How Proficiency Tests Fall Short (Let Me Count the Ways)

Fourth grade with Mrs. Voyer: I was one of her 48 students in a combined 4th/5th grade class. An ambidextrous teacher, Mrs. Voyer taught one grade aloud while the rest of us were working on seatwork that kept both our minds and fingers occupied.

One day, during indoor recess, Mrs. Voyer called me to her desk. Without fanfare or accolades, she told me something in a voice as soft as a pillow.

"James," she said, "I'm changing your seat to the middle row. That way, you'll be able to hear the lessons that I'm teaching the 5th graders. I think you'll...