Knowing the Score and Reading Between the Lines

John Robert receives his award from Duke University
for his outstanding SAT score.

I remember when Jibby was almost seven years old and couldn't read a word other than his name.  On his first day of public school, the teacher handed the students a worksheet asking them to spell their colors.  Jibby walked from student to student asking for help (a normal thing to do in the non-competitive Montessori school he was accustomed to).  This behavior initially alarmed his teacher, who later grew to love our boy even though he occasionally disregarded her directions and went to the reading corner to look at books instead.

John Robert with Denver, Spencer, Mimi, and Paw Paw
at the Duke TIP ceremony.

A slightly nervous John Robert with his
Daddy in his dorm room at Vanderbuilt.

This spring, John Robert's SAT critical reading score placed him in the 99th percentile for his age group. We were thrilled for him to receive a medal from Duke University's Talent Identification Program.  As I write this blog entry, John Robert is studying logic at Vanderbilt University's Summer Academy and says it is "super fun."

It is easy to look back now and realize I need not have worried about John Robert's reading skills. Every piece of research I have found states clearly that no matter what approach a teacher uses-- phonics, whole language, whatever-- the vast majority of students eventually learn to read.  Boys tend to learn to read later than girls (about age eight) while their math skills tend to develop earlier.  

Denver enjoys looking at a Moe Willems
book at a Macon bookstore.

This is certainly true for John Robert and Denver.  

Unfortunately, standardized tests for the lower age groups emphasize reading over mathematical difficulty. This year, although Denver scored in the 99th  percentile in every other category, he did not receive a score in reading because he simply could not yet read the numerous paragraphs required of him.  He tried very hard and spent a lot of time crying in frustration during his exam.  On the other hand, there was only one math problem offered on this year's exam that concerned anything he had learned over the school year.  Every other problem he could have answered correctly in kindergarten.  Interesting.

Spencer enjoys an afternoon
at the pool with friends.

Spencer is different: he loves words, stories, animals, ideas, and history.  He dislikes standardized tests and feels intimidated by their meaning. They are emotionless, dull, and tiring.  I believe his scores do not fully reflect his true skills since they do not even attempt to test creativity, empathy, or appreciation for nature.  Nevertheless, Spencie scored well this year, landing in the 90th percentile overall with an average grade equivalency of 9th grade.  Pretty good for a fifth grader!

It can be tempting to read too much into standardized test scores-- whether they are high or low.  I am grateful.  I get to spend so much time with the boys that I know the boys' skills and I am not overly impressed or intimidated by the computer generated evaluations.  These boys are many wonderful things . . . most of which could never be measured with a number two pencil.