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June
15, 2004
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Headline
News
Why Test Your Students?
Testing is
an important part of teaching for both the student and instructor, but
do you know how to best use testing and assessment? Rather than letting
testing become only a routine make it work for you and your students.
Click here for a refresher on the purposes of assessment or testing.
Purposes
of Assessment or Testing
Testing and assessment are
integral parts of teaching. They provide evidence that a trainee has
learned the skills and knowledge that compose the course content. In
addition, they provide an instructor with feedback about the value of
instruction, as well as additional training needed to assure mastery
of content by the trainee.
Test to
find out what has been learned. The most important reason to
give a test is to find out what has been learned. You may be presenting
a great amount of information to your trainees, but if they are not
learning it, everyone is wasting time.
You can be pretty sure that
your trainees are learning something from you, but unless you test,
you may not know what or how much they are learning.
But you are not the only
one who needs to keep track of progress. Trainees themselves need to
know how they are doing. They need reassurance that they are mastering
the material they are spending so much time on. And, some may need the
jolt they get when they find out that their test results lag behind
what they should be.
Test to
find out if your teaching is working. Testing reveals both
how well trainees have learned and how well you have taught them. That’s
something you ought to be very interested in!
If your trainee does badly
on a test, you cannot assume that he/she is lazy and stupid, even if
that may be the case. It may be that you did not teach as effectively
as you should have taught that individual. You can use testing to check
up on yourself.
If the results of a test
are poor, it may not be easy to determine immediately what needs improvement—the
learning, the teaching, or the test. Perhaps all three areas need improvement.
But, you should analyze your teaching to see if you need to make some
changes. A trainee does poorly on one particular area, it may be that
your teaching on that particular point was not clear enough.
Test to
motivate. When did you do most of your review and studying
when you were in school? Chances are that it was usually before a scheduled
test. Most trainees study regular lessons just enough to keep up. But,
if they know they have a big test coming up, they really study. A test
is a great motivator that pushes them to study.
You can schedule a test at
intervals partly to get trainees to review the material covered up to
that point.
Test to
assign progress scores, grades, licenses, and certification.
Finally, tests are given to assign scores or grades. That’s a
fact of life. But, you need to plan your tests carefully to make sure
that every test is a fair way to assign grades. And, for licensing and
certification of skills, testing becomes much more important.
Excerpt from “Student
Course Book: Train the Trainer” published by Thomson Delmar Learning
Top
Supreme Court Opens U.S. Borders to Mexican Trucks, Inspection Program Still Needed
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled
unanimously by a vote of 9-0 on June 7, 2004 that the Bush administration
can open the border to Mexican trucks without first completing an extensive
environmental impact study. The ruling ends a challenge from the consumer
group Public Citizen, the Teamsters union and others who had sued on
safety and environmental grounds. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the
decision, which reversed the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision
against the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and
remanded the case to the lower court for further proceedings. U.S. Transportation
Secretary Mineta issued a statement that the ruling “means more
opportunities for American companies, more jobs for American drivers
and better deals for American consumers.” The Bush administration
hailed the ruling as a key victory for the North American Free Trade
Agreement (NAFTA). “The president has been committed to opening
the border in a way that ensures safety and helps American workers.
And we’re pleased that with today’s decision, this can now
go forward,” White House spokeswoman Claire Buchan said.
However, it should be noted
that before Mexican trucks begin navigating the U.S. highways, negotiators
from both nations must agree on a safety audit and inspection program
for the long-haul operators, said U.S. DOT spokesman Brian Turmail.
U.S. DOT officials said it would take as long as a few months to establish
an inspection program to ensure that vehicles entering the United States
meet federal safety standards. “We’ll move as quickly as
possible,” Turmail said.
Mexican trucks have been
banned from all U.S. roads outside a 20-mile commercial border zone
since 1982. NAFTA, which was jointly signed in 1993 by the United States,
Mexico and Canada, allowed Mexican trucks and buses full access to U.S.
roads beginning in the year 2000. However, the Clinton administration
balked at lifting the rules that prohibited Mexican trucks from operating
north of the border, citing safety and environmental concerns.
As many as 34,000 Mexican
trucks will operate within the United States once the policy takes effect,
the government estimates. In addition, there are currently 500,000 trucking
companies operating in the U.S., compared with approximately 7,800 in
Mexico. TCA will keep you posted on future developments with this issue.
Top
Prior Notification Required for Food Products Imported by Truck
The U.S. Customs and Border
Protection (CBP) Commissioner Robert Bonner announced last week the
implementation of the third phase of the Bioterrorism Act of 2002. Phase
III requires that the CBP and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
receive prior notice of all food for humans and animals imported or
offered for import into the United States, which went into effect on
June 4, 2004. The CBP said that the failure to provide prior notice
would result in the merchandise being refused entry. Under the Bioterrorism
Act provisions, food products shipped by truck are required to file
two hours prior notification (four hours for rail and air, and eight
hours for sea). “Since the Bioterrorism Act took effect on December
12, 2003, we have worked closely with the FDA to educate affected people
and companies about the new requirements. While we will continue to
educate, we will now begin enforcement so that we can better protect
the food that is on the table of every American household,” Commissioner
Bonner said.
The CBP said Phase III implementation
would hold goods, which have not given prior notification at the port
of entry or at an FDA-registered secure facility. The motor carrier
will have the opportunity to voluntarily export the items if compliance
with the Bioterrorism Act cannot be accomplished in a timely manner,
or at all, the agency said. The exception to this is for transportation
and exportation entries, which require that prior notice be filed at
the port of arrival before movement can be authorized, according to
the CBP.
The CBP noted that prior
to June 4, the FDA and CBP have made numerous presentations to foreign
government officials and domestic and foreign industry members. This
included live satellite broadcasts, videoconferences around the world,
and a large distribution of outreach materials, all of which described
the rules and the plan to enforce them. For more information about this
issue and the Bioterrorism Act of 2002, go to http://www.fda.gov.
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