1 / 11

The Myths of Standardized Tests

The Myths of Standardized Tests. Why They Don ’ t Tell You What You Think They Do Phillip & Joan Harris www.themythsofstandardizedtests.com. Purpose of our Presentation.

leora
Télécharger la présentation

The Myths of Standardized Tests

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The Myths of Standardized Tests Why They Don’t Tell You What You Think They Do Phillip & Joan Harris www.themythsofstandardizedtests.com

  2. Purpose of our Presentation • To explain why standardized tests are inappropriate to evaluate student learning, teacher effectiveness and district quality.

  3. Historical Perspective of Testing • An overview of how we got here • Beginnings of testing (ESEA) • Minimum Competency • National standards/state tests • No Child Left Behind/Blueprint

  4. The Test • Student knowledge can be assessed by a limited number of questions in a limited amount of time. • Student achievement/learning can be measured by scores on standardized tests. • Tests are objective and the numbers are thought to be absolute. • Test scores provide citizens the information they need to know about their schools.

  5. Uses • Punishment and rewards motivate people. • High stakes improve performance. • An indirect measure of knowledge or skill (test) is better than a direct measure (actual performance). • Tests predict future success in school and in life. • Student test scores can be used to evaluate teachers.

  6. The Big Picture • Confusion about accountability and evaluation. • Accountability is about transparency. • Evaluation is what policymakers mean when they say accountability.

  7. Equity • Whatever equity issues there are, they weren’t caused by the public education system. • How tests are designed. • Sampling • Norm Referencing • Cut Scores • We can’t achieve equity if the “measuring device” is flawed.

  8. Approaching Equity • If we want to have all children reach the same standard we need to vary time, methods, and resources. • If we are really committed to having all children achieve at a similar level we need to understand how children learn and the conditions needed for learning to occur.

  9. Action Plan • Become informed about Standardized Tests that are used to make decisions in classrooms, schools, and states. • Demand that the purpose of state assessment be made public. • Become aware of the differences between accountability and evaluation. • Be a part of the conversation to discuss the purpose of public education.

  10. Bibliography • Harris, Phillip, Bruce M. Smith, and Joan Harris. The Myths of Standardized Tests: Why They Don’t Tell You What You Think They Do. Lanham, Md., Rowman & Littlefield, 2011. •  Koretz, Daniel. Measuring Up: What Educational Testing Really Tells Us. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2008. •  Popham, W. James, The Truth About Testing: An Educator’s Call to Action. Alexandria, Va.: ASCD, 2001. Transformative Assessment. Alexandria, Va.: ASCD, 2008. • Nichols, Sharon L. and David C. Berliner. Collateral Damage: How High-Stakes Testing Corrupts America’s Schools. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard Education Press, 2007. • Rothstein, Richard, with Rebecca Jacobsen and Tamara Wilder. Grading Education: Getting Accountability Right. New York: Teachers College Press, 2008. • Kohn, Alfie, The Case Against Standardized Testing. Heinemann, 2000. Bonus • A defense against the darks arts of value-added measurement. John Ewing, “Mathematical Intimidation: Driven by Data,”Notices of the AMS (American Mathematical Society), May 2011, pp. 667--73. http://www.ams.org/notices/201105/rtx110500667p.pdf

  11. FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE- SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIF- IC STUDY COMBINED WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF MANY YEARS.

More Related