[CAUT] Retesting (Diane)

[Israel Stein]

Date: Wed, 28 Jul 2010 11:32:56 -0700 From: Diane Hofstetter 
<dianepianotuner at msn.com> wrote;
>  
> I think Ed said it all:
>  
> "My interest at this time is that we generate as many creative visions as possible."
>
>
> His earlier email, where he suggested ways of giving the tests, that we can just barely imagine, was exciting for its possibilities-- and seemingly overwhelming for those who are trapped in the nitty-gritty of administering the already complex exam process.
>  
> CEU's don't need to be so complex.  They are "continuing education" not the same as the education it took to achieve RPT status.  My continuing education units are further education in the field, my education and skills to earn my license are practiced daily and are not retested, unless I go for a license in another state.
>  
> The suggestion of an exam written to test one's comprehension of the Five Lectures is a perfect example of a valid CEU opportunity. 
>  
>  There are test centers all over the US.  They are usually in community colleges or libraries.  The organization requiring testing contracts with the test centers for its members to go there and take a supervised test.  It cost me $15 to take one of my distance learning exams.  I took it online at the college test center two miles from my home.  Other weekly tests I was able to take online from home.
>  
> A PTG meeting, or a couple of hours before the meeting, could be an opportunity to have supervised tests. 
Diane,

You have touched on an idea that I was trying to find a way of 
introducing. Certifying agencies typically do not engage in educational 
activities and do not generate the material to be studied. Its the PTG's 
bane that it tries to do everything using its own volunteer resources - 
rather than using what is already out there, or the skills of those who 
do this sort of thing professionally. Most of what you say above is 
doable - if the PTG, instead of trying to be the teacher/tester/resource 
creator and motivator all rolled into one starts researching and using 
outside resources. Just as an example, we have been talking about an 
on-line Written Exam for years - but we have gotten nowhere, because all 
initiatives were based on in-house volunteer efforts. I have been for 
years trying to convince the powers-that-be to simply research what is 
available out there on the commercial testing software market, and then 
contract with a testing outfit - or buy an on-line testing software 
package. They still think that they can just write a bunch of questions 
and then get someone in-house (or someone's 16-year-old kid) to write 
the software.

As I wrote to Ed much earlier in this discussion - all kinds of things 
are possible if the PTG would be willing to come up with the money it 
would take to pay the people who do this for a living (and find the 
financing source) - and have the PTG volunteers concentrate on the piano 
end of the matters. Because if we depend on our volunteers to create all 
this in their copious spare time, we will still be debugging the systems 
by the time our children retire. What we need to do is research the 
possibilities of using outside resources for most of this - both for 
efficiency and effectiveness sake, and to avoid all the 
restraint-of-trade issues that come with us wearing multiple hats. And 
then start working out the details.

Israel Stein