Kontan’s Place

High stakes testing…is it worth it? Is it necessary? Is it an indicator of progress?

We have entered the season of state assessment. How students perform on the Algebra I, Biology I, English 10, and US History state test determines AYP (annual yearly progress), growth, and accreditation for schools. It is a school’s goal to meet AYP, meet or preferrably exceed growth, to obtain an accreditation level at or greater than the previous year. It is a stressful time for administrators, teachers, and students.

Attendance is imperative. Incentives are offered to encourage students not to skip the test. Not meeting the required percentage for testing can drop a school’s accreditation level down a full degree. Students must take and pass the required tests in order to graduate.

Teachers are responsible for preparing the students and encouraging test attendance. We also have to administer the test. Each year every teacher must go through training to give the test. The importance of confidentiality is stressed. We are informed of the strict rules associated with administering the state tests. There must be two people, test administrator and proctor, with the test materials at all times. There must be a licensed staff member in the room at all times. Both the test administrator and the proctor must approach any student with a question. When addressing the students question, nothing more than “do your best” can be said. No help can be given to the student, and you can not read or explain the question to the student. All test preparation instructions must be read to the students as they follow along. Administrators and proctors may not sit down during the assessment period. They may not read or grade papers. They may not use the computer or any other device. Administrators and proctors are not allowed to read test materials or discuss anything seen in the test. They may not move excessively about the testing room, however they must move about being certain not to disturb the testing process. Once completed all materials must be taken up in the same order in which they were handed out. All materials must be accounted for. No student is to leave the room without permission. Only one student may be in the hall at a time. The student must be escorted to and from the restroom. All distractions to the testing process must be documented.

Can you imagine why this is stressful? Those in charge of testing have a tremendous responsibility. Those of us administering the test must follow the rules to the letter or risk losing our license. Students must pass the tests in order to graduate.

It is sometimes difficult to convey to the students the importance of state assessment. So much is riding on their performance.

There has to be some benchmark for determining whether or not students have mastered required skills. Is high stakes testing the answer? There are accusations that teachers merely teach to the test. Since we have never seent the test and do not know exactly what is on it that is not possible. We do know what time period to focus on. By following current trends in our subject area we can guess what areas need the most focus. It is very difficult to get through all of the time periods by the main test dates in April. I couldn’t imagine trying to do it on the block system where classes are taken only for a sememster. (There are fall test dates by the way. Students do not have to remember the material for several months that they are not taking the class if they have it in the fall.) It seems some of the joy of the job is lost due to testing. There are areas in US history that I would like to linger and incorporate fun activities. However, it is just not possible. There is not time for lingering until after April.

Students in our district have already taken the writing portion of the English 10 assessment. Those not administering the test were “fortunate” enough to have the same students for four class periods. It took great creativity to teach a class of students for that long. I must say my students did amazingly well. So here we are…in the assessment race. Stressful time for all involved.

Thanks for reading. Kontan Jou.