Thursday Thirteen #44

Thirteen Things Susan Thinks About "The TEST"... and High Stakes Testing in General

WARNING: This is MY Soap Box...so it may get a little lengthy....

1. Tests themselves are not "bad". They measure what kids know and can do. They also give educators very important information about what they have (or have not) taught. It's an opportunity for teachers to know if they are teaching and kids are learning.

2. HOWEVER, what is happening in "most" states with the "TEST" is really hard. In some cases these tests determine whether a child will "pass" a grade level or not. In my state, they could keep you in third grade for THREE years. (In all fairness, they say there are other ways to prove proficiency for third graders.....but they are just as rigorous and pretty much impossible to achieve.)

3. In some states they are tied directly to performance pay for "SOME" teachers. This means that teachers are becoming more and more competitive with each other over these tests.

4. Teachers of those students who struggle the most will not end up staying in those places where they are needed the most when growth on a test determines your effectiveness and pay.

5. There are a plethora of them in most states. Some kids take up to two weeks worth of tests. In Elementary particularly this is TOO MUCH! They ARE kids!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

6. Even though the data reports indicate that on any given day a child would have acheived at a range, the score is hard and fast and the range is not considered for kids who are retained based on the test. In other words, on another day, a child may have been OK and no one would have had a knee jerk reaction and charted his future. But ONE score (not the potential range) is the only thing that is considered and his future is set with no chance for change.

7. Every year we read about teachers who "cheat" or violate test security in some major ways. This is serious business. I don't condone it and I certainly do everything in my power to NOT compromise scores on any child's test. BUT I do "understand" how these people are driven to this point. They really want the kids to do well...and they make a choice that could cost them their job. I am not saying it's a good choice...only that I know the impetus behind it.

8. The depth of testing we do makes people (both teachers and students) CRANKY!

9. When schools are "graded" or "ranked" based on the test, I don't think you really get a fair picture of the school. There are schools in my district that are "A's" and I can tell you there is NO WAY my children would go to them....it really is misleading.

10. I know that No Child Left Behind was implemented with good intentions. But I spend my time working with kids who have been "left behind" because of this law. There are 11 year olds sitting in third grade...they feel "stuck" and "angry".

11. Some teachers spend so much time on test prep that they do not TEACH! In most cases these tests are tightly connected to what we are supposed to teach, but teachers don't trust that.

12. The intensity of it all, can zap the FUN right out of the classroom. I suspect that when we, as adults, look back on our schooling, we don't think about that great worksheet or test we took...instead the memories are made in the FUN. I worry that we are not helping kids love learning and school and fun sometimes.

13. Let me sum my soap box up: Tests, in and of themselves are not "bad" or "wrong"...it's what we DO with them that really BUGS me!!