Viewpoint: Are test-based education reforms on their way out?
By Kimberley Beatty
Are test-based education reforms on their way out?
Ask any parent what they want for their child’s education and what you won’t hear is, “I want my son/daughter to excel at the state mandated standardized tests.” Ask any teacher what excites and motivates them about their profession and you won’t hear, “I love preparing my students for the state tests.” Ask any student what they enjoy about school and you won’t hear, “standardized tests.”
Known as STAR in California, these predominantly bubble tests are given to students from second to 11th grades over the course of one to two weeks. In high school this is in addition to CAHSEE (the high school exit exam), PSAT, SAT, ACT, AP tests and regular course exams and finals. That’s a lot of missed learning opportunities.
This data-driven environment took hold with a vengeance under the Bush administration’s No Child Left Behind (NCLB) federal mandates that threatened to withhold funds and close down schools that failed to meet improvement targets on test scores year over year. This led to the lowering of standards and school district cheating scandals, most notably in Washington, D.C., and Atlanta, Georgia.
The “Billionaire Boys Club” of New York, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Bill Gates and their cronies, has been pushing for and implementing reforms linking teacher evaluations and pay to student test scores. The irony is that most of these proponents of test-driven reforms went to and sent their children to elite private schools where bubble tests are nonexistent and class sizes rarely get out of the teens.
This so-called “Value Added Method” where teachers are ranked according to student test scores has been discredited for its unreliability. A significant percentage of teachers in the top quartile in one year will drop to the bottom quartile the next year. In Los Angeles, after the data and rankings were published in the LA Times, a beloved teacher committed suicide. Many other teachers with low rankings were harassed and demonized.
Even the Obama administration’s attempt to correct the failings of NCLB, now called Race to the Top (RTTT), has made tying student test scores to teacher evaluations not only a precondition of federal education grant application, but of state waivers to NCLB.
Against this backdrop, something strange has been happening recently. Important people are talking about education quality as a means to engender a passion for life-long learning, creativity and ingenuity.
Late last year, Gov. Brown vetoed a bill that would have expanded the state’s accountability system to include measures other than standardized tests because Senate Bill 547 didn’t go far enough in replacing quantity with quality, with measures such as “good character or love of learning,” along with “excitement and creativity.” And, last month, in his “State of the State” address, Gov. Brown stated, “I believe it is time to reduce the number of tests taken…” and emphasized the need for “a qualitative system of assessments.”
Currently SB 789 is making its way through the state legislature. This bill would establish a “Creative and Innovative Education Index” to measure the opportunities schools provide to nurture creativity and innovation in students. For the first time, it would give schools a real incentive to build creativity into all areas of the curriculum.
Last month, in his State of the Union address, President Obama stated that we should “grant schools flexibility: to teach with creativity and passion; (and) to stop teaching to the test….” The possibility that all of this portends an educational system that is more engaging and exciting is welcome news to parents who dread to hear “I hate school. It’s boring!”
Beatty, a Sabre Springs resident, is vice president of legislation for the Palomar Council PTA.
Short URL: http://www.pomeradonews.com/?p=21297
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on Feb 8 2012. Filed under Columnists.
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Some parents are doing it hard to send their kids to private schools on the assumption that private school education gives the child an advantage in life.They may actually welcome changes that would make them feel less guilty if they felt funding changes resulted in improvements to public education.
They should link teacher's pay to performance in some say. Nothing's more terrible to a kid than a teacher who can't get them to pass a standardize test.
Should that be the measure of a good teacher Harvey? I'm thinking about my son who just applied to colleges with a 2.8 GPA, and below average proficiency on STAR tests (which he doesn't take seriously AT ALL, b/c he knows it's not about him, rather it's about the schools and funding). His SATs and ACT scores were above average, b/c they were about him. All that aside, if the schools he applied to looked only at his raw data (GPA, SAT), they'd never take a chance on this kid. And yet he was accepted to his top choice, rather quickly. Why? Probably because they read about his background which explained a lot about his grades and also rounded out who he was a a person and what kind of potential he had to succeed if allowed to pursue his passion. To judge a teacher by the scores her kids receive on standardized tests is like judging a student based on their GPA or SAT score alone. I won't go into the justification for my son, but anyone who has ever met the kid can see he's qualified to go to college and will make something impressive out of his life.
If the metrics for judging their ability to teach needs updated, then that's fine. Let me ask you this, how would you judge objectively if a teacher is teaching students?
I'm no expert but I might suggest a qualitative and objective peer and parent review along side some baseline quantitative achievement for both the teacher and his/her students. Any measurement of human performance that does not include a qualitative component is missing a large piece of the picture. I served on a CA Distinguished School review panel some years ago and went my our school's principal to evaluate another school's (in Vista) performance. It was quite enlightening to see what other schools prioritized that our school did not. The demographics were much different and so their approach was more customized. I think the best teachers are ones who can inspire, and who have a customized approach to teaching and learning.
Do you think your vision of how to rate and review teachers is done today? You're right that every school district is different and the culture will be different. Those who study in Texas may be exposed to farming classes and have a whole different expectation of academics than someone who's living in the Boston area. In the end, it really would be the community who'll decide the fate of their school district since they're paying the taxes. The ugly area will be the ability to get rid of teachers who aren't improving. Objective measurements may not always tell the whole picture. There may be districts where teachers are underpaid and there may be some where they're overpaid. I like the balance.
Led by teachers who get straight “A” grades whether they earn them or not (I QUIT a second Masters Degree, in Education, because of the lack of academic rigor) and who have entered the teaching ranks by taking a state CBEST test with a 100% passing rate, it is not surprising to me that teachers, and their minions, have great fear for any test where someone might actually FAIL!
Heaven Forfend!
Timid students, unaccustomed to failing select college majors where they are unlikely to fail – like teaching – instead of rigorous subjects like engineering, which they abandon to the heavily tested foreign students. And the most timid of the timid, afraid of getting a test they might fail, go into the Schools of Education.
(There will be a meeting of everyone who ever failed a course in a School of Education, tomorrow in the telephone booth at the corner of…)
It’s no wonder teachers hate standardized tests.
The standards have changed since I was a child. Now it's harder to tell a child that they failed. I've also noticed that funding from state (federal) is tied to the grades they receive on standardized tests. It might seem there is more of an incentive to gear subjects and students to pass those tests for funding.
Fortunately, this country allows you to hold a job, an apartment, and drive a car without a high school education. You can gain a lot without education. I went for the harder engineering degree because of the financial reward, job security, and what I enjoy than the new flood of technology degrees. I've noticed that students will spend the same amount of money for a lesser degree because the math is easier. When I was in Japan and Korea, I've noticed that the teaching system was completely different. If you don't graduate or get a well education, you're less likely to make money in that country and you'll struggle. There is less struggle in this country so education isn't as prized.
Harvey, I too gained an engineering degree.
Ooops — transmission got truncated…
Harvey, I too gained an engineering degree.
Georgetown University recently studied the lifelong earnings of different categories, based on recent census data. They found that college graduates in general earn 84% more over their lifetime than do high school graduates. But within college graduates, those with “hard” degrees like engineering, computer science and math earn substantially more than do those with “soft” degrees like psychology.
Just look at the annual incomes reported in a study of 171 college majors in 15 separate categories. Psychology majors earn an average of $29,000 per year, but Petroleum Engineers earn an average $120,000 per year. Over a lifetime that difference amounts to serious money for those in the highest-paying career categories. Engineers and psychologists are both “college graduates” but the income levels are significantly different.
Hey folks, I read a great article today on teacher salaries and how teachers are being incentivized based on merit rather than union dictated salary schedules. What's curious about it (and I rather like) is that teachers who perform well under this program can qualify for large bonuses and salary increases but in order to receive these, they must renounce some (not all) union protections. They have a choice, however, and some choose not to renounce union protections. I think the idea to give teachers a choice is a good one. The article also talks about how teachers are evaluated–it entails a combo of quantitative and qualitative measurements. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/01/education/big-p...
A major component of a quality educational system is teacher collaboration. Any evaluation system that pits one teacher against another sabotages that unique aspect of this profession. Poway Unified is actually nationally and state recognized for its' model comprehensive evaluation systems, most notably the Peer Assistance and Review Programs (PAR). These are: Poway Professional Assistance Programs for beginning teachers (PPAP); and Permanent Teacher Intervention Program (PTIP). These evaluation systems are prototypes for a bill currently before the state assembly (AB5 Fuentes). More information can be found on the internet. The question remains: Does any other public sector profession endure so much scrutiny, maligning or demand for perfection?
"The question remains:Does any other public sector profession endure so much scrutiny, maligning or demand for perfection?"
Nope. Education is always at the top of the 'important-in-life' list. Public education serves pretty much everyone. We all think we know something about it because we all went to K-12 plus we've all taught someone something at some point in time. K-12 education involves a huge amount of money. We all agree that our precious children are our legacy as a nation and as a species. Education and learning is critical to survival and success in a competitive, free population. I can't think of anything or anyone public education doesn't touch. I can't think of any good thing, idea or reason that doesn't apply, our shouldn't apply, to public education. There is no problem effecting the adult community that isn't a threat to the children and the schools they attend.
And finally, who's more important outside the home than the adults who have agreed to influence and watch over our kids when they have them?
Does the question remain?