Learning To Write Is Learning To Think

So much emphasis on test scores. So lots of policy and education programs are developed and implemented in order to help children do well/better on their tests.

Excellent - we're educating a generation of test-takers. But what if we ask them questions that aren't in the test style they're used to? What if we ask them to make a leap between un(test)related subjects? What if we want them to be creative or to use new critical thinking skills?

I won't go into my personal opinions about a lot of these issues but will direct you to two articles from the New York Times that address the in different ways. One article titled U.S. Students Achieve Mixed Results on Writing Test reports that "About a third of the nation’s eighth-grade students, and roughly a quarter of its high school seniors, are proficient writers, according to nationwide test results released Thursday."

A third and a quarter are proficient in writing? That doesn't sound like mixed results to me. That sounds like poor results.

Another article In a New Generation of College Students, Many Opt for the Life Examined talks about the fact that many students are studying philosophy. It quotes David E. Schrader, executive director of the American Philosophical Association, a professional organization with 11,000 members, as saying "that in an era in which people change careers frequently, philosophy makes sense. 'It’s a major that helps them become quick learners and gives them strong skills in writing, analysis and critical thinking,'".

I had a terrific teacher in Grad school (for an MFA in writing) Tucker Farley, who changed the way we thought about things. She challenged us to think about old topics in new ways. On the door to her office was a quote that I always have in mind when working with children, parents, students of all ages (and of course with writers) because it has proved to be so true. "Learning To Write Is Learning To Think".

Teach a child to take tests and they'll perform better on standardized tests.
Teach a child to think creatively, to strategize and solve problems and they'll have the tools to help them in every subject and in their lives.