Is Robo-Grading Driving the Design of Common Core Tests?
As we read of the 17 states across the country where a strong backlash has grown against Common Core, my own state of California is conspicuous by its absence. California has yet to see a strong reaction against the Common Core, for several reasons. The State Superintendent of Education, Tom Torlakson, has taken the slow approach recommended by leaders like Randi Weingarten. As a result, California students will take only trial tests from the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) for the first time this coming spring, and they will not be used for accountability purposes. And the state will not ask students to take the old STAR tests, aligned to the old state standards. The California Teachers Association has thrown its support behind Common Core implementation, and the state is spending $1.25 billion to prepare for the transition.
Lots of open questions remain, however. There has been a strong emphasis on the new standards being "more rigorous." In other states, that has translated into difficult tests, and a sharp drop in the number of students considered proficient. English learners, who are numerous in California, have done very poorly on the Common Core tests used thus far in other states. So the first question is whether the SBAC tests will yield similar drops in proficiency.
Another big question has to do with the qualities of the tests, and how we are measuring skills. One of the selling points of this shift has been that these tests will be better able to measure critical
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| http://edreach.us/2013/11/01/chalkles-robo-grading-and-the-technology-double-standard/ |