Re: [Phys-L] my pen is bigger than your pen

[Marty Weiss <martweiss@comcast.net>]

On Oct 15, 2014, at 2:53 PM, John Denker wrote:

> On 10/15/2014 11:18 AM, Marty Weiss wrote:
>
> > Could be a Bic?  (pen)  then the answer is cm
>
> Yes, and that is the "correct" answer according to the key 
> provided with the test in question.
>
>
> Here is an infamous example:  Once there was a test for young
> children, so young that images were used rather than words.
> One question boiled down to deciding what belongs in the 
> garage, a car or a boat.  Every kid in Florida got it "wrong", 
> because there are actually good reasons to keep the boat in 
> the garage, especially in a rainy climate.  Not to mention 
> the impact of such a question on an inner-city kid who has 
> never been anywhere near a boat /or/ a garage.

Also, in Fla, and I suppose elsewhere as well, there are garages for airplanes in some upscale communities.  
> To repeat:  Sometimes a joke is a way to make a point.  The
> point here has to do with cultural bias and lack of imagination
> when constructing a test ... and the effect this has on the 
> interpretation of the "wrong" answers ... especially multiple-
> guess tests where the students have no chance to explain their
> reasoning.

I remember a guidance counselor in the inner-city school where I taught who, while counseling a student about doing her homework and keeping things in a secure location, told the child to put her notebook on her desk at home.  The student replied she had no desk at home.  So, the counselor proceeded to say, "Well lay the notebook on your bed in your room."  The child replied she shares the room with two other siblings and often gets locked out of the room when one of the siblings is having sex with her boyfriend.  The counselor, a middle class suburban woman, was very upset with this conversation.