The exaggerated power of test scores
Test scores should be information at a teacher’s disposal, not information used to dispose of teachers.
The New York State Board of Regents passed the new regulations, which allow scores on state standardized tests to account for up to 40 percent of a teacher’s evaluation. Several researchers expressed concern about this, before the vote, in a letter. At least two board members spoke up against this change, and three voted against it. Kathleen Cashin said that this would lead to even more reliance on test prep. Roger Tilles pointed out that the districts that can’t afford to develop local assessments will be forced to use state assessments for the full 40 percent of the evaluation.
We need tests, including standardized tests. As a teacher, I want to know promptly how my students did on a given test. (Often the results don’t come back until the following year.) I would like to look at the questions and my students’ answers, instead of relying on diagnostic reports that tell me that such-and-such a student needs to work on “finding the main idea.”
The tests are one way of verifying that students have learned what they are supposed to learn. But they cannot be the only way, or even close. In English language arts, the tests can be especially misleading, as they are
