Jersey Jazzman: A Decade of Testing -- But Nothing's Changed

Jersey Jazzman: A Decade of Testing -- But Nothing's Changed:

A Decade of Testing -- But Nothing's Changed

 There are two things in eduction policy on which we should all agree:

- Poverty matters. The correlation between poverty and outcomes is indisputable, but that's only the beginning. We have more and more evidence of a causal link between economic disadvantage and student achievement. Children living in poverty are far less likely to have their developmental needs met, which affects their school work. There is even emerging evidence that poverty affects the development of the brain, and that the environmental stresses caused by poverty lead to hormonal changes that may affect academic outcomes.

- School funding matters. In the words of Bruce Baker:

On balance, it is safe to say that a sizeable and growing body of rigorous empirical literature validates that state school finance reforms can have substantive, positive effects on student outcomes, including reductions in outcome disparities or increases in overall outcome levels.[xi]

While some would like to put up a smokescreen and pretend that school funding is a secondary concern, the plain truth is that money does matter. You can't expect schools and teachers to be held accountable for their students' academic progress unless and until you provide those schools with the resources they need to realize that progress.

Now I understand that there are plenty of folks out there who will try to push back on these rather simple truths. But only the most intransigent won't admit that poverty doesn't have a profound affect on the lives of children, and that schools need adequate resources to do their jobs.

Are we all together on this? OK...

The latest argument for expanding our already expensive, intrusive, curriculum-narrowing testing regime is that somehow it is a civil right for children in disadvantage to take tests. Because without the vital data these tests provide, we'll never see the changes our society needs to make on behalf of children:

Our commitment to fair, unbiased, and accurate data collection and reporting resonates greatest in our work to improve education. The educational outcomes for the children we represent are unacceptable by almost every measurement. And we rely on the consistent, accurate, and reliable data provided by annual statewide assessments to advocate for better lives and outcomes for our children. These data are critical for understanding whether and where there is equal opportunity. [emphasis mine]

That's from the Leadership Conference's statement on behalf of eleven civil rights groups calling for the continuing use of standardized tests. I'd urge you to read the response to this statement from the Network for Public Education, including a ink to an extended essay by Jesse Hagopian. But let me add my own thoughts:

As these civil rights groups are no doubt aware, we have now had over a decade of - See more at: http://jerseyjazzman.blogspot.com/2015/05/a-decade-of-testing-but-nothings-changed.html