Standardized
testing season is upon us, and once again, I’d like to offer a few thoughts and
observations from the point of view of a teacher, parent, taxpayer, and engaged
citizen. You might remember that last year I was adamantly opposed to the
Common Core standards and the PARCC test.
This year I have had some time to implement curriculum aligned to the
standards, to evaluate the standards, and to see my students and my own
children meeting and exceeding the standards.
As a result, I can honestly say, for 10 year-old children and older, who
are fed and clothed and living in safe shelter in a safe neighborhood where
they can travel to school each day without fear, for children living lives rich
with diverse experiences, the standards are alright, even good. For example,
the first seventh grade reading standard asks for students to: “Cite several pieces of
textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well
as inferences drawn from the text.” The writing standards require students to
evaluate evidence, to cite credible evidence to support their claims with
logical reasons and evidence, to recognize bias, to acknowledge opposing
claims, and to respond to those opposing perspectives with well-chosen,
relevant evidence.
One of the things I have taught my students
through our reading, writing and research work is to suspend judgment when
formulating an opinion and to evaluate and weigh research-based evidence before
taking sides on important issues. These are critical life skills, and I am
happy to report that nearly all of my students and my own children are
mastering these skills, which are essential to maintaining an informed
democracy.
However, when evaluating the standardized
tests designed to measure students’ mastery of these skills taught, my
assessment is not so rosy. For starters,
the PARCC tests take approximately 12 hours to administer, along with about 3
or more hours required to train the kids how to use the technology and to
practice. 15 hours might not seem like much to you, but that’s 15 hours of
instructional time lost in an already jam-packed school year. 15 hours is a
small number, though, when you consider the hundreds of hours administrators, teachers
and tech support staff have to put in to actually schedule, coordinate, ready
the network, computers, iPads, and prepare for the tests. 15 hours is also a
small number when compared to the millions of dollars being spent to implement
these tests in the state of Illinois alone.
And what do children and communities actually
get for these arduous hours and excessive dollars spent? Not much. Test results are not returned for
about six months, so that by the time the scores come back, students have moved
on to the next grade, which means teachers can’t reteach or remediate for those
kids who failed to meet the standards. In addition, my students and my own
children know that the tests have absolutely no bearing on their lives, their
grades, nor their future placement in school.
In fact, their performance on these tests might improve or hurt their
community’s property values (which I always think seems like an awful lot of
pressure to put on the backs of 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15-year-olds), and/or it
might help or hurt their school and their teachers. Some children may be led to
believe that these test scores will impact their future placement, but they are
being misled, and that troubles me. I
simply don’t believe in lying to kids. And why would we lie about this? Only to “trick” them into trying?
True story: Last week, as I was “prepping” my students for
the tests, I encouraged them, saying, “I know that if you take the test and you
do your best, you’ll do just fine. We’ve worked hard all year, and I know you
can do these things.” One little seventh grade boy on an IEP raised his hand
and asked, “What if we try our hardest and we still don’t do well? Will you
lose your job? Will our school get in trouble?” He was truly worried; I could see it on his
face. I assured him that I would be okay if he didn’t do well, but my heart
hurt a little bit. This twelve-year-old child was truly worried that if he didn’t
“perform” well on this test, I might be punished, or even lose my job. This is
not okay; he’s just a kid. He should not
be responsible for my performance evaluation, but that’s the situation we have
created for our children. This high-stakes, pressure intense scenario hurts our kids and takes the joy out of learning.
In the district where I teach, hundreds of
students refused the test last year--about 50% of the students in our building did not take the test. Our own children also refused the test; they were two of three children in their
entire school to “opt out.” Instead,
they read books. For fifteen hours, our kids had the freedom and luxury to read
books at school. They loved it, and I loved it. They read some beautiful books--I Am Malala, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Where the Red Fern Grows...
Yet this year, as I can see and feel the Illinois State Board of Education
breathing down our necks, I have debated whether or not our own kids should
take the tests. Last night, Olivia and I
discussed the pros and cons of actually taking the tests after dinner. “It would be good practice for future tests,”
I said.
“Mom, I have been taking standardized tests
since first grade. I take tests all the
time. I don’t need any more practice,” she said. “I know how to take all kinds of tests.”
“I think you would do well, and it might help
your school,” I said.
And then I actually said, "Everyone else in your class will be taking them. You and Jack won't really make much of a difference in the anti-testing movement."
I actually said, "Everyone else is doing it, so maybe you should too!" omg.
“15 hours, Mom! The only way can change these stupid tests is if people stand up and say no. This is a waste of our time. I'd rather be learning something. Reading would be a more valuable use of my time."
As you can see, my child is meeting and exceeding the standards. Because I am not legally allowed to "opt her out," she will again have my permission to refuse to test if she chooses.
