Assessment

In my opinion, there are many, many factors that impact learning. If we are to view children holistically, we must take into account cultural and socio-economic differences, medical history, home living conditions...as well as varying ability levels.

Each child is an individual, which means he or she is so unique that it is extremely difficult to find one or two assessments that will measure a large number of children with any degree of accuracy.

In the US public school systems, children who are able to pass standardized tests are considered to be successful students. Those who can not are not, I'm sorry to say.

As a preschool teacher, most of the assessments I deal with are more ‘whole child’ centered. They are based on physical, social, creative, and emotional growth. I think this gives a well rounded picture of each child, and is a much more reliable indicator of progress.

Haiti

With Haiti being so much in the public eye lately, I chose that as my country to research.

One of the major educational differences between Haiti and the US is that the Haitian curriculum requires learning many subjects in detail. Rote learning and memorization are the norm. Haitian students would not be used to the analysis and synthesis that U.S. teachers expect of their students; they would also be puzzled by the number of right answers that are sometimes possible.

Grading and testing are very strict and formal in Haiti; it is much more difficult to attain a grade of B (or its equivalent) in Haiti than it is in the United States. Therefore, Haitian students tend to attach great importance to grades and tests, even quizzes. The notion that what one learns is more important than the grade one earns would be very confusing to a Haitian student. In this respect, Haitians would probably do well with standardized tests.  Reference:  http://www.cal.org/co/haiti/hedu.html