A Day In The Life: Looking Beyond Test Scores Analysis

After reading “A Day In The Life…Looking Beyond Test Scores” I can see Pat’s frustration in the situation with her student Juana not being accepted into the special academic enrichment program. The difference between Pat’s perception and the test score did not add up. Nevertheless, Pat thought that Juana was a perfect fit for the program even though her IQ test score was not above average. Juana was displaying all the signs to her teacher Pat that she would be an exceptional candidate for the program. Basically, what is required for acceptance into the special academic enrichment program is a high IQ, which does not seem fair. The counselor did not take into consideration that Juana was “motivated, enthusiastic, and demonstrated good task persistence” (Armstrong 2015, page 239) in the classroom. Initially, Pat’s emotional outlook on the situation was that she was impressed with her student Juana. Pat was unexpectedly surprised that Juana did so well in class because she was “a Hispanic girl whose parents did not speak English” (Armstrong 2015, page 239). After seeing how well Juana did in class, Pat thought she would be the “perfect candidate for the program” (Armstrong 2015, page 239). When the counselor disagreed with Pat, she
Counselors should take into account the teacher’s referral of a student because the teacher has a full picture of the student’s abilities. Hypothetically, if a student like Juana got an opportunity to be admitted into a special program, it could change her future in an impactful way. She could end up being a leader in the community because she was given a chance to go further with her education. Furthermore, if her parents are not English speaking, then it is likely they did not go to college and Juana could be the first in her family to go to college. What a golden opportunity to change her family’s history for the