Standardized Testing, Schools, and Students
On one extreme in education there are no grades, there are classes, there may be tests that are scored, but there are no grades given. Everyone passes, unless you don't show up. On the other hand there may be very rigidly structured exams where scores mean everything. If you missed a certain question it was assumed you needed remediation on that kind of question and what the correct answer meant to teach.
By default I was the test giver at a job training center for an extended period of time. The school board couldn't send a teacher or para professional to administer either the Stanford Test of Academic Achievement or the TABE which was short for test of adult basic education.
To be accepted in the various vocational programs you needed to score at least 7.0 in reading, math, and language. There were various levels of the test and they basically related to previous formal education and competancy in English.
Frankly, in Little Havana where there were lot's of folks that needed ESOL classes before attending vocational classes that were taught in English. And conversely there were Anglo English Speakers with some skills but no Spanish that had big problems in the labor market.
Testing in the vocational area is a tricky thing. It favors folks with a regular public school background, that were readers, and had general mathematical skills. In other words if you were a good student the testing procedure didn't freak you out. Lot's of adults hadn't been in school for decades, spoke little or no English, but had good work histories. Timed exams were also problematic. Some understood but did not think in English and the internal translation process took extra time.
I wish it was simpler. The standardized test picked the best candidates for a limited number of seats in lpn, other medical fields, computer technician classes and other classes as well.
We did allow folks to retake the tests. A stickler would probably say we voided the validity, reliability, and confidence in the results of the test. Could be. Almost all the schools we sent our customers to, retested them anyway prior to completing the enrollment process. They always said they thought the version of the test was old, that copies of the test were "out on the street" and all sorts or other reasons to cherry pick students that at the end of the day would be able to be placed in jobs and have a good chance to remain employed for six months after placement. One result was sure, they didn't freak out as badly after taking these exams like they did when we explained the process to them, or they changed their goals and looked for a job that fit their existing skills.
Standardized tests will exist in some form. I think the alternative of passing folks without an understanding of what they have learned and what they need to learn or relearn is just as goofy as making everything a high stakes exam and teachers being forced to teach the test to keep their jobs or keep the school open.
A high school diploma should mean something, and hopefully it will mean being able to get a job.
All this opting out misses something, it doesn't suggest a good alternative.
By default I was the test giver at a job training center for an extended period of time. The school board couldn't send a teacher or para professional to administer either the Stanford Test of Academic Achievement or the TABE which was short for test of adult basic education.
To be accepted in the various vocational programs you needed to score at least 7.0 in reading, math, and language. There were various levels of the test and they basically related to previous formal education and competancy in English.
Frankly, in Little Havana where there were lot's of folks that needed ESOL classes before attending vocational classes that were taught in English. And conversely there were Anglo English Speakers with some skills but no Spanish that had big problems in the labor market.
Testing in the vocational area is a tricky thing. It favors folks with a regular public school background, that were readers, and had general mathematical skills. In other words if you were a good student the testing procedure didn't freak you out. Lot's of adults hadn't been in school for decades, spoke little or no English, but had good work histories. Timed exams were also problematic. Some understood but did not think in English and the internal translation process took extra time.
I wish it was simpler. The standardized test picked the best candidates for a limited number of seats in lpn, other medical fields, computer technician classes and other classes as well.
We did allow folks to retake the tests. A stickler would probably say we voided the validity, reliability, and confidence in the results of the test. Could be. Almost all the schools we sent our customers to, retested them anyway prior to completing the enrollment process. They always said they thought the version of the test was old, that copies of the test were "out on the street" and all sorts or other reasons to cherry pick students that at the end of the day would be able to be placed in jobs and have a good chance to remain employed for six months after placement. One result was sure, they didn't freak out as badly after taking these exams like they did when we explained the process to them, or they changed their goals and looked for a job that fit their existing skills.
Standardized tests will exist in some form. I think the alternative of passing folks without an understanding of what they have learned and what they need to learn or relearn is just as goofy as making everything a high stakes exam and teachers being forced to teach the test to keep their jobs or keep the school open.
A high school diploma should mean something, and hopefully it will mean being able to get a job.
All this opting out misses something, it doesn't suggest a good alternative.
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