Re: Conceptual Tests

[Kossom <MKossover@NEWMANSCHOOL.ORG>]

Howdy-

You may find this petty and silly, but I hate sled questions. I hate ice
skater questions. I live in New Orleans.

I have never ridden on a sled. I have never lived in a place that has had an
accumulation of snow in the last couple of decades. I've been ice skating
twice.

Where are the driving on wet roads questions? I know something about that! I
discovered recently that it is pretty different than driving on ice. Eek.

I remember missing an SAT analogy back when I was a kid. The pair was
MEDIAN:STREET. I had no idea what a median was, we don't call them medians
here.

Marc "Zeke" Kossover

-----Original Message-----
From: Rick Tarara [mailto:rtarara@SAINTMARYS.EDU]
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2002 1:00 PM
To: PHYS-L@lists.nau.edu
Subject: Re: Conceptual Tests


I'm sitting here looking at a copy of the F&MCE and I really can't identify
any cultural specific question.  We've got a sled (picture shown) being
pushed around, a car on a ramp, a car going through some basic motions,
collisions between cars and trucks (pictures shown).  I won't let you argue
that the sled and ice are culturally discriminatory--Tina IS in Iowa (not to
mention exposure to things like the Olympics).  So, I don't see the
'cultural' problem.  Language yes, but there is where allowing extra time
and the use of a dictionary can work.  I've done it for students here and
they've done fine.  Sure there is an occasional question, word, or phrase
that is misunderstood, but I have that with my native-English speaking
students as well.

Rick

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Richard W. Tarara
Professor of Physics
Saint Mary's College
Notre Dame, IN 46556
rtarara@saintmarys.edu

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----- Original Message -----
From: "Brian Whatcott" <inet@INTELLISYS.NET>
To: <PHYS-L@lists.nau.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2002 1:39 PM
Subject: Re: Conceptual Tests


> As a cautionary response to this very natural nonPC outburst,
> I should mention that after spending a long time in England, I was taking
> an academic test written for Americans, and I was stalled by a culture
> specific reference, many years ago.
> [A detail of a baseball diamond? Insight into 'bottom of the ninth'? - I
> can't recall]
>
> At the time, I had the no doubt arrogant misconception that my English
> vocabulary and comprehension level was equal to a task of this kind.
> I needed to skip that question, all the same.   Rick would know it if he
> ran across such a block. That is Tina's difficulty!
>
> Brian W