Thoughts on school testing

School testing should be used for diagnostic purposes, only. It should not define a student any more than a medical test should define us. They tell us a little bit about how students are learning, but they also tell us about the kinds of questions we like to ask and the kinds of answers we are trying to get. 

Let's look at medical tests. Ideally, they are used to gauge the health of a patient. But they are specific in their scope. They test for cholesterol level, white blood cell production, the presence of a particular bacterium, etc. Doctors look at them and make recommendations to the patient regarding treatments, diets, lifestyle choices, etc. Ultimately, the person has to choose what's right for him/herself. Some recommendations like "take this antibiotic to clear up the infection" are pretty clear and important to follow, but overall, human bodies and lifestyles are far too various for health to be easily gauged. Still, we trust doctors to choose the tests and make educated recommendations. If we don't follow them, well, we don't blame the doctor for not forcing us. 

Now, what if we judged hospitals like we judge schools and treated the doctors like teachers? Government would mandate higher standards for health, and an independent company would develop some tests to score our health on a rigid scale. If patients were scoring too low on these tests, we would ignore environmental, genetic, and free will factors and just blame the doctors. If we could only get rid of bad doctors, after all, our health would skyrocket. Government officials would make bold statements like "everyone will be healthy by 2020." Hospitals would be judged by the test scores, and punishments would be enacted if they didn't make adequate progress toward the elimination of ailments. Hospitals that only admit the healthiest of patients would be praised for the quality of their care, and ones claiming that their patients are affected by their inability to afford basic sanitation in their homes would be berated for saying that "poor people can't be healthy." Faith based health care facilities would gain popularity as an alternative to poor area hospitals, and Dr. Atkins could open up a publicly funded charter hospital to show how the elimination of carbohydrates will make all people healthy. If either venture failed, it would be blamed on the lack of doctor buy-in.  The American Medical Association would be attacked for protecting bad doctors. By the time 2020 came around, the cutoff scores on the tests would be lowered so that even 300lb 10 year olds would be considered healthy. Each state would declare victory. Doctors would move out of the ER and into hospital administration quickly, where their jobs would be safe. 

Merry Christmas or happy Thursday

I don't celebrate Christmas. This shouldn't be a huge surprise since I am not Christian, but I always seem to have to explain it. Jews don't ask me why I'm not celebrating Hanukkah, as the reason is obvious. I'm not Jewish. Muslims don't ask me why I'm not observing Ramadan, as the reason is obvious. I'm not Muslim. Christians ask me all the time why I don't celebrate Christmas. If I were Jewish or Muslim, perhaps I wouldn't get these questions. I don't know.  I've generally had time off at Christmas, so I spent it with my family, and that's the only reason this time is special for me at all. It has nothing to do with Christmas, per se. I have nothing against the holiday. Christians are celebrating the birth of the person they view as their savior. I get it. Have fun. I think it's a bit excessive to claim the entire month of December, but I'm not greatly inconvenienced by it either. 

Some non-Christians celebrate Christmas. Many non-Irish celebrate St. Patrick's Day, too. That's cool. Have fun. I'll participate in the festivities sometimes, and I might even sing carols with no mention of reverence to a magic baby, too, but it's just because there's no reason to be a party pooper.  The UK has a national church, so I understand how their national identity is kind of tied up in Christmas a bit. The USA has no official national church anymore than it has an official race. Having more white people than any other doesn't make it the official race, and having more Christians also doesn't make it the official religion. So, I don't see Christmas as an American holiday. Some people do, which is fine. I just disagree there. 

Businesses surely benefit from having everyone assume they must buy presents and cards for everyone they know or briefly knew, but that brings up another issue. Gifts and cards have become an odd expectation. It should be a pleasant surprise if you receive a gift, not an insult if you don't receive one. Ditto with cards. When students get me cards, I think it is thoughtful and generous. When I receive one from a friend I haven't heard from all year, and all it says is what was printed on it plus a signature, I think that was a waste of purchase price and postage. Send me an email. Less money and more actual thought. Besides, I'm not Christian. I won't hold it against you if I receive no Christmas cards. 

Again, I have nothing against Christmas. The food and music can be fun, but if and when I take part in the festivities, it is as a tourist, like watching hurling when I'm at a pub in Ireland. The Irish don't ask me why I don't watch that goofy sport at home, though. They just buy me a beer and teach me the words to the songs when I'm there. 

Have a very Merry Christmas. Or just a good Thursday. I'll be exploring Germany some more.