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 | Survey: State tests alter instruction, increase pressure on teachers
A survey (Adobe Acrobat required) of teachers by the National Board on Educational Testing and Public Policy found more than 75% of U.S. teachers believed their district's curriculum was aligned with the state-mandated testing program. However, more than 75% also said their state's testing plan led them to teach in ways that went against their own ideas of good educational practice, and many teachers felt the tests had a narrowing effect on the overall curriculum. Educational Leadership (November 2003)
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| The principles of informative assessments
A report (Adobe Acrobat required) by Kristin M. Bass of the Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing and Robert Glaser of the University of Pittsburgh discusses the components of informative assessments that improve teaching and learning. The report looks at various assessment programs and suggests essential design elements for tasks, score forms and interpretive materials that maximize the effectiveness of assessments.
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| The News
Access an extensive collection of articles about testing and accountability from SmartBrief's news archive. To register for this free service, simply type in the e-mail address at which you receive SmartBrief and create a password. Sign up now.
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| Study: Exit exams have consequences for instruction
A study (Adobe Acrobat required) released in August 2003 by the Center on Education Policy examines how exit exams affect classroom instruction. The study found that although exit tests have resulted in broader coverage of state standards and better alignment of curriculum with those standards, they also have somewhat marginalized content not covered in standards or on the exams. Click here to read a breakdown of the results from ASCD's ResearchBrief.
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| Survey examines teachers' perceptions of high-stakes testing
A recent survey (Adobe Acrobat required) of Florida teachers by Brett D. Jones and Robert J. Egley of the University of South Florida found that the majority of teachers queried were not opposed to accountability but felt the state's high-stakes tests were not an accurate measurement of academic achievement. Most teachers also said the testing program had negative effects on the curriculum and on teachers' and students' motivation.
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| Delaware officials approve controversial teacher accountability plan
The Delaware State Board of Education has approved a prototype for a teacher accountability system linked to student test scores. However, it appears the plan already has a major roadblock, as the Delaware State Education Association has said its members will not participate in the testing phase. The News Journal (Del.) (8/20)
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| |  | Denver links teachers' pay to test scores: The Denver teachers union and negotiators from the district earlier this year agreed on a new teacher pay plan that would reward teachers for raising students' test scores or working in struggling schools. The agreement followed a report (Adobe Acrobat required) from the nonprofit group Community Training and Assistance Center praising the experimental model for helping to raise student achievement. Education Week (3/23)
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| Making good use of data
Data can be used to improve teaching and learning, but only if it's derived from tests that are instructionally useful assessments, writes W. James Popham of the University of California, Los Angeles. Popham lays out the five attributes of instructionally useful tests, and explains how to detect bad data. Educational Leadership (February 2003)
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| Praxis grading glitch causes headaches for teachers, districts
The Educational Testing Service's too-rigorous grading of Praxis II essays between January 2003 and April 2004 led thousands of teachers to believe they had failed the exam and stalled hiring in some districts. Several candidates among the thousands of test-takers affected by the glitch have filed a class-action lawsuit in Philadelphia. Tom Carroll, president of a Washington, D.C.-based professional association for teachers, says the scoring error exemplifies the dangers of relying too much on one test. ETS spokesman Tom Ewing defended the company's practices, saying it has instituted quality assurance guidelines that other companies follow. Education Week (7/28)
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| | | Teachers' lawsuit alleges ETS is a monopoly: Two teacher candidates from Ohio and Louisiana have filed a federal lawsuit alleging the Educational Testing Service, the only company that administers the Praxis exam, violates federal antitrust laws. The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) (8/5)
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| Test preparation takes center stage in Indiana
With so much riding on test scores, test preparation has become a bigger part of daily life in U.S. high schools. In Indiana, for instance, the focus on the ISTEP exam has become so intense that private consultants are routinely present in classrooms, and schools even hold pep rallies to ratchet up students' enthusiasm. All of the hoopla surrounding the tests has led some educators and parents to question if new accountability policies have gone overboard. The Indianapolis Star (8/16)
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| Study: High-stakes accountability alters professional development landscape
Accountability systems have helped teachers gain a clearer understanding of what needs to be taught and how, according to an extensive study (Adobe Acrobat required) by the Southeast Center for Teacher Quality. However, teachers often were confused by the statistical mechanics of accountability systems and often had trouble determining how to analyze and use test results to identify problem areas, the study found.
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| Three New England states team up to create shared exams
To save costs, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont have created a consortium to develop common standardized tests. The New England Compact, as the partnership is called, will test reading and math exams this fall before officially using them on more than 208,000 third- through eighth-grade students in December 2005. The Boston Globe (6/22)
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| | | Report outlines requirements for developing state tests: The Commission on Instructionally Supportive Assessment published a report in 2001, Building Tests To Support
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| McREL develops framework for evaluating accountability systems
In a recent report (Adobe Acrobat required), the nonprofit organization Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning discusses what it says is missing from the current dialogue on accountability systems and describes its new framework for designing and evaluating accountability systems.
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| Report profiles successful districtwide school reform
A case study report released by the Learning First Alliance shows that five high-poverty school districts raised student achievement by focusing on districtwide strategies to improve instruction. ASCD played a key role in co-chairing the project, visiting the districts and developing the report.
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| Tiered diploma system raises Delaware students' ire
Delaware lawmakers are mulling whether to institute a tiered diploma system by which graduating seniors would be given a rating based on their score from a high-stakes standardized test administered in grade 10. The plan has drawn heavy criticism from students who argue that such a system would put too much emphasis on a single exam. Some students have said ratings should be based on multiple factors, including overall academic performance. The News Journal (Del.) (8/16)
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| The consequences of nonrandom human error in test development
Test-makers generally are able to ensure that exams will produce valid and reliable results, but occasionally there are inconsistencies, and often these are caused by human error. For instance, an employee could attach the wrong answer key to a test, a mistake that could have numerous bad effects, ranging from the misclassification of students to scoring glitches that cause students to fail. A study (Adobe Acrobat required) by the National Board on Educational Testing and Policy looks at these human errors and analyzes the issues associated with them. Read about the study in ASCD's ResearchBrief.
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| | | West Virginia tests accidentally destroyed: Nearly half of the standardized tests administered to students in Wyoming County, W.Va., to comply with NCLB regulations were inadvertently destroyed by CTB/McGraw-Hill before being graded, education officials announced earlier this month. State Department of Education spokeswoman Liza Cordeiro said the county would be held accountable for students whose tests were scored, and that students would not be retested unless their parents requested it. The News-Sentinel (Fort Wayne, Ind.)/Associated Press (8/11)
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| Testing Resources
A collection of resources providing news and information on testing issues.
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| | | American Psychological Association American Psychological Association's statement on testing and assessment
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| | | Code of Fair Testing Practices American Psychological Association's Code of Fair Testing Practices
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| | | American Educational Research Association Statement on high-stakes testing by the American Educational Research Association
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| | | Center for the Study of Testing, Evaluation, and Educational Policy Center for the Study of Testing, Evaluation, and Educational Policy
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| | | Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing
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| | | Board on Testing and Assessment, The National Academies Board on Testing and Assessment, The National Academies
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| Opinion: Tests are critical measures of school achievement
In an opinion piece, Bill Evers and Herbert J. Walberg of the Hoover Institution defend standardized tests, which, they contend, serve as valid, albeit imperfect, tools for assessing educational accountability. The writers argue that schools should not be the only American institution exempt from being graded and subject to penalties for failure. The Christian Science Monitor (7/12)
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| Web-based assessment can improve instructional quality
Web-based assessment can provide districts with data they need to improve instruction in today's test-driven education environment, say Gerrita Postlewait, superintendent of Horry County (S.C.) School District, and Will Garland, chairman of the school board. Both provide examples of how a computerized system has helped Horry schools meet their academic goals. American School Board Journal (July 2004)
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| Opinion: Massachusetts relies too heavily on tests
Massachusetts' focus on using MCAS scores to measure schools' progress harms students and masks other ways in which schools are succeeding and failing, writes education researcher Anne Wheelock. An accountability system based on various assessments such as portfolios, exhibitions and performance tasks, combined with school-quality reviews conducted every three to five years, would provide a more accurate gauge of performance, Wheelock says. Educational Leadership (November 2003)
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| An argument for teaching to the test
A common criticism of high-stakes testing is that it narrows schools' curricula and forces teachers to "teach to the test." Although teaching the actual items on the test is not a desirable practice, it is possible to integrate instruction and assessment so deftly that the two become indistinguishable, says Lloyd Bond of the Liberal Education Initiatives program. Carnegie Perspectives (April 2004)
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 | According to a survey by the nonprofit Public Agenda, 40% of Americans "strongly agree" and 43% "somewhat agree" that test scores are useful for evaluating the performance of teachers.
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