Well, I found the answer; I don't know if she's right or wrong;
but Carol Dweck's "Mindset" idea seems to be the driving force
behind this.* She is an academic researcher - and her notion is
that "grit and tenacity" are better indicators of success; and
she has the idea that we have to move away from a mindset of "I
have talent" to "I don't have talent, but I can grow if I work
hard." So - these ways of teaching and testing are designed to
promote failure;* fail, rebuild, fail, rebuild, fail, rebuild,
fail, rebuild, until at the end - theoretically - you end up
with a student who believes that hard work is more important
than talent. SEEMS good; and I really really really hope the
research on this is STRONG because: this method (very similar to
the method that the Military uses to break down and rebuild
Soldiers) - discourages those who seem to have an aptitude, say,
for mathematics; and keeps them from trusting in their own
abilities; encourages them to expect failure, but then feel they
have the ability, through hard work, to "make it". I sure hope
she's right; it's an experiment that's being performed on
millions of kids right now; and a WHOLE LOT MORE next year. I
just worry about nervous breakdowns; I know people who went
through bootcamp in the army and were sent out because the
"break down/ rebuild" really cracked them... badly.* I have a
fear that the ones who have an apititude for math will not only
lose their confidence (which the stepwise program is DESIGNED to
do) - but will never fully recover from it. I hope it works; now
that I see the way of thinking behind it.. I'm a little nervous.
