What is the answer to this question?


Phil has a summer reading list of 12 books.
If he has to read three books, how many different sets of books can he choose to read?


ummmm....

Is this a combination or a permutation?

I think it's a combination.

I mention combinations, because combinations aren't in Christopher's textbook.

Ms. K covered combinations in class, but Christopher forgot to tell me, and of course there was no review sheet, because why would there be a review sheet when you've covered 18 or 19 or 20 brand-new topics in probability, some of which aren't in the book, in 2 weeks' time and now you're going to give a test?

Maybe there was something on edline.

If so, it's not there now.

So I had no idea combinations were going to be on the test, so I didn't teach myself combinations and thus couldn't reteach combinations to Christopher & assign practice problems, etc., etc.

So he missed the combination problems.....

....also, there seems to be a new mystery concerning POINTS OFF for crossing out incorrect work on your test paper.

Christopher is under the impression that Ms. K. has told them she has to take POINTS OFF for any crossed-out incorrect work, because the state tests don't allow you to cross out incorrect work.

So: POINTS OFF.

In the middle of chewing that one over (POINTS OFF! FOR FAILING TO OBSERVE MANDATORY STATE TEST STYLE AND USAGE REQUIREMENTS! I'M PRETTY SURE I'M AGAINST IT!) I was seized by an impulse to check.

What are our mandatory state test syle and usage requirements, anyway?

[pause]

As far as I can tell, there aren't any:

Mathematics Scoring Policies, Grades 3–8

Listed below are the policies to be followed while scoring the Mathematics Tests for all grades.

1. If the question does not specifically direct students to show their work, teachers may not score any work that the student shows.

2. If a student does the work in other than a designated “Show your work” area, that work may still be scored. (Additional paper is an allowable accommodation for a student with disabilities if indicated on the student’s IEP or 504 Plan.)

3. If the question requires students to show their work, and a student shows appropriate work and clearly identifies a correct answer but fails to write that answer in the answer blank, the student should still receive full credit.

4. If the question requires students to show their work, and a student shows appropriate work and arrives at the correct answer but writes an incorrect answer in the answer blank, the student may not receive full credit.

5. If the student provides one legible response (and one response only), teachers should score the response, even if it has been crossed out.

6. If the student has written more than one response but has crossed some out, teachers should score only the response that has not been crossed out.

7. For questions in which students use a trial-and-error (guess-and-check) process, evidence of three rounds of trial-and-error must be present for the student to receive credit for the process. Trial-and-error items are not subject to Scoring Policy #6, since crossing out is part of the trial-and-error process.

8. If a response shows repeated occurrences of the same conceptual error within a question, the student should not be penalized more than once.

9. In questions that provide ruled lines for the students to write an explanation of their work, mathematical work shown elsewhere on the page may be considered and scored if, and only if, the student explicitly points to the work as part of the answer.

10. Responses containing a conceptual error may not receive more than fifty percent of the maximum score.

11. In all questions that provide a response space for one numerical answer and require work to be shown, if the correct numerical answer is provided but no work is shown, the score is 1.

12. In all questions that provide response spaces for two numerical answers and require work to be shown for both parts, if one correct numerical answer is provided but no work is shown in either part, the score is 0. If two correct numerical answers are provided but no work is shown in either part, the score is 1.

13. In all 3-point questions that provide response spaces for two numerical answers and require work to be shown in one part, if two correct numerical answers are provided but no work is shown, the score is 2.

Introduction to the Grades 3 –8 Testing Program in English Language Arts and Mathematics (pdf file)