Reply to "Teacher of the Year" quits over Common Core tests

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote]Anonymous wrote:
^ EXACTLY. Testing isn't the problem, and nor are the standards. It's what school districts do with the test results, and how they remediate the problems that is the issue.

You get the test results 6 months later and a child gets a 1, 2, 3, 4. No details on where a child needs specific help. The tests are garbage. In many grades you won't even have the same teachers. ... How will the tests advance any child. [/quote]

If a school needs standardized tests once a year to figure out how to teach the kids, there are huge problems in that school.  And it appears that the tests don't help with the teaching end of things anyway.

I believe that most (and let's really hope all) schools do not need those tests to tell them what they already know.  Just by sitting with a kid for about 30 minutes and having them work on some tasks (so that you can see how they attack their work), you will get a whole lot of information on how to teach the student.  You will gain more as you observe.  The tests are inconsequential and pretty much a waste of money.  Having an experienced teacher and having more adults present to give the student individualized instruction is what will make a difference.  If there is no money or structure to provide those interventions, the student is screwed.  The student may already be screwed if there are drugs and alcohol use in the home.  I have seen that---kids with fetal alchohol syndrome and crack babies---these kids are behind from day one.  We need to focus on the kids, one at a time.  Mass testing and measurement of groups takes the focus away from each child.  No Child Left Behind=No Teacher Left. [/quote]

There's no reason that NCLB testing couldn't provide back more detailed individual diagnostics, other than that state ed officials didn't pursue it.  Though, isn't this the first year for PARCC/Smarter Balanced, etc?  Likewise there's nothing preventing schools from doing the kinds of individualized observations and interventions with students other than that schools are unwilling to make that investment.  Blaming testing or getting rid of testing doesn't change any of that.[/quote]

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