Michigan Government Schools MEAP Scores Inflated

The dismal state of education in Michigan is on full display today as the Education Trust Midwest released a study showing that Michigan government school students only pass on average at a 30% rate on a national test. The state loves to brag that nearly 84% of Michigan 4th graders pass the Michigan MEAP test. Unfortunately only 30% pass a national test. The MEAP test isn’t as rigorous and likely does not demonstrate sufficient 4th grade standards. Lower standards mean more schools pass and the more schools that pass the more money government schools receive.

News that the MEAP is to easy makes last years 11th grade MEAP scores all the more disturbing. While 16% of 4th graders fail the MEAP reading exam, the number more than doubles for 11th graders. Around 35% of 11th graders in Michigan don’t pass the MEAP reading exam. Since it’s clear that the MEAP test is easier than it should be, one can only imagine how many 11th graders in Michigan would fail the national test.

Even with 35% failing the 11th grade reading test, Michigan government school officials bragged about their terrible MEAP score numbers last year. Most were up slightly but that didn’t stop nearly half of 11th graders from failing math and science. It didn’t stop 56% of 11th graders from failing the writing portion of the exam. It didn’t even stop 21% from failing the social science MEAP exam. These are numbers the state of Michigan bragged about. The numbers are absolutely terrible and now we find out the test is to easy!

Government education is a complete and total failure. Michigan has wasted billions on k-12 education with nothing to show for it but a failing students and over paid teachers. The government school system is heavy on left-wing indoctrination and light on actual academics. Kids aren’t learning to read, they aren’t learning to write and they surely aren’t learning to think for themselves. They’re learning a lot of left-wing nonsense to repeat about the environment, abortion and government but they’re not actually learning how to think. Even if they’re learning how to think, they haven’t been taught how to express their thoughts in coherent writing.

It will be interesting to see what the State Republicans are going to do about all of this. They control the House, Senate and the Governor’s Mansion. It’s now on their shoulders to change this system. More of the same will result in more children wasting their days away not learning in government schools. How many more thousands of children will be allowed to not learn at taxpayer expense before the GOP wakes up and radically changes the system?