Entry # 19: We have the test,
so let's use it to help our kids

In a surprising flash of brilliance, our district decided to administer the Terra Nova to all students in early October rather than the traditional time, usually in April or May. At this point it is unclear if my students will be taking the test again in the spring. I first heard they would not. However, our testing coordinator is under the impression they will.

But that's a whole different story.

Although I am not a huge fan of testing, I found the early test -- and the early return of scores -- quite helpful. During the faculty meeting last Monday our students' scores were distributed, and we spent some time examining them. We discussed trends, how we faired nationally, and how we could use the information to plan more strategically. It was the most productive meeting we have had all year.

A mood of real seriousness overtook the library where we had assembled. Teachers who usually either placed blame on students or parents for low grades or achievement seemed unusually quiet. The test analysis provided by the testing company pointed out weaknesses in skills, homerooms, and content areas; the expectation is that now we know what the problems are, we are responsible for addressing them. There is no room for blame when our students are failing so miserably. There is only room for action.

Some results to celebrate

Our students took both the multiple choice and constructed response type tests. I am more interested in their constructed response scores because that type of test more accurately reflects what they know and what they will need to be able to do as working adults. While my sixth graders still fall below the national average, I found some things to celebrate.

First of all, on most questions we were within five-tenths of a point within the national average. As I examined the class-by-class data for each question, I noticed that several classes on several questions exceeded the national average. During test times, one particular homeroom was in a general uproar because of the teacher's poor management skills. That homeroom had significantly lower scores that pulled the sixth grade's average down. How much better would we have done if the students had actually taken the test seriously in a more conducive environment?

Another interesting result is that, on the reading and language constructed response sections, my homeroom nearly perfectly reflected the national average. I am, of course, interested in my students performing beyond the national average, but I was a little surprised.

I have a fairly evenly distributed homeroom academically. I have students who are reading at the eighth or ninth grade level, and I also have students who read at the first or second grade level. Most, however, are reading between the fourth and fifth grade, still below grade level. For them to perform this well on a sixth grade test (while only being sixth graders for two months) is encouraging.

Finally, I have timely data I can use

I feel a little excited, and a little overwhelmed, as I contemplate how to use the data before me. This is the first time in my teaching career that such clear, specific data has been given to me before my students moved on to the next grade. To tell the truth, despite my regular rumblings about testing zealots who believe standardized tests should measure everything from teacher competence to student intelligence, I actually feel empowered.

Here, in my hands, are a list of skills and how well my students know that material. If I spend my time working on the areas they need help on, their scores should, and will, rise. I can build on their strengths, practice the strategies, and actually make a difference in our scores.

The danger here, of course, is becoming a teacher who spends more time teaching a test than being a teacher. There is so much more to teaching than merely presenting content matter. We must differentiate instruction, include students' interests and wonderings, and create interesting, high-level lessons and projects where students learn to apply the skills we teach them. It can be done, and while I fear I do not have the experience to do this as well as I'd like, I will try.

I have hope. The student reports I got back on students like Darren and Phil reaffirm what I already suspected about them, but now I have more specific information about their specific difficulties. The instructional group report, organized by mastery, partial mastery, and non-mastery of each of the objectives, is helping me arrange my guided reading groups during third quarter. How wonderful to be able to work in a small group of students to help them develop their understanding of an essential concept! How wonderful it will be to watch them gain confidence as learners as they master each skill.

I feel as if someone has given me glasses and I am seeing with 20/20 vision again. The picture I had of most of my students was generally accurate, but the data in front of me clarifies the specifics of what they are able to do.

Tests can help us or be used to hurt us

I know some people will read this and shake their heads thinking that yet another teacher has been lured into the testing frenzy. I do not think so. When tests are used and overused as tools to compare one district to another, to reward or punish teachers and administrators, or to turn our schools into factories that are supposed to turn out cookie-cutter students, I have a problem. However, tests are not inherently evil.

If teachers learn how to interpret data and use that information as feedback to create new strategies, testing can be a very valuable tool. Who of us as teachers does not assess our students regularly? None, or at least none that I would want any child of mine to be associated with. No, testing can be a positive or a negative depending on the motivations of who is using it.

Since we have to test, I am choosing to get something positive out of it.


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