An overreliance on standardized, high stakes testing can
strangle our schools. Change the system to include more balanced assessment.
That’s the message our School Board sent the General Assembly of Virginia via a
resolution it passed unanimously earlier this week.
·
there is little research verifying Virginia’s
use of criterion-referenced test results as measures of the growth of student
achievement or staff performance;
·
we value deep, meaningful learning, as opposed
to the superficial level of learning that results from an over-emphasis on that
which can be easily tested by standardized tests;
·
focusing only on test prep steals the joy of
learning and teaching from students and educators; and
·
accountability is important, but an accountability
system based primarily on high stakes, standardized testing will not prepare
our students for the future.
While calling on the Virginia General Assembly to improve the accountability system, the School Board recognizes that we are not powerless. The Board emphasized that even in an era of high stakes testing, we need to stick with the instructional approaches that we know effectively promote student engagement and achievement. The Board called on staff members
to help students master the content and skills of the
curriculum by continuing to promote the joy of teaching and learning with a
focus on deep, meaningful, transformative learning, rather than an
over-emphasis on just covering content that can be easily assessed by
standardized tests.
It is hard work to focus on deep, meaningful learning that helps
students master the content and skills of the curriculum, including that which
is assessed by state exams. But at least it is a little easier when you work in
a division with a School Board, other teachers, principals and a superintendent
who do not expect you to focus exclusively on boring memorization of facts to
enhance test performance.
Kudos to our School Board for sticking up for deep, meaningful
learning.
Related Links:
Washington Post article featuring the resolution passed by our division and others
Daily Press editorial calling for reform of Virginia's approach to standardized testing
3 Steps to Decreasing Teacher Dropouts
The Joy of Teaching and LearningDaily Press editorial calling for reform of Virginia's approach to standardized testing
3 Steps to Decreasing Teacher Dropouts
The resolution adopted by the School Board was adapted from a
template provided by the Virginia Association of School Superintendents and
echoes similar statements from other School Boards and professional associations
in the United States.
