Underpinning all academic success is the ability to read excellently and independently. Students move through natural phases of development and learning potential. The cart must not be put before the horse as our state is considering doing with our new essential earnings. Young children naturally love to memorize. Little ones are a fountain of memorized songs, poems, silly sayings, and lines from their favorite videos.
Students are then prepared to move from facts to logic and reasoning.
Then, and only then, should students move on to specialization. An indirect relationship can be made only if the education establishment is willing to say that, for the past two decades, teachers primarily taught, and curriculum was primarily designed, to satisfy a nationally normed test rather than age-appropriate knowledge. Besides, students who know the answers because they learned the facts make correct choices on multiple choice tests. Only in the upper grades is it sensible to ask students to employ critical thinking skills by using performance-based assessments. Even so, a healthy dose facts must still be accurately measured.