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Opinion editorials Handling of Pit Appeal Calls for a Time-Out |
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opinion editorialsThis editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by editorial page staff and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers
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Monday, April 25, 2011
Tracking Students Key To Making Tests Count
Stand-alone test scores don't tell the whole story of student proficiency and effective teaching. That doesn't make them inconsequential.
Yet that is what Albuquerque Teachers Federation President Ellen Bernstein would have the public believe. Now that Albuquerque Public Schools has again released student Standards Based Assessment scores by teacher, she once again contends SBA is not adequate for measuring growth and simply gives teachers an incentive to "teach to the test."
Standardized tests do measure proficiency in various areas at a given time. And standards-based tests are not rote memorization; they award partial credit if students show they know how to get the answer but simply made an error along the way. And if the reading test measures ability to read, teaching to the test doesn't sound like such a horrible idea.
The key is to compile test scores and track proficiency, providing a picture of student progress as well as teacher efficacy in promoting it. Analysis of standardized test data elsewhere has shown clear trends for progress, or a lack thereof, depending on the teacher.
Without tracking, it is difficult to determine how effective a teacher is and whether students are learning. APS Superintendent Winston Brooks notes that even low scores — "beginning step" or "nearing proficient" as compared to "proficient" or "advanced" — may reflect excellent teaching. It all depends on students' ability levels when they started; gains are gains, and even small ones may be significant for some students.
Brooks says he's open to evaluating teachers based on the growth of their students over time. That dovetails with Gov. Susana Martinez's attempt to get lawmakers to approve using standardized test scores as part of a plan to track individual student growth from one year to the next — then reward teachers whose students show exceptional growth and fire those with the lowest effectiveness for three consecutive years. Martinez has said she now plans to form a working group to craft a teacher evaluation system tied to student test scores.
On Tuesday, APS is holding a conference with New Mexico First, and the issue will be part of that conversation. It should be, given that U.S. students continue to trail their peers in higher performing nations like South Korea, Finland and Singapore. Out of 34 countries, 15-year-olds in the U.S. ranked 14th in reading, 17th in science and 25th in math.
It's time to make being middle of the pack unacceptable for U.S. students — although that would be a huge jump for New Mexico, which is near the back of that mediocre pack. Effective teachers will be the key.
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