NYC Councilwoman Margarita Lopez doesn't agree with Mayor Bloomberg's policy on testing third-graders. Unfortunately, in opposing the policy, she ignored the First Rule of Making Public Criticisms, which is to use thy spellchecker and grammar checker:
A City Council member who was blasting the Bloomberg administration's social-promotion policies sent out two press releases containing spelling and grammatical errors.
The first release - sent Tuesday afternoon from the office of Councilwoman Margarita Lopez - asked, "Why is [sic] Mayor Bloomberg and Chancellor Klein ignoring the fact that the test is flawed and discriminatory?"
Lopez's office followed that with a second grammatical snafu.
The second release asked, "Why are advocates targeted for examining testing prodecures [sic] and policies implemented by the Department of Education? Then, an attempt to correct that error, turned into another mistake.
A letter sent out by Lopez's office yesterday morning, corrected the grammar error, but still botched the spelling of "procedures." The word was spelled "proceedures" [sic] the second time around.
Although one of her staffers was actually responsible for the mistakes in the press releases, Lopez offered to take the heat.
"I take total responsibility . . . The member of my office who committed the mistake is going to be protected by me, the same the way that I protect the children of the City of New York," she said.
Unfortunately, Councilwoman Lopez "protects" NYC's children by insisting that these tests discriminate against minorities. How is it protective, as opposed to racist, to insist that kids of certain races just can't be expected to learn to read and answer simple multiple-choice items?
Third-graders in NYC thought yesterday's math exam was a snap:
Free at last, third-graders burst out of Jamaica's PS 117 with smiles Tuesday after weeks of no play and all study for a city math exam that could hold them back from fourth grade.
"Everybody was jumping around saying 'This was so easy' to the teacher," said Parabhjot Kaur of Briarwood. She rattled off an example: "Sixteen divided by four. Four. That's easy."
Now her father will probably have to pay out. "If she got a pass, whatever she says, we can buy," Mohinder Singh said.
With butterflies and prayers, 80,000-plus third-graders survived 45 math questions and last week's English exam, waiting for the June release of scores to determine whether they move on to fourth grade...
Education officials said 98.3 percent of third graders took Tuesday's test, compared to 97.8 last year.
Can't wait 'til the scores come in.
In Milwaukee, a Giant Snail Roundup:
Federal health officials have seized several dangerous pests called Giant African Land Snails from Wisconsin classrooms and have started a national search for the creatures, which reproduce rapidly, destroy plants and can transmit meningitis.
The snails, which are illegal to have in the United States, were used in classrooms by unwitting school officials, said Willie Harris, eastern regional director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Safeguarding, Intervention and Trade Compliance Program...[Officials] are concerned the snails, about the size of a person's hand, could be transported to states with warmer climates, where they can rapidly reproduce and destroy plants...
Five of the snails donated to Nicolet Elementary School in Menasha by a parent were seized after teachers learned they were illegal, said the school's principal, Linda Joosten.
"They were very cool creatures," Joosten said.
There's a rash of school districts in California claiming ignorance of a law requiring that their graduates not be ignorant of algebra:
Since the State Board of Education granted Santa Cruz a waiver earlier this year exempting it from the law requiring high school students to complete one year of algebra, about 200 other districts statewide have scrambled to make the same request. The fate of about 13,000 students, or 4% of the state's senior class, was at stake...
Some of the other 200 districts that have since sought waivers have claimed ignorance of the law, like Santa Cruz, while others say low-performing students who struggle with algebra's abstract concepts deserve to be excused.
The state board has reluctantly agreed to approve the waivers this year and has ruled out future blanket approvals. Regardless, the rash of requests for exemptions has frustrated lawmakers and education officials who see the math requirement as vital to raising educational standards in California.
"I wonder what they all would have done if Santa Cruz, a district that completely failed in its obligation to its kids, hadn't cleared the way," said state Sen. Charles Poochigian (R-Fresno), who wrote the law requiring algebra. "It's really shameful."
Nice to see that Senator Poochigian doesn't mince words (with a last name like that, he was probably forced pretty early to learn toughness). It's true the law does not exempt anyone from taking algebra, and some educators are concerned about the special education students. The lines appear to be drawn against those claiming compassion, and those claiming that high standards will help everyone do better:
Poochigian and his supporters argue that the law is vital to raising the state's educational standards, to closing performance gaps between minority students and their white peers and to preparing students for college and the workplace...
But many of the 200 districts seeking waivers knew about the law and tried to expand their math programs to teach algebra to the relatively small number of students who weren't already on pace to fulfill or exceed the new requirement. They developed slower-paced classes that spanned two years, reduced class sizes and increased tutoring while letting their students know that their diplomas hung in the balance.
Nonetheless, at the start of the school year, teachers and administrators were still confronted with a core of seniors who had yet to pass algebra...
Poochigian accused critics of the law of exploiting special-education students and "using them as a rationale to undermine the drive to raise overall standards because they are either incapable or oblivious."
But some teachers and local school officials questioned the idea that all students are able, or need, to pass algebra.
I have an earlier post on the topic here.
Wisconsin is the first state to enact a new testing law, and it's just as controversial as testing of the 3 R's:
Wisconsin has enacted what appears to be the nation’s first law requiring students to be tested for HIV if teachers or other school employees can prove they were significantly exposed to the students’ blood while on the job.
The law, which critics view as an unwarranted intrusion on privacy, gives employees of Wisconsin public and private schools the same rights as emergency personnel, medical workers, correctional officers, and group-home workers to require blood tests under comparable circumstances.
Is this a "sensible protection for the men and women who are responsible for educating" young Wisconsinites, as a spokesman for Gov. James E. Doyle says? Or is it "a safety net full of holes," as the spokewoman for an AIDS education groups claims? The state's teachers' union supports the measure, which has the following requirements:
First, [the teacher] must prove that they had taken precautions to the extent possible, such as using protective gloves or eyewear, against exposure at the time of the contact. They must also produce a letter from a physician stating that they were significantly exposed, and must submit to an HIV test themselves.
I suppose the "precautions" part is so that teachers stop and think before mopping up any blood or body fluids; the one example given in the article, though, was a case in which the blood transfer was unexpected.
Last week, NYC's third-graders took the much-ballyhooed reading test; today, the math test awaited them.
Thousands of third-graders in the Bronx and city were put to the test once again Tuesday, this time in math...
Students must pass both the math and reading exams in order to move onto fourth-grade. It's part of Mayor Bloomberg and the Department of Education's plan to end social promotion. The new policy has divided parents, with some threatening to keep their kids home on the day of testing.
Well, 98.2% of NYC's kids took the reading test, so I doubt any fewer than that will take the math. And what's up with the final sentence of this WABC news article?
It is estimated that 15,000 kids could fail, which is nearly one in five of the city's third graders. In fact, last January, the city's department of education issued letters putting nearly 32,000 students into the "promotions in doubt" category. That uncertainty could continue for months.
The lowest-scoring children will have a second chance after summer school...If they don't pass the second test, they could be forced to repeat the entire grade.
Low scoring kids can move on as long as their teachers can demonstrate that they have tried everything.
"Have tried everything"? What on earth is that supposed to mean? Students who fail both attempts at the exams can appeal the decision in the hopes of being promoted, but this comment suggests that as long as kids try everything, even if they fail, they can pass. I don't think that's what the NYC government has in mind.
Also, third-graders who were recent immigrants and thus exempt from the reading exam still have to take the math exam, which is full of word problems:
The math test will be available in Spanish, Chinese and Haitian Creole, but schools are often on their own in finding oral translators for Bengali, Urdu, Korean and dozens of other languages spoken by public school students.
Educators and children's advocates say it's hard enough finding one translator who can stand by a student to read a math problem, much less translators for all the students who need them, especially when schools don't have funds for the service...
Several children and immigrants groups have been discussing suing the city if they find Chancellor Joel Klein's third-grade retention policy discriminates against immigrants.
While the definition of "discriminates" is most likely being defined rather loosely here, the critics have a point. There's no reason on earth to load up a crucial math exam for third-graders with word problems, when even the smartest kids are still working on learning to read well. Word problems can be great for measuring how well an examinee knows when and how to apply mathematical rules, but the assumption is that all examinees are on a level playing field when it comes to actually reading the words in the problems. The city would have a better leg to stand on if the math exam wasn't measuring both reading and math skills.
Here's last year's grade 4 exam. As far as word problems go, these aren't too bad. They're not too wordy, and they're pretty direct. But an argument could be made for having most of the test resemble questions 1, 2, and 3, as opposed to all the word and graphical problems that follow.
Teaching is not a "thankless job" for ReformK12's readers, one of whom sent in a nice thank-you from a parent after handing out an "F":
I was in the middle of an activity with my students when the school's guidance counselor approached me. With a very serious face, said he had a parent who wanted to speak with me, and would I be willing to spend a few minutes with her while he watched my class?
Not a problem. I went to his office, and found a glowing parent, who profusely thanked me for all that I'd done for her daughter, who would be graduating at the end of this school year.
She was especially grateful for one little thing I did.
See, I'd given her daughter an F for the third quarter, and her mother couldn't be more tickled.
What this failing grade had done was give her daughter a well-needed kick in the pants. She'd done a mediocre performance the first two quarters, but this failing third quarter grade gave her the sobering thought that she might fail the entire course.
The student in question had actually turned her attitude around before her mother's visit, but the teacher should be commended for giving the student the grade she deserved. Kudos also goes to the mom for worrying more about her daughter's achievements than her "self-esteem."
Update: And kudos to Jay Mathews of the WaPo (with whom N2P readers should be very familiar), who can't imagine why kids are expected to stagger under the weight of high stakes tests when kids are given grades, tests, and homework every day in school. He also cites research which suggests that students do best in the classrooms that have the toughest standards:
What was most important in the differences between hard and easy graders was the improvement shown by their students. Students in classrooms where higher standards were enforced showed significantly greater test score gains than those in classrooms where A's were handed out like candy samples at your local multi-screen theater...
Also, high-achieving students exposed to tougher grading standards showed even more improvement if the achievement level of their classroom, on average, was relatively low. The same additional improvement was seen in low-achieving students assigned to tougher grading teachers whose students had an overall achievement level that was relatively high.
Thanks to Devoted Reader Mary C. for sending this in.
You're going to think this is a joke, but it's not. The scheduled speaker for this year's commencement at Villanova University is...Big Bird:
Villanova University seniors, who spent up to $112,000 on tuition in their four years, are underwhelmed by news the actor who plays Big Bird will be this year's commencement speaker.
Caroll Spinney, who has portrayed the tall yellow-feathered bird for more than 30 years on "Sesame Street," will address the class on May 16.
"Everyone I've talked to says it's crazy," said senior Joe Mordini, a columnist for the Villanovan, the student newspaper.
"I also think there are other people who also embody truth and loyalty and love and other values of the university without also being iconic to the pre-school class," Mordini said.
Spinney, who published a book last year called "The Wisdom of Big Bird," has a positive message for students – and won't show up in costume – school officials say.
Why not? That's what Spinney's fame rests upon. If Big Bird's on the cover of the book, why isn't he good enough to receive an honorary degree in costume? Gee, you'd think students like Mordini would be more welcoming of someone who helped teach them the alphabet in the first place *giggle*.
Fark's headline is great: "Cost of 4 years at Villanova: $112,000. Watching students get peeved when they hear Big Bird is their commencement speaker: Priceless"
Update: Recent Villanova graduate George H. gives me what-for and says that Carol Spinney did just fine...better than most commencement speakers, in fact:
I am a Villanova senior who graduated, Spinney did fine, he was short and sweet with no more than 8-10 minutes of talking. He was greeted with resounding applause, and I believe left with a standing ovation. He had a couple jokes and will be remembered. Thank god we had him and not some a**hole who would preach to us about what we are "required" to do with our lives because we are so lucky to have graduated.
In regards to your quote, "Villanova University seniors, who spent up to $112,000 on tuition in their four years, are underwhelmed by news the actor who plays Big Bird will be this year's commencement speaker", last time I checked, I paid $100,000 for a COLLEGE EDUCATION. To everyone who relied on that argument, where was the reply with a better speaker recomended? I noticed in your article you did not once offer a better solution, just an empty complaint. Also, anyone can go to a commencement speech, they didnt charge the $100,000 ticket price at the gate, it was free to enter and free to leave.
If you really want to complain about something, at least choose something good, like the "news" of articles in the Villanovan.
Sounds like George's Villanova funds were put to good use; you wouldn't believe the number of emails and comments I get from high school and college students that are vulgar, illiterate, insulting, and just plain scary. George, I now nominate you for the official role of N2P correspondent in Villanova. If there are news reports from there I should be covering, you let me know.
Delaware is aiming for a three-tiered diploma system that is dependent on standardized test scores. The highest diploma is "distinguished," the next "standard," and "basic" takes the bronze (literally). The standard opposition immediately surfaced; as Joanne Jacobs notes, testing critics want to "kill the messenger":
Fifty years after the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed school segregation, Delaware is poised to give three-quarters of its black, Hispanic and low-income high school graduates the lowest of the state's three new diplomas.
They are slated to receive "basic" diplomas while the majority of white and more affluent graduates are getting "standard" or "distinguished" diplomas under the state's three-tiered diploma system.
"Though physically they are integrated, it's a public policy that's been put in place to resegregate our schools. That's the effect of this new policy," Wilmington City Councilman Theo K. Gregory said.
"It sorts them to the bottom again," said Melva Ware, a specialist in urban education at the Delaware Center for Teacher Education at the University of Delaware.
I suppose it would be rude to point out to Ms. Ware that it is the student's ability, not an outside force, that "sorts them to the bottom." This Scarecrow-like belief that is is the diploma itself, and not the ability behind it, that opens doors for students is seen time and time again. When 75% of Delaware's minority students are expected to bottom out on the state standardized exam, why can't those who allegedly speak for those minorities focus on why that might be, rather than rushing to ensure that those students receive diplomas that might be meaningless?
It's all about self-esteem, I suppose:
"Eventually, with a good study, they will find it furthers the aura of separation of these kids when, ultimately, you want them to feel that they are just as good as their counterparts," said Hector Figueroa, education director for the Urban League.
As Joanne points out, "They're not just as good, of course. Not in reading, writing and math." And Delaware teacher Dave Huber has plenty to say (his comments are in bold, the article he references in italics):
Didn't you just know the 'ol self-esteem motive would be brought into this sooner or later?
The diploma disparities are stark. And they raise troubling issues for a state that imposed some of the highest academic standards in the nation on its schools but, given the numbers, has apparently failed to educate many minority and low-income students well enough to meet those standards.
What about troubling issues like poor home life? No discipline? No father around? Total apathy and disdain for education? Don't dare bring these up, of course, or be included in the crowd exemplified by Wilmington Councilman Theo Gregory:
Gregory, the Wilmington councilman, is less forgiving. He said that lingering racism in the schools has made black children victims of integration. They sense they are not wanted, and it hampers them academically, he said. Not only are steps not being taken to include them, steps are being taken to exclude them."
I cannot adequately express how utterly ridiculous and wrong-headed this sentiment is. I've been teaching in these schools for 13 years now, and was educated in the very same schools. If anything, New Castle County teachers go out of their way for minority students moreso than white students, looking to advance them into higher level classes, counseling them, and even overlooking misbehavior more often (and make no mistake -- black students are guilty of misbehavior much more often than their white counterparts -- I suppose Gregory would blame this on "lingering racism," too).
[State School Board member Claibourne D.] Smith and others criticize Delaware for not doing more to get certified math teachers in every middle school math class. They say that black, Hispanic and low-income students often get unqualified teachers, in part because of low expectations for such students.
Like Gregory, Smith is clueless. Every middle school in Delaware I know of operates on a "team" system where the four core subject area teachers share the same group of students. In this system, the math teacher (as well as each core subject teacher) teaches the honors students, the grade-level students, and the below grade-level students. There is no unqualified teacher "reserved" for the low-achieving students!
Personally, I agree with Joanne that giving some students "basic" diplomas is not unfair - but failing to give those students the skills they need, regardless of diploma status, is (and some quoted in the article, like Senator Sokola, get it right). How the critics, though, can natter over the unfairness of the color of a sticker on the diploma, while ignoring the opportunity for an honest discussion about the achievement gap, amazes me.
I mean, would you want THIS guy in charge of educating and motivating your kid?
Robert Andrzejewski, head of the Red Clay school district, said the system will not motivate students as legislators insisted it would.
"One of the worst things you can do to kids with low self-esteem, who are often of low-income anyway, is show them failure," he said. "So many of those students have experienced failure in their lives and there comes a point when they decide they have to save face for themselves, and, unfortunately, that may mean they drop out."
The only way to avoid showing kids failure is to not challenge them at all.
I was in a data cocoon all last week, so I missed the big story: the "make-or-break" reading exams for NYC's third-graders were given on Tuesday the 20th (the math exams will be administered tomorrow). Unsurprisingly, the New York Times ran a lengthy story that depicted every parent as worried about the exams, and practically every student as terrified to the point of physical illness. You mean there isn't a single parent out there worth quoting who supports the exam? Gee, no bias there! (The Daily News, on the other hand, led off the first post-test article with a quote from a confident student).
Interestingly, there's already a big flap about the re-use of items on the exam:
The city's test-maker yesterday defended its practice of repeating questions on its exams from year to year - making the program more susceptible to the type of security breaches that occurred on Tuesday's high-stakes reading test - because it's cheaper than designing a whole new exam...
...a scandal erupted this week after it was discovered that students at a handful of schools got an advance look at questions and answers on Tuesday's reading exam.
It turns out that school staffers with copies of last year's exam gave the questions to the students during practice sessions. Some of the questions reappeared on Tuesday's test, giving the students an unfair advantage.
Stirring the controversy even more, this is the first year where the third-grade test results will largely determine whether a student gets promoted.
The test developers have defended the anchor items (which are indeed common in this type of exam), but it's easy to see why the critics insist some kids might have an advantage. There are legitimate reasons to re-use test items - the anchor items allow for comparison of cohorts from year to year - but when items are re-used, it's crucial to keep the old test forms secure. So principals have been ordered to confess if they let students see copies of old exams, and in a bit of bizarre humor, the makeup exams for students who missed the test were cancelled after one TV station ran a close-up of the test at the behest of testing critics:
Close-up images of the third-grade test booklet were shown yesterday on NY1 News, the news cable station, and possibly on other local stations, as part of a news conference held by critics of standardized testing, who have been among the most vocal opponents of the mayor's tough promotion rules.
At the news conference, the testing critics complained that at least three full reading comprehension passages and at least a dozen questions on this year's third-grade reading test were identical to last year's exam. They said that many schools had used last year's exam for practice purposes, giving some students an unfair advantage.
Although some parents had said they would keep their children home in protest against the test, the vast majority of the city's 76,000 third graders took the exam on Tuesday. City officials said 98.2 percent of third-graders attended school that day.
Still, officials said that showing parts of the test on television was enough of a security breach to require them to cancel makeup exams that would have been given this week or next Monday and that students would have to wait until after next Tuesday's math test for a special makeup version of the reading test.
The city might sue, claiming copyright infringement. As for those critics, Josh Plotnik of the Cornell Sun - no fan of standardized tests - is having none of their claims:
I've never been a particular fan of standardized tests of any kind. Even as a soon-to-be graduate student, I've never done exceptionally well on the SATs or the GREs -- I'm pretty confident that a NYC third grader could surpass my first GRE verbal score. Standardized exams test irrelevant information, attempt to deceive you, and force you to be so scared of never succeeding in life that you dread taking any exam at all. And yet, I find myself adamantly supporting Bloomberg's new "hold back" policy.
If I can't correctly pair a ridiculously ill used word with its antonym, I may still become a good doctor or professor or President of the United States. But if I can't read, then how successful could I possibly become? Elementary school teachers are bound to be somewhat biased in their grading, and so a uniform test of reading skills seems necessary and appropriate.
The NYC third grade English exam was created to test third grade reading skills, not to trick third graders into abandoning their career goals.
Plotnik then reports that City Councilman Charles Barron "claimed the reading exam favored white children, and that the entire test was racist." Because we can't expect black children to know how to read and answer test items? Why not? I can't think of anything but racism that would explain such a willingness to excuse any poor test scores on the part of minority students. Much better to continue to allow their schools to continue failing them, I suppose.
All this, and there aren't even any reading scores yet. Sheesh.
Tennessee's first scholarship lottery will begin this fall, but some odd arguments are being made about the scholarship's requirements:
Current law says high school students with either a 3.0 grade point average or a 19 score on the ACT college entrance exam qualify for one of the lottery scholarships, which range from $1,500 to $4,000 a year.
The first version of the lottery scholarship bill that passed last year required both a 3.0 GPA and a 19 on the ACT, with the standardized test score intended as protection against grade inflation. But the standard was changed in the last days of negotiations to an either/or proposition.
The discussion at the time was that the state should avoid erecting too high a barrier to earning a scholarship. But the 19 ACT standard may open the door for thousands of students whose readiness for college is questionable. According to a study by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, "many of these students may require remedial and developmental instruction."
Sen. Steve Cohen, who fought for nearly 20 years to get the lottery approved by the voters, said last week he thinks the ACT standard should be eliminated and the scholarships awarded on the basis of GPA only.
I'm confused. The ACT score of 19 (which is, we should note, below both the national average and Tennessee's average) was made optional because it was thought to be "too high" a barrier. Yet Sen. Cohen claims that kids with ACT scores that low will struggle in college. What's going on here?
If the assumption is that anyone with a 3.0 GPA will be prepared for college, then by Sen. Cohen's arguments, we could expect those students to score higher than a 19 on the ACT. The ACT requirement would be useless, but not an impediment; the GPA/ACT requirement would produce the same scholarship pool as the GPA alone. There's no reason to use it, but by the same token, there's no reason not to use it.
That is, unless the state fears a backlash from minorities who have a 3.0 GPA but turf on the ACT, which is what I bet is at the root of both the original change to the either/or and Sen. Cohen's insistence. Sure enough, "adverse impact" gets mentioned later in the article:
Larry Miller, D-Memphis and a member of the Legislative Black Caucus, which met with Cohen over his proposal last week, said the choice puts him "between a rock and a hard place." Legislators have questioned if removing the ACT standard would have a disproportionate impact on black students. According to THEC's figures, it would not. Of the students predicted to be eligible under the current standard, 11.5 percent are black; of those predicted to be eligible without it, 12 percent are black.
"My question would be, Who do we adversely impact?" Miller said.
Is that the right question to ask, or should the question be, how does Tennessee give the money to those students who are most qualified to make good use of it? The warning bells were ringing back in December, thanks to Georgia's experience with such lotteries; will Tennessee's governor listen?
And do my Devoted Readers from Tennessee (who were pessimistic back then) have any updated information on this?
Another newspaper articles suggesting that it's finally cool to take Latin:
In Erie and Niagara counties, more students took the Regents Latin exam in 2003 than in either of the previous two years, state data shows...
After several decades of being decidedly out of fashion - and 2,000 years after it was actually spoken - the Latin language is becoming popular again in Western New York and around the country.
Part of that popularity can be chalked up to the fact that savvy students and parents have realized that knowledge of Latin helps boost standardized test scores - including on the SATs, where a grasp of Latin could be the edge that sets a college-bound student apart...
At Nichols School, 129 students - out of 587 total students - take Latin, said Kerry Bennett Fox, junior dean and one of three Latin teachers at the school.
"That's a great percentage," said Fox. "It's just cool to take Latin. It seems like it's just getting bigger and bigger."
Back in January of this year, we saw a similar report (my more Devoted Readers may even remember why Latin seemed like a practical language to me). Apparently, Latin is no longer for the "elite," now that parents are starting to understand it's value (mine certainly didn't). As far as teaching jobs go, Latin teachers can barely get out of their student teaching classrooms before schools come looking for them:
That's what happened to Marissa Valetich in January. Before she had even finished her student teaching, Valetich, 23, a University at Buffalo student, got a phone call from the Sweet Home Central School District. They were desperate for a new Latin teacher to fill a vacancy.
Valetich said yes. The district petitioned the state Education Department for a special variance so it could hire her even though she hadn't finished earning her teaching certification. These days, Valetich teaches about 50 students, ranging from beginners to AP students.
And she confesses to being somewhat old-fashioned in her teaching methods - a bit of a drill sergeant. "This class is very structured," Valetich said with a laugh. "The kids kind of flip out when I say, "You have to have this stuff memorized.' Those old-fashioned drills? I personally like them. And my kids learn those forms."
Thank you, Miss Valeteich, for not "modernizing" your instruction of this beautiful old language.
Cash-strapped New Hampshire will be giving fewer standardized tests this year:
State budget cutbacks mean New Hampshire students will take only two standardized assessment tests this year - reading and math.
Writing, science and social science tests will fall by the wayside for third-, sixth- and 10th-graders because there's not enough money to administer them.
Officials say they are doing the bare minimum to satisfy the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Lawmakers required the Department of Education to use federal No Child Left Behind money for this year's round of tests. When it fell short, tests were dropped.
Is the fact that New Hampshire changes the test from year to year part of the funding problem?
Devoted Reader John L. sent me this tale of "testing goofiness in Oregon." The state's 10th-graders are turfing on the math exam, and the test design might be to blame:
State officials are racing to answer why: Was the test too hard, or did schools fail to teach this class to write clear, mathematically sound answers to elaborate math problems?
Last year, half the state's sophomores passed the problem-solving test. So far this year, 82 percent have failed. Another 20,000 sophomores will take a different problem-solving test starting Monday through mid-May...
The state has given the problem-solving test since the early 1990s, part of a decision to go beyond multiple-choice questions when measuring math skills. Students choose one of three multistep math problems, then write an answer that typically runs a page or two. They must show how they solved the problem and how they checked their work; communication counts as much as the right answer...
Every version of the test gives students a choice of a probability question, a geometry question and an algebra question. This year's winter test gave students the chance to prove themselves figuring the odds in a dice game, the dimensions of a hand-made quilt or the speed and mileage of a daughter and her slow-driving dad. By comparing results from this winter's test with results from a year earlier, state officials have determined there wasn't one particularly difficult question on this year's test, they say. All three questions tripped up more students than last year.
Thanks to this, some in Oregon have become highly critical of perfomance assessment items:
Rob Kremer, a longtime critic of Oregon's test system who ran unsuccessfully for state schools superintendent in 2002, said the wild swing in results proves that the state-developed test is unreliable.
"Faddish assessments such as Oregon's math problem-solving tests are not suited for use as large-scale, high-stakes tests," he said.
I don't know if I'd call problem-solving tests in math "faddish," and such items are not automatically unsuitable for high-stakes testing. When the state's employers claim they need more citizens with solid problem-solving skills, they're right, and one way to test those skills is with this type of item.
But such items are more difficult to develop properly, and they may very well test a narrow area of the domain, making it hard to generalize the results to the overall math construct. What's more, that one item counts the same as the multiple-choice exam, so if none of the three options are appealing, an examinee is at a real disadvantage. There's research to suggest that examinees, when given a choice of topics, don't always do a good job of knowing what they're good at.
My reader wanted to know how the following could be possible:
It's fairly easy for test makers to create a new multiple-choice test that is as difficult as the previous year's test, said Edward Haertel , a Stanford professor who is past president of the National Council on Measurement in Education. But when creating tests that require long answers, it is harder to match the difficulty level from year to year...
Haertel said a statistical adjustment, such as the one Oregon testing officials are considering, may be the best step for the state to take.
Although I don't know for sure what Haertel is suggesting, one possibility is to assume the distribution of examinees this year is similar to last year's, and essentially shift the score scale up to match. That's similar to what is done on large-scale standardized tests like the LSAT, which is why a certain number right out of 101 items can translate to a different scaled score from form to form. Obviously, though, it may be unsafe it is to assume the student ability distribution is the same from year to year; if the quality of teaching declined dramatically, it won't be.
A second possibility is to "borrow information," and examine what the historical correlation is between the MCQ's and the performance-assessment items, and use that to adjust scores. If, in the past, students who did really well on the MCQ's also did well on problem-solving, then you'd expect the same to be true now. If it's not, the PA score can be adjusted. However, oftentimes MCQ's and PA items do not correlate highly (if they did, they could be measuring the same thing, and both types might not be needed).
A third option at this point is to re-weight the test sections, given more weight to the more reliable part, the MCQ's. And then there's the "scorched-earth" option:
The U.S. Department of Education would have to approve any move by the state to cancel the results, which would spare schools the consequences of the poor scores, said Ron Tomalis , counselor to the U.S. secretary of education.
From the Sun-Times comes the news that NCLB may be working as planned in Chicago:
Kids who won highly prized transfers out of failing Chicago public schools averaged much better reading and math gains during the first year in their new schools --just as drafters of the federal No Child Left Behind Law envisioned, an exclusive analysis indicates.
And, contrary to some predictions, moving low-scoring kids to better-performing schools didn't seem to slow the progress of students in those higher-achieving schools...
Some researchers questioned the results, and said further study is needed. But some parents of transfer kids said they didn't need further study to tell them a switch was the right decision for their kids.
"My son has made almost a 360-degree turnaround,'' said Tammie Summerville, whose son, Isaac, now 10, barely paid attention in school and balked at doing homework -- until he won a coveted seat at Dixon Elementary, in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood.
"Now, he enjoys school,'' Summerville said. "I'm happy I switched.''
From The Education Gadfly comes a link to a report by Mass Insight on the "surprising" lack of math phobia in Massachusetts and Washington:
While the survey reported here did not (and could not) probe the public’s real capacity to do math, we found that adult residents of Massachusetts and Washington states have strong, well-formed opinions on math’s strategic importance to the health of their state economies, the rigor of the expectations we should set for high school graduates’ math skills, and the gap currently
separating American high school graduates’ math capacities from those of their counterparts in other countries.
Those opinions being that math skills are important for anyone who wants to succeed in today's technology-driven culture, and that today's public schools aren't doing a great job of teaching those skills. This will come as a surprise only to those educators who hate math and try to downplay its importance (presumably in favor of "self-esteem").
Oh, and it'll be a surprise to the pro-choice group March For Women, who apparently think math and science majors are minority groups. Their link isn't working, so I'll just quote Best of the Web on this:
Check out the very end of the description of "qualifications" for applicants to be interns at that March for Women's Lives, the group that organized a large rally for legal abortion in Washington yesterday:
----------
Undergraduate and graduate feminist women and men in all majors are encouraged to apply. Applicants must be passionate about a woman's right to choose and will have some experience in activism. The March for Women's Lives is committed to diversity and encourages applications from people of color, people from the GLBT community, people with disabilities, and math/science majors.
Won't the pro-life math and science majors be happy to find out that they're considered protected minorities?
GREAT headline on this Yahoo story:"Drink-driving speech has teens dropping 'like flies'". Sounds like speaker Marti Belluschi is really "driving" the point home:
More than a dozen boys at a Roman Catholic high school in Chicago fainted during a speech Thursday in which crash survivor Marti Belluschi described in grisly detail the injuries she suffered in the wreck and the facial reconstruction surgery she required afterwards, the Chicago Tribune reported Friday.
Seven boys who felt faint and queasy were taken to hospital following the incident. "I nearly vomited a few times listening to her," said Danny Bowery, 14, who returned to school after being checked out in hospital.
"Definitely, I got her message."
"They were dropping like flies in the gym," Brother Konrad Diebold, president of St. Patrick High School, told the daily. "I saw one of them throwing up in a bucket."
Well, that's one approach to scare them away from drunk driving, although I'd think it would put them off driving altogether (it certainly would me). My theory is that kids would benefit from having to watch the Cops ("Too Hot for TV!") episodes that features drunk drivers acting particular asinine (and getting slapped with huge fines and jail times). Teenagers may not be afraid of death, but they're petrified of public humilation, and if they were warned that getting pulled over while drunk might result in their being filmed and laughed at, or were made aware of how stupid and pathetic drunks appear, that might have an effect.
Apologies for the non-blogging. I've been spending my week perfecting code and wrestling with SQL data tables, and the results, while not pretty, are serviceable (much like my appearance, after a week of staring at the computer and downing more caffeine than usual). I'm not sure when I'll be able to resume blogging; possibly this afternoon, possibly this weekend.
But while I'm here, I just have to point you towards this surreal blend of zero-tolerance policies, disciplinary issues, and allergy alarms. Who knew Nutter Butters could be considered weapons of mass destruction?
And I also have to admit that not all my time has been spent writing code; some of it has been spent on the Orsinal website, which hosts a multitude of addictive Flash-based games. This one is the most addictive. I can't really enjoy this one, though; I spend too much time as it is in real life thwacking cats to make them move or sit still.
South Carolina is implementing a new, tougher exit exam:
An estimated 45,000 sophomores at public schools across the state will take High School Assessment Program tests over three days, beginning Tuesday...All students in their second year of high school will take the new tests. The results will go on individual transcripts and also play a key role in school ratings.
Unlike the old pass-fail exam it replaces, the new test has a four-tier grading system. A student must get a “Level 2” score or higher to satisfy a state graduation requirement.
Students will be allowed four retakes - not a crazily large number, I suppose. The new test is untimed. And hey, they got students at my alma mater to comment:
College-bound students at Lexington High School say the new test — they took practice versions of it a year ago — is more challenging, but not overwhelmingly difficult. "On the old test, you could guess and get answers right," said Robby Meldau. "Your weaknesses can be exposed by the new test"...
An experimental version, or "field test," was administered to sophomores a year ago, but individual results were not recorded. The state Education Department used that test to gauge its effectiveness and fairness.
Lexington High junior Jennifer Fomby said she thinks the state succeeded. The test “asked good questions that made you think,” she said. Harrison Burns, also a junior, said the new test “wasn’t as nerve-wracking. This test required a different style of thinking.”
Burns said the old test, which his class had to take as a graduation requirement, had laughable wrong answers to multiple-choice questions that made the right answer obvious.
Here are samples of the new, presumably non-laughable items for ELA and Mathematics. I didn't look too long at the ELA items; I saw one which requires students to read and assess a poem, the very thought of which gives me hives.
The Mathematics items, though, seem clear and concise (students can use calculators). I sent this one item to my boyfriend:
13. Suppose you have one of each of the following items in your closet.
Items in Closet
Category_____Type/Color
shirts________plaid, red, blue, or tan
pants________brown, black
shoes________plastic sandals, canvas shoes, leather shoes
How many combinations can you make using one item from each category?
A. 9
B. 12
C. 18
D. 24
This item is funny to me because my boyfriend watches me go through many, many permutations of about 10 black sweaters/blazers, 20 black skirts, and 10 pairs of black shoes every morning. You'd think that everything being black would mean I'd get dressed quickly, but no. The expression on his face as he watches me ranges between amused and appalled.
I also have a really, really hard time accepting that a red shirt, brown pants, and plastic sandals constitute a legitimate clothing combination. But that's just me.
FCAT scores, that is. The Miami Herald says Florida's third-graders did better than last year, perhaps as a result of the new mandatory retention policies:
Statewide, 66 percent of third-graders passed the reading FCAT, compared with 63 percent last year. In Miami-Dade, 57 percent passed, up from 53 percent; and in Broward, 65 percent passed, up from 63 percent.
Without a passing score on the FCAT, it's very difficult for third-graders to go on to the fourth grade. State law requires them to either earn a Level 3 score or better, pass a similar standardized test or put together a complicated portfolio of class work showing their competence.
''When we ended social promotion and raised standards for our high school seniors last year, many were skeptical,'' said Gov. Jeb Bush, according to a statement released by the Department of Education. "Today's results show Florida is moving in the right direction, with more students reading on grade level and significant improvement and opportunities among those who have struggled most.''
The Palm Beach Post also reports good news:
About 23 percent of St. Lucie County third-graders and 12 percent of Martin students are in danger of repeating third grade next year after failing the reading portion of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, according to results released Monday.
The failure rate in both counties dropped from last year, when about 25 percent of St. Lucie students and 14 percent of Martin students failed the test. Statewide about 22 percent of third-graders failed the test.
As far as the 10th-grade FCAT goes,Governor Bush recently noted that 10% of Florida's seniors will face a barrier to their diploma based on FCAT scores. Let's find the press releases for ourselves on this. Ah, here we go. From here you can view the webcast from today or dig around for statewide and district-level results. The percent passing results from 12th grade alone aren't that informative, though, because that's just the kids who didn't take/pass the exam earlier.
Oooh, pie charts. Oh, wait, those are just telling us what students are doing after graduation (regardless of whether they passed the FCAT). Fifty-eight percent of those who failed the FCAT last year are enrolled in some kind of secondary education this year, presumably places that take a GED. The Florida DOE has a "Stay In The Loop" page for FCAT flunkers; if you know any senior who didn't pass the test this March, they might be interested in this information.
There's an interesting "FCAT Myths Vs. Facts" sheet available, too.
Ah, Duke University, such a caring environment:
Duke University is eliminating 8 a.m. classes and trying to come up with other ways help its sleep-deprived students, who too often are struggling to survive on a mix of caffeine, adrenaline and ambition.
The school is also considering new orientation programs this fall that would help freshmen understand the importance of sleep.
I have an idea - stop admitting students who don't know that sleep is essential for regular functioning. Oh, you say Duke's students are smart? Then why is Duke assuming that incoming freshmen just don't know that they're supposed to, you know, sleep every once in a while?
James Clack, Duke's director of counseling and psychological services, said the latest research shows that college-age people should be getting nine hours of sleep a night...
Duke wants students to consider adequate sleep a part of overall wellness. One idea is to do individual health assessments for each student and set goals for good nutrition, exercise and plenty of shuteye.
"Individual health assessments" for each student. Mm-hmm. Because, as we all know, college students are known for being willing and eager to follow a stodgy, goal-oriented plan presented to them by their elders. And if James Clack doesn't believe that college students will consider a daily plan that includes nine hours of sleep to be "stodgy" (or boring, or ridiculous, or impossible), he needs to take a few refresher psychology courses.
And speaking of ridiculous:
...Students have shunned 8 a.m. classes to the point that many departments stopped offering them. When campus planners looked over the schedule, they realized that, over the years, most classes had been squeezed into the hours between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m...
Duke was running out of classroom space, and students were beginning to complain about the availability of courses. So administrators worked out a new schedule for the fall, spreading classes more evenly throughout the day and week. The result: no more 8 a.m. classes, but plenty starting at 8:30 a.m. That will still be a shock to some students who have never had classes before 9.
What's wrong with this plan? Where to begin? Students are complaining about classes not being available, but they don't show up for classes if they're available too early. Sounds like Duke isn't so much concerned for student health than tired of all the whining.
Now, there are classes at 8:30, but if they're hour-long classes, the next available time slot is 10 am, not 9. The whole day is essentially shifted back one hour, so students who were going to bed at 1 am before will be going to bed at 2 am now. Methinks that forcing bars to close a half-hour earlier would do more to get students into snoozeland than scheduling classes a half-hour later.
Vice Provost Judith Ruderman makes the most sensible statements:
"We're going to have a lot of grumbling next fall when the reality sets in [and students are forced to go to classes at 8:30]," Ruderman said. "But you know what? They're resourceful and they'll manage."
Ruderman's advice to her sleepwalking students? Take an afternoon nap.
Sounds like Ruderman is VERY tired of all the whining, as I would be. Bear in mind here that I am very sympathetic to people who need lots of sleep; during graduate school I was poked, prodded, monitored, psychoanalyzed, and hospitalized due to insomnia and sleep deprivation. It's not a bad idea to encourage students to beware of bizarre sleeping schedules and offer treatment for those who have really screwed-up sleeping habits. But for students to refuse 8:00 am classes and then bitch about availability is ridiculous. What are they going to do when they have to be at work at 8 am in the real world?
Best comments on Fark:
Learn to drink coffee, it's what college is for.
I've only taken one class before 10 am and that was my first semester my freshman year. Any earlier would be brutal.
Whiners. My entire freshmen year in college I took M/W/F classes at 8:00, 9:15, 10:30 and 11:45. Four core classes in a row with no breaks. I also did not have the luxury of living on campus so I had to leave at least an hour before classes started so that I could fight the really fun Bay Area commuters. Get over it. When you get into the real world of work you have to adjust.
I'm a professor (Univ. of Wyoming) and teaching at 9AM is usually bad enough for me. I hate it. Professors don't necessarily control their own schedule. I'm a natural born astronomer who loves to stay up late. Only theorists seem to like 8AM classes in my field.
Went to a community college - took classes from 4 to 11 at night. Went to Purdue - took classes from 7:30AM to 4:30 - very few classes at Purdue past that - almost forces you to take 7:30AM classes at some point. Either way you mix coffee and alcohol in the right combination to get through the day and you sleep while rendering. If your project involves coding, not rendering, then you're screwed. Nothing has changed now that I'm in the real world. No difference.
Ah, the first signs of spring have arrived. No, I don't mean the 70+ temps, bright sunshine, hyacinths, or sandaled feet. I mean the parade of "SAT as a rite of passage" articles that are sometimes informative, and often critical.
This article, in the Tri-Valley Herald, suggests that SAT "mania" is gripping students like never before:
Today, however, more students than ever before are taking the SAT. The test has taken on near mythic proportions for high school students and their parents, who view a high score on the SAT as a magical Golden Ticket that, if it doesn't guarantee access to the most prestigious colleges, will at least boost a students' application to the top of the pile.
The College Board website note the increase in examinee numbers too, although they present this increase as a good thing, rather than something that should instill anxiety into students and educators. For example, some 38% of all SAT-takers are the first generation in their family to plan for college. But, as the TVH notes, budgets aren't keeping up with the "bubble" of college hopefuls:
A massive bubble of kids are graduating from high school and pushing at the doors of the nation's colleges and universities. Competition for slots is fierce, and students, aware of the pressures, are sending applications far and wide, thus adding even more competition for already scarce slots.
In deficit-ridden California, the storm is worsened by budget cuts that are, for the first time, forcing the University of California and California State University systems to turn eligible students away. By some estimates, as many as 23,000 California freshmen who in better times would be welcomed at CSU and UC campuses won't find a slot in the fall.
The article is honest enough to note that, despite some public anxiety, college admissions are not all about SAT scores:
The truth of the matter, however, is that many colleges don't weigh SAT scores as highly as they once did. In fact, the use of SAT scores in admissions at UC has been a hot topic this year, sparked by a critical report from the chairman of UC's governing Board of Regents that slammed UC Berkeley, the system's flagship campus, for admitting 386 students who scored 1000 or below on the test and turning away 3,200 who scored 1400 or above...
SAT scores are a factor in UC's admissions decisions, but they don't carry as much weight as other factors, including a student's overall grade point average and his or her scores on the SAT IIs, the subject-specific standardized tests that students must also take in order to be considered for UC admission.
The Philadelphia Inquirer, on the other hand, is all about the pressure of the SAT:
Although the new test is nearly a year away, it's been the topic of discussion and planning among colleges and high schools, tutors and guidance counselors - as well as among some students and parents.
The changes were made, test-makers say, to bring the SAT more in line with school curriculums and improve student writing. Critics question, however, whether monetary, not scholarly, concerns inspired the alterations, which come as a growing number of colleges are relying less on standardized tests as the most accurate predictor of student performance.
Ultimately, for the 2.2 million students who will take the test, the change won't be easy.
"The poor kids in the first class to take it will be nervous," said Carol Lunkenheimer, dean of undergraduate admissions at Northwestern University. "They'll be saying, 'Woe is me - why is my class the one taking this exam?' "
What would we do without these critics who have convinced nervous students that the College Board cares only about money? Surely, these naysayers play a large part in creating examinee anxiety with their accusations, but the Philadelphia Inquirer article (which also includes the classic, throwaway, unsupported statement that "critics have long held that the SAT contains class and cultural biases that hamper minority, poor and working-class students") would rather ignore that little detail. Funny, too, how the PI doesn't note that the same critics who are screaming about market shares following the SAT revisions would have been the first to scream about obsolescence and stubbornness if the College Board hadn't modified the test in response to criticism.
Meanwhile, the Orlando Sentinel noticed something escaped many other papers. While more students are aiming for college, fewer of them are willing to tell the College Board their race:
Last August, as it does every summer, the College Board released its national SAT report, showing that the average score on the college entrance exam had climbed slightly, as had the scores of minority students...buried in the data was a fact overlooked by researchers and journalists: A record portion of the test-takers, 25 percent, had declined to disclose their ethnicity.
That's triple what it was seven years ago. And there's no reason to assume that students who refuse to disclose their race can be left out of analyses, or that such students are similar to those who do list their race. There is research (by Dr. Dale Whittington and Dr. Howard Wainer, both of whom are quoted in the article) to suggest that such omissions undercut the ethnic-analysis conclusions that have been drawn from SAT scores in the past.
Some claim that the increase is due to students trying to avoid "stereotype threat" or AA policies. The College Board claims instead that the previous registration forms were too accommodating, and have noted a sharp drop in ethnic-group nonresponders now that students are forced to choose a race category (including, "I choose not to respond").
John Hawkins of Right Wing News was nice enough to include me on his list of 10 bloggers he'd like to be stuck with on a deserted island. I'm flattered, even though the other four female bloggers get described as "easy on the eyes" and "hot" while I get described as "personable" and "brainy." The story of my life - despite my best efforts, I'm always The Professor, never Ginger or Mary Ann.
I mean, look at the new photo I uploaded for the site. (it's actually from last summer, but I've decided that I want it to be my main photo.) Does that look more brainy than beautiful to you? Okay, fine, it does. I'll shut up now.
You know, it's Friday, sunny, and beautiful outside, and I don't feel like writing about standardized tests any more than you feel like reading about them. So the Friday roundup will be a bit more eclectic than usual.
I can't decide what's more touching about this story, the fact that the "pound puppy" defended his owner so bravely, or the fact that private donations have more than met the family's $4000 in veterinary fees.
So your kid's a vegan and doesn't want to dissect a real fetal pig in Bio? Get 'em a virtual pig. But is an 85 a virtual B?
Men are asking for "a little off the top" in Scotland. SWAP is angry, and on the case.
If you've been recieving emails about those dreaded camel spiders in Iraq, Snopes wants you to know that they're not dangerous, and really not that big. Not big enough to scare away all those reenlisters, anyway.
One of my favorite bloggers, Michele of A Small Victory, is taking a hiatus. It looks like ASV is finished; something new might pop up in it's place, though.
I donated to Spirit of America this week. Freedom of the press, indeed.
Finally, if you didn't watch the two-part Cecil B. DeMille program on Turner Classic Movies earlier this month, you really missed out. I love anything about the history of Hollywood (from the 50's on back), and it's heady to think of the days when one man could found a studio, direct silent films and Biblical blockbusters (pre-Hays code), and build his own private airfield in the middle of Los Angeles. Ah, to have made some dough in Hollywood back when land was plentiful and the federal income tax had not yet been revived.
Update: Oh, and this is an odd site. Human Descent=fun with genetic impossibilities and Photoshop. I particularly like the top photo from this page. That's how I feel most days - attitude of a tiger, body of a chipmunk.
If you ever needed any evidence to support limiting your kid's access to TV, here it is:
Police in the southwestern Florida city of Fort Myers arrested...17-year-old Carlos Chereza, on Tuesday on a charge of soliciting to commit first-degree murder. Tipped by an informant that Chereza had offered to pay to have his mother killed, an undercover detective posed as someone willing to do the job, Fort Myers police said.
Chereza offered the detective $2,000 that he expected to inherit from his mother's bank account, and gave him the keys to the family apartment, a map of the apartment and a picture of his mother, the police report said. He asked that the shooting be made to look like a burglary, it said.
"Carlos stated that he didn't want anything to happen to the television," the detective wrote in the arrest report.
Yeeks.
I doubt these third-graders in Savannah (GA) had planned to spend their Spring Break in Daytona Beach, but I'm sure they'd rather be somewhere besides the classroom:
About 1,100 third-graders who need extra help to pass the reading portion of a state standardized exam in a little more than a week, were invited to give up a traditional spring break in exchange for a more educational one. Third-graders who don't pass the reading portion won't advance to fourth grade, according to a state law now in effect. So being prepared to pass is crucial.
Roughly 75 percent, or 854 kids, took the school system up on the intensive Third-Grade Reading Camp offer, and have been attending school for three hours each day this week. Educators say they believe results will be positive – more kids will pass the exam.
The test they're preparing for is indeed the same CRCT that James Hope is so unhappy with (in the previous post, below). This article provides links to sample items, none of which seem as strange as the one Hope cites.
I particularly like #5, too, because the most recent lead singer of my boyfriend's band was named "Goat."
Gwinnett County (GA) teacher James Hope is NOT happy with the state of testing in Georgia right now:
Here's the question: What change should be made to the phrase "stir it around" in the sentence below?
Put the rubber banded shirt in the dye and stir it around with an old stick.
a. stir it round and round
b. stir it about
c. stir it
d. stir it all over
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Confused? Think how a 9-year-old child would feel.
This is a practice sample question from the state's new Criterion-Referenced Competencies Test for fourth-graders. This year, third-graders must pass the reading portion to be promoted. In the next two years, fifth- and eighth-graders will have to pass the reading portion or risk failing their grades. Such is the brainstorm of Georgia's A Plus Education Reform Act enacted a few years ago by then-Gov. Roy Barnes and the state Legislature...
To make matters worse, Gwinnett County, the state's largest school system, has stubbornly decided to hang on to its inept Gateway test so students get a double whammy. For instance, seventh-grade students in Gwinnett must not only take the five tests listed above, they must also take and pass standardized Gateway tests in language arts, math, social studies and science.
That's nine redundant tests in one month.
Hope then goes on to mention that he got in trouble for posting Gateway test items online before. I thought I recognized his name.
I would love to give you a specific example of a Gwinnett Gateway test question, but the last time I made some of those questions public, in an attempt to show how some test items do not measure what is taught in schools, I was visited three times by school system police, had my phone records confiscated and almost had my teaching certificate revoked.
Almost - as I reported previously, Hope was cleared of wrongdoing. I don't blame him for questioning items of the type above, and I agree that Gateway's confidentiality agreement is pretty harsh (for most tests, only live items are covered under such agreements; Hope posted sample items). And I agree with him completely on this:
These tests were supposed to be the yardstick to measure educational reform, not be the educational reform. And that's true, no matter how you "stir it" or "stir it round and round."
From Devoted Reader Kevin comes this article in The Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA). Author Will Sentel reports that Glenny Lee Buquet, president of Louisiana's Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, has claimed that the state is grading education programs far too easily:
A state review released last week said 12 of 19 public and private colleges and universities, including LSU and Southern University, earned top marks for the way they train teachers. But Glenny Lee Buquet of Houma, president of the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, said this week that evaluators need to take a more-detailed look at how students are faring when so many schools win high marks.
"There is something not quite right there," Buquet said...
Of the 57 grades given to the teacher-training schools -- each was rated in three categories -- 42 grades are "As."
One of the categories is the percentage of students who passed a key exam required of students who hope to be teachers, known as PRAXIS. Part of that test measures an aspiring teacher's knowledge of math, reading and writing.
Louisiana's minimum passing marks on the test are among the lowest of states that use it. Students typically take part of the test to enter a university's college of education and the rest before they leave school.
Buquet said the state needs to study scores students get on the PRAXIS tests, not simply whether they passed it, in helping to decide what grade colleges and universities get.
"I want to see more detail," Buquet said. "I think a pass/fail on the PRAXIS doesn't give us the whole story. I want to see the actual scores."
I agree. Also, one of the other categories in which schools were rated was student satisfaction, and every school got an A or a B in that category. This could be useful, but it could also be meaningless.
I don't know if any of you have been following the sad tale of University of Wisconsin-Madison student Audrey Seiler. I first encountered the story on Fark; the Farkers were suspicious because her story seemed very, very strange. As it turns out, the Farkers were right.
Long story short: Audrey faked her own kidnapping. She was missing for five days, after walking out of her apartment at 2:30 am. Ultimately, she was found in a marsh a couple of miles away. A huge force of police and volunteers mobilized to hunt for her during the entire time she was missing. After her discovery, Madison police listened to her story, and then discovered that she had previously purchased the knife, duct tape, rope and cold medicine that she claimed her assailant used. Someone had used her computer while she was "missing," and Audrey was also spotted around town during that time. The result is that she has been charged with two misdemeanor counts of obstructing officers, as the Madison police force has officially concluded that her kidnapping was a hoax.
There's no denying she has some mental problems. But I think this sends the wrong message:
A college student who staged her own disappearance last month will try to reach a plea agreement and avoid trial on charges she obstructed officers, her attorney said Thursday. Audrey Seiler, 20, a University of Wisconsin-Madison sophomore from Rockford, Minn., faces up to nine months in jail and a $10,000 fine for each of two misdemeanor charges. Her attorney, Randy Hopper, appeared on her behalf Thursday in Dane County Circuit Court...
"She obviously is dealing with a lot of trauma related to this, she's going through a very difficult time. She's having both some emotional and some physical problems to deal with as you might expect somebody who's gone through something like this," Hopper said after appearing in court.
Somebody who's "gone through something like this"?! Excuse me, but Audrey put herself through this. Her actions, while wacky, appear not only deliberate but premeditated, and she lied to the police afterwards. Why shouldn't she be charged with obstructing? Since when does "having a difficult time" absolve one of responsibility?
Oh, and the great "crisis" that allegedly triggered this?
The criminal complaint depicts Seiler as a young woman upset by a fading relationship with her boyfriend, Ryan Fisher. Friends said the two had been fighting, and Seiler's roommate, Heather Thue, told officers that Fisher did not pay as much attention to Seiler as she wanted. Seiler's mother told police her daughter had not been herself lately and was "extremely needy" of Fisher.
Three days before she disappeared, her laptop was used to log onto Fisher's e-mail account and read exchanges "with romantic overtones" between him and another woman, according to the complaint.
Audrey was getting dumped, so she snooped through her boyfriend's email. And the result was a five-day search that cost Madison about $96,000. Please explain to me why leniency should be the approach here. Plenty of college women get dumped every year. Plenty of students are under stress. But that's almost $100K of taxpayer money wasted because Audrey deliberately made all of Madison worry for several days.
She needs help, all right, and jail time may not be the best option for her, but neither is a slap on the wrist. Some local residents feel sorry for "the little lost soul," but I don't, and neither did one resident of Audrey's hometown, who put it best:
Lisa Wangstad wasn't as forgiving, and noted that police say Seiler bought duct tape and rope just before disappearing.
"She just made a fool of us," said Wangstad, a bartender at The Red Vest.
Wangstad, whose daughter attended high school gym class with Seiler, said the hoax would make it harder in the future for real kidnapping victims. And she predicted a difficult time for Seiler's parents.
Presumably as they begin to realize that their daughter doesn't understand that it's wrong to fake your own kidnapping after being dumped.
An unacceptable error: The teacher's manuals for the Oklahoma state standardized exams contain several wrong answers to sample questions.
The testing company, Harcourt Educational Measurement, realized April 8 that some of the answers to sample questions were wrong. The company then notified schools by e-mail and fax after 5 p.m. Friday.
On Monday morning -- just before tests started -- many schools were scrambling to replace pages in the test administration manuals with new pages that had the correct answers to sample questions.
"I received numerous calls from teachers who questioned the credibility of the actual tests based on the number of incorrect answers in the sample questions," said Kathy Dodd, director of student achievement for Union Public Schools.
As well they should.
North County Times columnist and former administrator Richard J. Riehl gets away with a common fallacy in an column about standardized tests:
Each spring California school administrators greet the release of school rankings based on Academic Performance Index (API) scores like anxious coaches awaiting the annual NCAA Tournament match-ups....
The average family incomes for the cities with the highest scores range from $64,000 to $81,000, while those for the other cities in North County range from $43,000 to $46,000...
It's long past time that we hold schools accountable, and using standardized test scores is an easy way to compare students and schools. But isn't the No Child Left Behind Act just another way of saying we want all our children to be above average?
When test scores say more about family income than about learning, it's time to examine the learning environments of our best schools: places where talented teachers are committed to helping each student succeed, where
