Future Teachers Get Basics Test (Again)

More than 2,500 prospective teachers took a basic skills exam that 59% flunked when it was given the first time, prompting a huge debate about the state’s educational standards. The exam tests English and math skills at a 10th-grade level. Failing test-takers were forced to try again. At six campuses throughout the state, 2,683 people took the reading and writing portion in the morning, and 2,575 took the content part in the afternoon. Northeastern graduate Justin Whitton complained: “I had to write an example of an ‘interrogative sentence.’ I was at a loss. I’m sure 99% of Americans would be at a loss.”