Bubble Sheet Blues

How would you like to repeat the whole grade if you flunked one test in school?

That was the terrifying reality facing third graders in Florida. 8th grader Luke Collins is outraged when he discovers that 43,000 third graders failed the FCAT the first year. 

The worst part of all? 

Most of those kids were recent immigrants or English-as-a-second-language speakers, who knew they had no hope of passing.

Luke doesn't set out to expose this giant scam. He is just being his usual lazy self, trying to find a topic for his English paper that won't take much work. But once Luke starts researching the FCAT, he becomes engaged in school for the first time ever.

With the help of his friends, Gabe and Claire, Luke discovers that the test not only punishes immigrants but also enriches the test company, burdens teachers with busywork, and distracts students from critical, thoughtful learning. What happens next makes for an ending that surprises everyone, including Luke.

Written with irony and humor, former teacher William Durbin captures the reality of middle school. According to Mary Ann Grossman, Book Editor of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Bubble Sheet Blues is "funny and timely" and "Luke's eighth-grade voice is spot on, serious when he's talking about his research but also funny in dialogue with his friends. Although this story is being marketed for young adults, every adult with an interest in education should read it, too."