Schools Outside of Us/passing Wasl

Frankly, the experience of living and going to school in another country seems to be too profound (and educational)an opportunity for a young child not too miss. The challenge of going to school in another language will probably make the experience pretty challenging even if the material is not.

Find out what the math and reading curriculum would be if he were in 3rd grade in the US and use that to gauge if he's meeting the benchmarks in the Mexican school. If not, go ahead and supplement the curriculum yourself by making sure he's reading books at or above his grade level. Talk with him about what he's reading. Take some age-appropriate math games so you know he's getting the fuctions that he'll need to know.

The WASL isn't required for graduation until high school. A lot of schools "teach to the test" so once you came back to the US he would probably be well prepared to take the WASL.

Personally, I wouldn't dream of passing up the cultural experience of living in another country. Not because of a standardized test anyway. Your children are very fortunate.

Good luck with your decision (and good luck on working things out with their dad!)

Wow...this is so sad to me. You have the opportunity to take your children for such an enriching experience and you are worried about the WASL...it has become such a burden on so many.

I am a teacher (8th grade) and the WASL was intended to track that teachers were teaching to the standards, but with NCLB those standards have become a nightmare for some.

I would not hesitate helping my child become fluent in reading and writing Spanish in addition to English! As for the WASL, OSPI has online resources and you can give your child practice tests at home from the released items, so it won't be that much of a shock when they get back.

The hardest part children seem to face on the WASL is the math section and that is ever changing. Keep yourself informed by looking at the released items...as for being behind, students take the WASL EVERY YEAR, so deficencies will be caught well before high school graduation requirements.

What a wonderful opportunity for your family!! WASL is now given in every grade from 3rd thru the 8th and then again in the 10th grade. If you moved Oregon or Idaho, your son would miss out on the 3rd grade WASL, so moving out of country is not a problem. The WASL is meant to evaluate how well your son is learning and how well teachers are teaching. You can get a copy of the "GLE's", grade level expectations for each grade. Get the ones for the 3rd and 4th grade and augment at home any studies that might be needed to keep him 'on track'. Having a study table where Mom is doing her homework and your son can join you to do his is a great thing. He can model his study habits after your's. Awesome!!!

I chose to read a couple of the other responses and am in cmplete agreement - the opportunity to experience a compltely different lifesyle completely outweighs the importance of the WASL. Go to Mexico! Explore, learn, and enrich your and your children's lives. This is an opportunity not many have.

Hello J.,
By all means go to Mexico. Your children will have the chance to learn Spanish which is a huge, HUGE edge in this modern world.
Being bi-lingual is so good for brain development.
I tutored in a school that was all english and a girl (3rd grader) from Eastern Europe started in the middle of the year. She picked up language so rapidly. She went from zero understanding to comfort in a few months.
Your third grader is way ahead and will be fluent in no time.
Light and Love,
C.
P.S. If you are still concerned about the WASL, maybe they can provide you with materials to work on with your kids?

I agree that the WASL is a minor consideration and that the positives of a few years abroad far outweigh any testing issues. But moving your kids right when they are learning to read is not without consequences.

My niece lived abroad from K to 2nd and her attitude to reading in English was negatively impacted. Although she caught up within a year after they came back, she changed from a kid who loved books to a kid who said "I'm not good at reading," and "I don't like reading" because it became such an effort. This attitude has never changed, even years later.

Of course every kid is different, and learning Spanish at a young age is a huge plus. If you do it though, I would engage an English tutor in Mexico to help both kids keep up in English reading. Otherwise, just as they have finally caught up in their Mexican school, you're going to move back and make them catch up all over again in their US school.