Thus ends the last round of exams. Going through two weeks of this almost non-stop, I've realized how deeply this issue of desks that seat two students affects the entire educational system.
It seems like a silly thing to harp on, desks, and at worst it seems like a way to save money. If you build desks that seat two, and sometimes three, you save room in already cramped classrooms and more students are given learning opportunities. But it has an indelible effect on the entire educational system.
From the first grade, students take quizzes and tests at these 2-3 seaters, inevitably copying and sharing responses. Instead of examinations being an individual affair, they become group work and never stop being group work. It's too hard to control all of the cheating, so the teachers just accept it.
But the effects are incredible.
In another site, the entire district has single-seaters. When it comes time for tests, there are the usual cheating problems found anywhere in the world, but none of this "group work". Students study harder because they have to know the information. The teachers are more motivated to control the cheating because there is less of it. And every subject benefits.
Portuguese, the language of education, is spoken more widely and more correctly in this district. Test scores are higher, and consequently more money goes into these schools.
But here, I have many students who are unable to communicate with me in Portuguese - it's actually easier to talk to them in Changana. These are students who live in a Portuguese-speaking country, have taken Portuguese classes for at least 9 years, and have been taught in the language for just as long. The issue is not raw intelligence. The issue is that education - studying - is not required for many students. They only have to sit next to the right student, and they will appear to know the information. Large classes, of course, don't help. The teacher can never take time to figure out who cheated.
And so when I take specific measures to counteract this type of cheating, I see horrendous results. On a 20 point scale, a turma can average a 6 or 7. And within this turma, there's two or three scores in the high teens. These are the ones that understand the material. Everyone else just relies on their partner.
And so learning, in any sense, does not happen.
Sometimes I wonder if it's be better to limit enrollment so that every desk only had one student. What a different face that would put on the system!
Peace
John
