Assessments 'bad for kids'

Teachers are refusing to administer the annual national assessments because, they say, they are flawed and have resulted in pupils being taught to pass them instead of the curriculum. The tests assess the literacy and numeracy of pupils in Grades 1-6 and Grade 9.The deputy president of teachers' union Naptosa, Anthea Ceresto, said yesterday that teaching time was being spent helping pupils to pass the test at the expense of a wide range of subjects.