Stop the music(test)!

Joanne Jacobs points me to some Florida news I missed.

Fourth-grade students in Florida may soon face another standardized test, possibly by next year, with a focus on music.

Education officials are looking at the possibility of adding a music test developed by a coalition of music teachers, who fear that their specialty has been neglected because it isn't part of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test.

As part of the test, students would listen to music and then answer questions about the instruments, voices and style of music.

Education Commissioner John Winn suggests the test could be given on a voluntary basis with high scoring schools earning points toward their overall school grades.

Whether its voluntary, or involuntary I think music testing is a bad idea. Florida students spend enough taking and preparing for the FCAT exams. Music should be taught in our public schools(Its often not because of other course requirements) but testing for it is a waste of time, money and resources plus being a wrong-headed priority for our schools.

Scott Elliot also blogs on this subject saying music is a subject ill suited for testing. I agree.

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