Assessment Reform Tools: Research, Books and More, November 2012
“Value Added” Instability In “On the Stability (or not) of Being Irreplaceable,” researcher Bruce Baker excoriates a report from The New Teacher Project that labels teachers whose “value added” scores place them in the top 20% as “irreplaceables.” Baker’s study of five years data from New York City reveals great instability in ranking teachers based […]
Testing Reform in the News — October 31 – November 8, 2012
With the 2012 election now history, we can return to the hard work of making politicians see the light about the need for real assessment reform. FairTest offers several new columns and fact sheets as resources for that ongoing campaign along with links to a number of good pieces by our allies Why So Many […]
Testing Reform in the News — October 25 – 31, 2012
Assessment reform pressure continued to escalate even as Hurricane Sandy slammed ashore. Best wishes to our friends and allies in the mid-Atlantic states as they recover from the storm. Arne Duncan’s Legacy: Doubling Down on High Stakes Testing Failureshttp://education.nationaljournal.com/2012/10/what-has-arne-done-for-us.php#2258005Texas Tests Breed Schools for Scandalhttp://www.texastribune.org/texas-education/public-education/guest-column-tests-breed-schools-scandal/ Testing in Kindergarten — Whatever Happened to Story Time?http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/testing-consumes-kindergarten-class-time-in-chicago/Content?oidw40293 Hudson Valley […]
Testing Reform in the News — October 18 – 24, 2012
The drumbeat of criticism focused on test-driven education “reform” continues to strengthen. With sufficient pressure after Election Day, more public officials may begin to shift from chanting “no excuses” rhetoric and doubling-down on failed policies to examining the evidence and moving toward saner policies. Politicians Blame Their Own Team for Education Failures — from FairTest […]
Testing Reform in the News — October 11 – 17 , 2012
Another round of thoughtful, evidence-based analyses of the educational fallout from the test-and-punish status quo, issues which the Presidential debates continue to ignore Why Almost all School Reforms Fail — They Ignore Poverty’s Impact http://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentID=16889 Testing Reform Can Help Save Public Education http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/finding_common_ground/2012/10/there_is_a_… It’s Time to Get Rid of Standardized Tests http://ideas.time.com/2012/10/11/why-its-time-to-get-rid-of-standardized… Something Is Very […]
Testing Reform in the News — October 2 – October 9, 2012
Another week with lots of news and commentary about assessment reform . . . plus ever more challenges from die-hard defenders of the failing, high-stakes testing status quo. More Tests, But Not Much Better: New Common Core Assessments Are “Pigs in a Poke” http://tinyurl.com/CommonCoreFacts Texas District Rebuilds After Fraudulent Scheme to Push Out Low Test […]
Testing Reform in the News — September 26 – October 2, 2012
Another incredibly visible week for assessment reformers. Lots of media coverage documenting the damage from high-stakes testing as well as better alternatives. Here are some of the best editorials, stories, columns and blogs. Putting the SAT in Its Place http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-sat-college-20120926,0,2884825.story Outdated SAT Needs to be Retired http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/outdated-sat-needs-to-be-retired/2012/09/26/0d0f60da-07a9-11e2-afff-d6c7f20a83bf_story.html California Reduces Role of Student Test Scores in […]
View New Webinar on Authentic Performance Assessment.
View webinar on authentic performance assessment, featuring presenters from FairTest, Learning Record and NY Performance Standards Consortium. High Quality Assessment for Instruction and Accountability An FEA Webinar High-quality assessment is an essential part of teaching and learning and provides valuable information about school quality and progress. This webinar will present two methods for gathering detailed […]
FairTest News Release on the release of the 2012 SAT Scores
for further information:Bob Schaeffer (239) 395-6773cell (239) 699-0468 for use with annual SAT scores release – Monday, September 24, 2012 CONTINUING SAT DECLINE SHOWS FAILURE OF TEST-DRIVEN, K-12 SCHOOLS; AVERAGE SCORE PLUNGED 20 POINTS IN PAST SIX YEARS; U.S. EDUCATION “HEADED IN WRONG DIRECTION” SAT results released today show that No Child Left Behind (NCLB) […]
Testing Reform in the News — September 10 – September 17 , 2012
The Chicago Teachers strike catalyzed criticism of high-stakes testing, generating hundreds of good news stories and opinion columns. Here’s a selection of the best, including several written by FairTest or quoting us. Chicago Teachers Say “No” to High-Stakes Testing http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-guisbond/chicago-teachers-say-no-t_b_1881366.html Chicago Strike Exposes Key Issues http://education.nationaljournal.com/2012/09/chicago-strike-exposes-key-que.php#2244237 Experience Shows High Stakes Testing Has Been a Failure […]