AJC.com > Blogs > Get Schooled > Archives > 2008 > October > 15
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Can you speak educationese?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A spokesperson for a researcher called me the other day to discuss a new study about children who are “behaviorally challenged.”
That’s right, kids who get in trouble and are expelled don’t misbehave, they’re just behaviorally challenged.
Spend time in schools and you hear educators use strange phrases. Kids don’t take tests; they’re assessed. School cops are called school resource officers.
And let’s not forget about the acronyms. Your kids take the CRCT, ITBS, GHSGT and EOCT. NAEP stands for the National Assessment of Educational Progress, not the back of someone’s neck.
What jargon annoys you?
Why do you think educators speak this way? Are they just regurgitating what others say? Are they talking down to parents?
To be fair, I know I and other reporters sometimes use jargon in our stories. What jargon should we stop using and what do you want us to define?
