"Teacher of the Year" quits over Common Core tests

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

As for this "OMG the tests!" -- I was in elementary school in the late-1970s-1980s and we had tests like this every year, then, too. Stanford Achievement Tests, anyone?

No. NOt the same. Those tests were validated and tested. Teachers evaluations did not depend on them-nor did the school depend on its life based on those tests.

These tests have been validated and tested too. In fact, my child's school participated in the testing of the PARCC tests last year.

The school-test results relationship is the result of the federal No Child Left Behind Act and has nothing to do with the Common Core standards. The idea of tying teacher performance evaluations to test results also has nothing to do with the Common Core standards.

Describe how they are valid, in detail.

You realize your child likely failed the test, right?

Nobody failed any test last year. Last year the PARCC tests and Smarter Balanced tests got tested. This is the first year that anybody will take the PARCC or Smarter Balanced tests as tests.

Also, "valid" and "validated" mean different things.

States are dropping the PARCC left and right. There are only a few states left -- it's THAT BAD,

What's your point?

12 states plus DC will use PARCC. 18 states will use Smarter Balanced. 20 states will use their own tests.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/what-happens-when-the-common-core-becomes-less--common/2015/01/25/33b8eb58-a2bf-11e4-b146-577832eafcb4_story.html

[Anonymous]

Dropping the test before they've even tried it?

That's clearly not a case of fact-based decision-making going on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

As for this "OMG the tests!" -- I was in elementary school in the late-1970s-1980s and we had tests like this every year, then, too. Stanford Achievement Tests, anyone?

No. NOt the same. Those tests were validated and tested. Teachers evaluations did not depend on them-nor did the school depend on its life based on those tests.

These tests have been validated and tested too. In fact, my child's school participated in the testing of the PARCC tests last year.

The school-test results relationship is the result of the federal No Child Left Behind Act and has nothing to do with the Common Core standards. The idea of tying teacher performance evaluations to test results also has nothing to do with the Common Core standards.

Describe how they are valid, in detail.

You realize your child likely failed the test, right?

Nobody failed any test last year. Last year the PARCC tests and Smarter Balanced tests got tested. This is the first year that anybody will take the PARCC or Smarter Balanced tests as tests.

Also, "valid" and "validated" mean different things.

States are dropping the PARCC left and right. There are only a few states left -- it's THAT BAD,

What's your point?

12 states plus DC will use PARCC. 18 states will use Smarter Balanced. 20 states will use their own tests.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/what-happens-when-the-common-core-becomes-less--common/2015/01/25/33b8eb58-a2bf-11e4-b146-577832eafcb4_story.html

My point is that PARCC IS SO LOUSY that half the states already dropped out.

In 2010, for example, there were 26 states aligned with the testing consortium known as PARCC, but that has whittled down by more than half: Now only 12 states plus the District plan to give the PARCC exam to students, according to the Council of State School Officers, an organization of state education chiefs. Mississippi became the latest state to back out of the PARCC testing consortium this month amid calls from Gov. Phil Bryant (R) to drop the Common Core.

[Anonymous]

Try taking one of the sample tests in reading. They're not easy by any means. Also, remember that these are computer tests, not paper pencil. Many of the students will be taking them on the chrome books. These are timed tests. If you don't have great keyboarding skills, then there's a strong possibility you will not finish the test, which will certainly lead to some anxiety, not to mention low scores. Will the tests be an accurate measure of a student's mastery of academic content if they have poor keyboarding skills? You can access practice tests from the PARCC/Pearson site. Put your kid on it and time him (and watch his anxiety kick in).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

As for this "OMG the tests!" -- I was in elementary school in the late-1970s-1980s and we had tests like this every year, then, too. Stanford Achievement Tests, anyone?

No. NOt the same. Those tests were validated and tested. Teachers evaluations did not depend on them-nor did the school depend on its life based on those tests.

These tests have been validated and tested too. In fact, my child's school participated in the testing of the PARCC tests last year.

The school-test results relationship is the result of the federal No Child Left Behind Act and has nothing to do with the Common Core standards. The idea of tying teacher performance evaluations to test results also has nothing to do with the Common Core standards.

Describe how they are valid, in detail.

You realize your child likely failed the test, right?

Nobody failed any test last year. Last year the PARCC tests and Smarter Balanced tests got tested. This is the first year that anybody will take the PARCC or Smarter Balanced tests as tests.

Also, "valid" and "validated" mean different things.

States are dropping the PARCC left and right. There are only a few states left -- it's THAT BAD,

What's your point?

12 states plus DC will use PARCC. 18 states will use Smarter Balanced. 20 states will use their own tests.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/what-happens-when-the-common-core-becomes-less--common/2015/01/25/33b8eb58-a2bf-11e4-b146-577832eafcb4_story.html

My point is that PARCC IS SO LOUSY that half the states already dropped out.

In 2010, for example, there were 26 states aligned with the testing consortium known as PARCC, but that has whittled down by more than half: Now only 12 states plus the District plan to give the PARCC exam to students, according to the Council of State School Officers, an organization of state education chiefs. Mississippi became the latest state to back out of the PARCC testing consortium this month amid calls from Gov. Phil Bryant (R) to drop the Common Core.

Mississippi dropped out without having ever administered the PARCC test, which raises the question of how they could know that the PARCC IS SO LOUSY. Also, they now plan to develop their own tests. I wonder how good those tests will be? Mississippi, of course, is well-known as leading state in education...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Try taking one of the sample tests in reading. They're not easy by any means. Also, remember that these are computer tests, not paper pencil. Many of the students will be taking them on the chrome books. These are timed tests. If you don't have great keyboarding skills, then there's a strong possibility you will not finish the test, which will certainly lead to some anxiety, not to mention low scores. Will the tests be an accurate measure of a student's mastery of academic content if they have poor keyboarding skills? You can access practice tests from the PARCC/Pearson site. Put your kid on it and time him (and watch his anxiety kick in).

My kid is actually doing practice tests on the Chromebooks in class. She hasn't reported any anxiety.

Also, my kid's teacher field-tested the PARCC tests last year. She reports that the tests went well, and she doesn't expect any problems this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try taking one of the sample tests in reading. They're not easy by any means. Also, remember that these are computer tests, not paper pencil. Many of the students will be taking them on the chrome books. These are timed tests. If you don't have great keyboarding skills, then there's a strong possibility you will not finish the test, which will certainly lead to some anxiety, not to mention low scores. Will the tests be an accurate measure of a student's mastery of academic content if they have poor keyboarding skills? You can access practice tests from the PARCC/Pearson site. Put your kid on it and time him (and watch his anxiety kick in).

My kid is actually doing practice tests on the Chromebooks in class. She hasn't reported any anxiety.

Also, my kid's teacher field-tested the PARCC tests last year. She reports that the tests went well, and she doesn't expect any problems this year.

If your kid is in the top 30 percent of students, then this sounds right.

It's a disaster for the majority of kids. Again, 70 percent of kids will fail. That's been predetermined before anyone even takes the test.

[Anonymous]

DC just took a practice test. DC said it was "hard" because there is an essay portion of the test. I thought it was all multiple choice?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try taking one of the sample tests in reading. They're not easy by any means. Also, remember that these are computer tests, not paper pencil. Many of the students will be taking them on the chrome books. These are timed tests. If you don't have great keyboarding skills, then there's a strong possibility you will not finish the test, which will certainly lead to some anxiety, not to mention low scores. Will the tests be an accurate measure of a student's mastery of academic content if they have poor keyboarding skills? You can access practice tests from the PARCC/Pearson site. Put your kid on it and time him (and watch his anxiety kick in).

My kid is actually doing practice tests on the Chromebooks in class. She hasn't reported any anxiety.

Also, my kid's teacher field-tested the PARCC tests last year. She reports that the tests went well, and she doesn't expect any problems this year.

If your kid is in the top 30 percent of students, then this sounds right.

It's a disaster for the majority of kids. Again, 70 percent of kids will fail. That's been predetermined before anyone even takes the test.

How is it a disaster? What exactly does this "failing" entail, and what effect will it have on a student? How is it different when the PARCC test sets cut scores than when any other test sets cut scores?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC just took a practice test. DC said it was "hard" because there is an essay portion of the test. I thought it was all multiple choice?

No, there is writing. There was writing on the MSAs too -- those truly awful "Brief Constructed Responses".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC just took a practice test. DC said it was "hard" because there is an essay portion of the test. I thought it was all multiple choice?

No, it's a lot of writing.

Some questions are also pages long, with multiple steps. You can spend up to an hour on one problem -- then get it wrong because it's several grade levels beyond you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC just took a practice test. DC said it was "hard" because there is an essay portion of the test. I thought it was all multiple choice?

Nope. There are quite a few lengthy written responses required. One example may be the students read two LONG passages (as in your kid better keep scrolling down the page to be sure they've read the entire text) and then they may be asked to compare the themes from the two stories. Remind your kids not to waste time playing around with all of the color choices with the highlighting tool, because that will just slow them down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC just took a practice test. DC said it was "hard" because there is an essay portion of the test. I thought it was all multiple choice?

No, it's a lot of writing.

Some questions are also pages long, with multiple steps. You can spend up to an hour on one problem -- then get it wrong because it's several grade levels beyond you.

Please provide an example of a pages-long question with multiple steps that somebody might spend an hour on.

And if the question is several grades beyond you, then you are not working at grade level, and it's not surprising if you get it wrong.

[Anonymous]

Also, keep in mind that practice tests likely haven't been timed and aren't necessarily focused on content at all. Teachers need to familiarize students with all of the tools available on the chrome books. There may be quite a bit of conversation going on between teachers and students during these practice sessions, which of course can't happen during the actual test

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I took a sample PARCC test online for 4th grade math to see what all of the discussion was about.

I was surprised at the number of steps involved to get to the right answer for some of the questions.

An example is:
you have 4 teachers teaching a chess class. There are 18 chess boards. They order 3 more cases of 15. If each teacher has the same number of chess boards and the remainder are donated to the library, how many chess boards does each teacher get?

As adults, we can quickly see the answer is 15 but it will take a 4th grader a long time to get there.

My second grader and 3d grader each did it in about 10 seconds. Not sure what the problem is. This is actually a good question I think.

But I don't see the connection to common core