Governments purposely failing students?
Starting March 22nd, ninth- and tenth-grade students have to take an end-of-a-course (EOC) assessment of everything they learned over the year, and it determines whether they graduate high school or not.
You could have a 4.0 GPA, be passing all your classes, and be a good student and still not graduate because you didn't get the 18 points. That means you won't graduate because of one test. To graduate you need 18 points, so students have to get 3 points on each test they take.
At Licking Valley, this year 44% of the junior class are not on track to graduate these new tests. In his blog, Principal Weaver wrote,“Our kids can tell you these tests are a brand-new experience.”
2015 was the start of the PARCC test; AIR is the second new set of tests. The new tests are known as the AIR test because they are made by the American Institutes for Research (AIR) and are different from the OGT because the OGT was longer but easier. The test was on paper rather than the computer. The AIR is more challenging but shorter, and they are on the computer. Most students passed the OGT, and teachers were given data on how well they did and what their struggles were, so the teachers could help them. The OGT also had study material for the students. It's hard to understand why the government changed test because from what I have heard, when Licking Valley had the OGT, a lot of students were passing. With the new AIR test, lots of students are struggling and not doing well on them.
The students and teachers are concerned; Licking Valley is trying to fix the problem because students failing is making the school and teachers look ineffective. In his blog, Principal Weaver wrote, “There is also an incredible amount of research suggesting that students brains grow the most when they make mistakes, yet this test punishes students who are anything but perfect.”
Unfortunately, this graduation crisis created by the government changing the test only shows that students are not good test takers. The teachers are not the problem; it's the new test. With the OGT most students passed; now, 40% are not passing because of the new AIR tests.
It's like trying to read Spanish but not knowing how to read Spanish; you're obviously not going to do well, because you don't know the material. But the government does not tell the teachers what they need to teach us. So, how are students going to take a test on something that we didn't even go over? And the government expects students to still do well on the test?
One solution is that we should take end-of-unit exams several times a year in each class because we spent so much time learning it and it will be fresh in our heads. Students are not going to able to remember everything they learned by the end of the school year.
I asked a couple of teachers of mine what they thought about the test. In response to the question whether she feels responsible for the scores her students earn, LVHS math and chemistry teacher Mrs. Stuckwisch said:
“The short answer is that I feel partially responsible. It is my responsibility to make sure my students learn the required content and become critical thinkers and problem solvers. However, this particular test has a lot of logistical challenges (like how to use the tools on the screen) that I feel I can't prepare my students for. Additionally, the way that the math tests were scored last year is far from fair. Many problems should have been worth multiple points with partial credit possible, but instead, all problems were 1 point. A student who got 2/3 of a problem right got a 0--the same score as a student who didn't even attempt the problem.” LVHS Intervention Specialist Mrs. Tracy said “the emphasis that is placed on preparing students for high stakes tests sacrifices higher level thinking skills because the majority of the EOC test is multiple choice questions, teacher creativity in planning lessons, and limits the curriculum because teachers do not have time to deviate from untested material.”
It's not fair that we go to school for so long then take a test that determines if students graduate or not. It's almost pointless going to school and learning and then taking a test at the end of the year about the content we didn't even really go over. Principal Weaver said, “The main problem with the system have less to with graduation point system and more to do with the test that is at its core.”
When asked whether the state gives teachers enough material to teach students how to be successful on the tests, Mrs. Stuckwisch said:
“No. They have given us a list of content standards and a VERY small amount of practice items. At the very least, we should have a full-length practice test available to give to students. We should also get an itemized analysis of student scores. Right now we have no way of knowing what kinds of problems students got right and wrong. All we know is their total score out of 5. How can we help students improve if we don't know what their weaknesses are?”
The government needs to either lower the points or give the teachers a plan of what is on the test, so the teachers can actually teach students what is on the test and we, the students, can do better on them and not have to retake the test.
