It has been interesting reading The Big Test. It definitely gives us insight on the background of standarized test and how the test came about. I also think it is a good book for educators to read. I wonder how may educators we know are familar with the development and theory behind the standardized test. Probably not many.
However, I can't get into it as much as I did with Savage Inequalities. I felt such emotional tension with Savage Inequalities and I miss that. I am looking forward to reading more novels in the future that will grab at my emotions a little more. That is just my opinion!

I think that you are both right that "The Big Test" is a lot less emotional. However, a s a psychology fella, I find it very fascinating. The histroy of tests, their uses and misuses are so important to know, yet the majority of the public does not understand them. I agree with having accountability, but at the same time The SAT, GRE, and EOG seem to be a measure to make the public feel good about education rather than do good.
I do not know much about the EOG's, but I'd like to see the psychometrics on them. I also think it underscores the fact that we all develop at different rates, and is biased against late bloomers.
A few facts to close this out. The SAT predicts college grades so poorly, that its a total crock and waste of time. The correlation is something like .04 (which is almost negligibly low). The GRE is slightly better, like a .09. THe MAT is better for grad school, but still is not all that accurate. The biggest indicator of future grades is current grades, and even that does not solidify anything.
I hope that I am able to clarify on these more in class. AT the very least we are getting a much better perspective on testing, which is experiencing a renaissance as our countries obsession.

I am glad to see that I am not the only one struggling with this book. There are some really interesting tid-bits of information about the development of the SAT and other tests, but the reading just doesn't flow. I find myself losing interest every other page. I realize that the development of the standardized test and the mind set of those in it's creation is beneficial to educators, but I just cannot get "hooked" on this book.

You are going to love Poisonwood. I read it several years ago and am looking forward to reading it again. One of my all time favorite books is Prodigal Summer by the same author.

Ooh! Cindy! I'm with you on "Prodigal Summer". I love that one. I can't decide which is my favorite.

I haven't read Prodigal Summer but I have started Poisonwood. It is very interesting and I find it hard to put down. In reading The Big Test I didn't have the same problem, it was easy to put down when something distracted my attention.

I really enjoy the Big Test I guess more than some of the others. The company that I worked for previously for 10 years went through a buyout. Before the buyout, we had a good cross-section and diversity of employees.

After the buyout, the new owners, representing now a publically traded NYSE company started hiring only MBA graduates and in particular those from Ivy League schools. Then they started hiring the wives, husbands, etc, friends of friends, and so on.

Throughout all of that I learned much about business and the differences of those who were "in the club" or not. As a high level and respected professional, I was amazed to find that some of these people were in fact very book smart, but didn't have a clue how to handle our unique business or the majority of our existing employees.

Anyway, this probably doesn't add much interest to the rest of you, but I can tell you for sure that in certain circles the college you go to and the level of education play a vital role in some instances.

Yes, Patty, I agree that The Big Test is a fascinating study of the Ivy League powerbrokers. I am grateful that the GI Bill, and the Federal Student Loan programs came along, to allow those of us without prestigious ancestry to acquire an education!

In my CI2800 class, we studied the effect of Sputnik on education in the 60's, so this book has helped me increase my historical knowledge of education going back to the 1930's. It is somewhat clearer in my mind now why my mother-in-law was the only child of four to graduate from high school - (her four brothers dropped out and went to work in the factories, since their father passed away a few days before Roy's mother was born.)

It is funny how Chauncey envisioned a new elite, based on the best and the brightest - yet he never expected (or wanted) to see millions of students in colleges. I am always amazed at how men's plans go awry, yet are molded by God (or fate) into something else entirely. I think I say "Truth is stranger than fiction" at least once a week!

To me The Big Test has been without a doubt the most fascinating thing we have discussed. This era ushered in a new way of thinking about education which seems to be accepted now. Considering the "agendas" of those leading the test movement I find it all kinda scary.

I've really enjoyed the Book Two of The Big Test over Book One, which I was reading when I wrote the earlier post. Chapter 15, the Invention of the Asian American, and Chapter 16, Mandarins, are especially stimulating and have opened my eyes to details of history that I did not know or had forgotten while engaging me in the interesting stories of these people. I wonder how Lemann obtained all these very personal details about all these people?

Wow Beth! Me too! I liked the second part much better than the first. I was also really wondering about the personal stories he used. So important for us to remember.

I too have found book two to be more interesting than the first. I especially enjoyed the personal stories as well. I think it is refreshing to read success stories of those who didn't have the road paved for them.

I think we are all in agreement about "The Big Test." The reading is dry and the evolvement of the standardized tests was slow. We are supposed to look at testing as the subject, but I find the characters to be most interesting. I especially liked the early history. If it were not for the personalities presented, I would have died from boredom. "Savage Inequalities" made me sad and moved me emotionally. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and had a hard time putting it down.

I may shock many of you by saying this, but I have really enjoyed this book. I am a history buff, and the origins of things fascinates me to no end. I also like to see themes and currents and reading about the way the WASP's steered the country in the early 20th century kept me turning pages. I must say though, that in the present day and age of high-stake testing, I definitely see the downside to testing when it goes from assesment to obsession.

The book is getting better. The first section seemed to drag on and on, but part two was much better. If the book continues to get more interesting part three should be okay. But then again, I was a history major, and have studied testing a little bit.

I agree that this book was a slow starter, but with the personal stories, the "behind the scenes" powerbrokering, and the "inside scoop" on various historical twists make it interesting overall. I may even recommend it to my husband.