Teachers worry about more testing under new Louisiana evaluations
When Scott Harris looked at recommended French tests he could use to measure his students’ progress this school year — and, by extension, his own success or failure as a teacher — he felt stymied by the lack of suitable options. For instance, the state’s suggested tests for Harris’ French I students at Louisiana State University Laboratory School featured sample questions ranging from basic vocabulary to asking students whether a passage from a 19th-century French novel represented commentary on the evolution of medicine.
Scott Steckler, principal at George Cox Elementary School in Gretna conducts a pre-observation interview with teacher Lora Johnson in his office Thursday, October 18, 2012. “…For the most part the teachers are accepting of those achievement goals that have been determined by the school district,” Steckler said.(Photo by Ted Jackson, Nola.com / The Times-Picayune)“I thought, ‘I wouldn’t even do this to my older kids,’ ” Harris said.
For educators who teach subjects outside the state’s longstanding testing system, like foreign language, music, and art, the adjustment to the new teacher evaluation system has been particularly jarring. They are
Scott Steckler, principal at George Cox Elementary School in Gretna conducts a pre-observation interview with teacher Lora Johnson in his office Thursday, October 18, 2012. “…For the most part the teachers are accepting of those achievement goals that have been determined by the school district,” Steckler said.(Photo by Ted Jackson, Nola.com / The Times-Picayune)For educators who teach subjects outside the state’s longstanding testing system, like foreign language, music, and art, the adjustment to the new teacher evaluation system has been particularly jarring. They are