Slog Comments
Garfield Faculty Votes to Continue Strike on Student Testing
1
So glad to see these teachers perform this extraordinary activism.
It's about time. So much wasted time on testing, which yields questionably valid results. So many students, due to disabilities, do not enjoy full access to these tests.
Who benefits? The test developers by raking in the cash.
It's about time. So much wasted time on testing, which yields questionably valid results. So many students, due to disabilities, do not enjoy full access to these tests.
Who benefits? The test developers by raking in the cash.
2
There was a great story on this last night on All Things Considered.
http://www.npr.org/2013/01/17/169620124/…
http://www.npr.org/2013/01/17/169620124/…
3
I remember, back when I was on the PTSA, that none of the parents or teachers liked the MAP tests at any of the schools.
Time for the Superintendent to realize kids should not be treated like lab animals. We have lab animals for that.
(now watch me squeeze a glowing mouse between two plates to check on cancer drugs, Rocky!)
Time for the Superintendent to realize kids should not be treated like lab animals. We have lab animals for that.
(now watch me squeeze a glowing mouse between two plates to check on cancer drugs, Rocky!)
4
I think testing should be voluntary and entirely decoupled from schooling. Students should only take tests when they are ready and when they want to.
At the same time, any test given should only be done to achieve accreditation and any and all accreditation should have meaning in the job market.
6
lots of knees jerking around here.
First of all MAP is not a standardized test. It is adaptive - meaning it gets more difficult as you get more correct. Therefore it doesn't have meaning in terms of how well a student does on the state standards for their grade level. It lets you know how a student does vs. their peers nation wide (who have taken the MAP test) measured agains grade level / gender / age/ whatever. Which to me is more interesting and useful in a different way than a standardized test.
Second it allows a someone to measure a student against themselves. Not are you better or worse than your peers but are YOU improving from point A in time to point B in time. Think of all the students who are significantly below grade level; a standardized test tells you nothing but the fact that they are below that standardized level. Not how far or what they are good or not good at. The MAP does this. The same for Above grade level kids who ace a standardized test. We don't know how advanced they are or what particular skills they have or should work on at their level. Again the MAP can tell both of those things.
As for teachers complaining that students don't take it seriously I can hardly believe people would buy that as a reason to eject a part of the school day. What is next? Washington State History. I mean what 17 year old takes that seriously. Plus, why take it seriously if your teacher says it is worthless? News outlets repeating that as a point against the test is plain stupid.
As a teacher ofmiddle school kids I would point out that students generally take the test about as seriously as we encourage them to. Make the points of improvement part of a grade. Hype them up to "level up" over their previous score. Whatever. Just don't tell them it is pointless.
And Cienna, reach out to others at different schools - maybe schools that have been successful with the test so you don't get sour grapes mixed in with your results. Pick a school in the south end so the success isn't written off as institutional privilege. And all the Seattle Liberals (whom I count myself amongst) get a grip. It isn't extraordinary activism it is at least in part laziness. Kids aren't treated like lab rats when we try to measure if they have slept through a year of algebra.
More...
First of all MAP is not a standardized test. It is adaptive - meaning it gets more difficult as you get more correct. Therefore it doesn't have meaning in terms of how well a student does on the state standards for their grade level. It lets you know how a student does vs. their peers nation wide (who have taken the MAP test) measured agains grade level / gender / age/ whatever. Which to me is more interesting and useful in a different way than a standardized test.
Second it allows a someone to measure a student against themselves. Not are you better or worse than your peers but are YOU improving from point A in time to point B in time. Think of all the students who are significantly below grade level; a standardized test tells you nothing but the fact that they are below that standardized level. Not how far or what they are good or not good at. The MAP does this. The same for Above grade level kids who ace a standardized test. We don't know how advanced they are or what particular skills they have or should work on at their level. Again the MAP can tell both of those things.
As for teachers complaining that students don't take it seriously I can hardly believe people would buy that as a reason to eject a part of the school day. What is next? Washington State History. I mean what 17 year old takes that seriously. Plus, why take it seriously if your teacher says it is worthless? News outlets repeating that as a point against the test is plain stupid.
As a teacher ofmiddle school kids I would point out that students generally take the test about as seriously as we encourage them to. Make the points of improvement part of a grade. Hype them up to "level up" over their previous score. Whatever. Just don't tell them it is pointless.
And Cienna, reach out to others at different schools - maybe schools that have been successful with the test so you don't get sour grapes mixed in with your results. Pick a school in the south end so the success isn't written off as institutional privilege. And all the Seattle Liberals (whom I count myself amongst) get a grip. It isn't extraordinary activism it is at least in part laziness. Kids aren't treated like lab rats when we try to measure if they have slept through a year of algebra.
7
Sorry gang, but this knee-jerk aversion to the MAP is distressing and one-sided. It's been asked who benefits? My answer is parents and kids.
I've got three kids in SPS. They take the MAP twice a year. The staff shares the results with us. It has given us years of useful trend data in how our kids are doing, and informed how we can work with them and their teachers to make sure they are prioritizing areas in need of improvement. It is a very useful tool for a parent wondering how they can help their kids do well in school.
As to the comment that no one likes this... that's is not my observation. It has been well received broadly with parents we interact with at elementary, middle and high school levels. So just be aware, as with all hot issues, there are two sides to the coin.
I've got three kids in SPS. They take the MAP twice a year. The staff shares the results with us. It has given us years of useful trend data in how our kids are doing, and informed how we can work with them and their teachers to make sure they are prioritizing areas in need of improvement. It is a very useful tool for a parent wondering how they can help their kids do well in school.
As to the comment that no one likes this... that's is not my observation. It has been well received broadly with parents we interact with at elementary, middle and high school levels. So just be aware, as with all hot issues, there are two sides to the coin.
8
Sounds like we have our first candidate for conversion to a charter school under the new state law.
9
Just going to repost the anonymous post above so people will see it.
More...
lots of knees jerking around here.
First of all MAP is not a standardized test. It is adaptive - meaning it gets more difficult as you get more correct. Therefore it doesn't have meaning in terms of how well a student does on the state standards for their grade level. It lets you know how a student does vs. their peers nation wide (who have taken the MAP test) measured against grade level / gender / age/ whatever. Which to me is more interesting and useful in a different way than a standardized test.
Second it allows a someone to measure a student against themselves. Not are you better or worse than your peers but are YOU improving from point A in time to point B in time. Think of all the students who are significantly below grade level; a standardized test tells you nothing but the fact that they are below that standardized level. Not how far or what they are good or not good at. The MAP does this. The same for Above grade level kids who ace a standardized test. We don't know how advanced they are or what particular skills they have or should work on at their level. Again the MAP can tell both of those things.
As for teachers complaining that students don't take it seriously I can hardly believe people would buy that as a reason to eject a part of the school day. What is next? Washington State History. I mean what 17 year old takes that seriously. Plus, why take it seriously if your teacher says it is worthless? News outlets repeating that as a point against the test is plain stupid.
As a teacher of middle school kids I would point out that students generally take the test about as seriously as we encourage them to. Make the points of improvement part of a grade. Hype them up to "level up" over their previous score. Whatever. Just don't tell them it is pointless.
And Cienna, reach out to others at different schools - maybe schools that have been successful with the test so you don't get sour grapes mixed in with your results. Pick a school in the south end so the success isn't written off as institutional privilege. And all the Seattle Liberals (whom I count myself amongst) - get a grip. It isn't extraordinary activism, it is, at least in part, laziness. Kids aren't treated like lab rats when we try to measure if they have slept through a year of algebra.
10
Let's be clear. The specific groups who pushed tying this test to teacher performance, even though the test maker itself says this is an inappropriate use of the test, were Supt. Goodloe-Johnson (now dead), The Alliance for Education headed by "CEO" Sarah Morris (this is the business group whose leaders think they are smarter than teachers, because, well, they are business people), and the League of Education Voters headed by Chris Korsmo (the education group that used to be grassroots activism but now sucks from the teat giving milk-er millions in funding- provided by the Gates Foundation.
As a matter of fact, the Gates Foundation pushes most of the education policy around here because it controls the cash. A lot of cash. And Gates was a big fan of the current teacher's contract.
The union leaders are at fault too, for ever allowing this piece of crap provision into their contract. That was Olga Addae as the leader. Jonathan Nap? Knap? was the VP and is now the leader, but was around for the last contract negotiation. He better get his bargain negotiation guy in line this time around, as word is that the union bargain negotiation guy was only too happy to accept the MAP as the testing mechanism for teacher performance.
As a matter of fact, the Gates Foundation pushes most of the education policy around here because it controls the cash. A lot of cash. And Gates was a big fan of the current teacher's contract.
The union leaders are at fault too, for ever allowing this piece of crap provision into their contract. That was Olga Addae as the leader. Jonathan Nap? Knap? was the VP and is now the leader, but was around for the last contract negotiation. He better get his bargain negotiation guy in line this time around, as word is that the union bargain negotiation guy was only too happy to accept the MAP as the testing mechanism for teacher performance.
11
Building on Roses' comment, these groups love to push this crap on our district, dribbling a few $100K-$1M initially, then back off saying " now fly little bird, on your meager General Fund budget". That's happened with MAP and that's what is going to happen with their latest fad du jour the Urban Teacher Residency program. Year four it's ours, baby! UTR is just TFA without all the jizz.
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