"Emhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17182276896268590235noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586988941850907367.post-6476972930079763732012-04-19T11:51:39.055-04:002012-04-19T11:51:39.055-04:00Leonie Strikes Again.
So the Pineapple is a Pea...Leonie Strikes Again. <br /><br />So the Pineapple is a Pearson item that had been used by them in various states under contract to different SED's. It looks likes they have worked out an amazing scheme to dominate education--developing items along the way, owned by Pearson, paid for by one or another state, and then re-sold and re-sold by Pearson to other states for field testing or operational test use. <br /><br />Who cares if the quality of the item is low... they have become a self-perpetuating monopoly that will sell text books, curriculum packages, test preparation materials, and scoring services throughout the land, along with the information management systems Race To The Top is extorting states to put in place in order to ensure accountability.Fred Smithnoreply@blogger.com