Re: FairTest op ed versus grad tests in Phil Inquirer today

["Monty Neill" <monty@fairtest.org>]

The count from California alone is accurate re: increases in non-graduation 
when grad test came in. That alone makes FairTest's claim of tens of 
thousands accurate.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: <aburke5054@aol.com>
To: <arn-l@interversity.org>
Sent: Saturday, December 01, 2007 12:24 PM
Subject: Re: [arn-l] FairTest op ed versus grad tests in Phil Inquirer today


> Warren (and maybe some of the others) seems to be "modelling" exit exams 
> and grad rates.  I'm less interested in "estimates" derived from models 
> than I am in counts of kids who did not graduate solely because of failure 
> to pass an exit exam.  That's a countable event, so count it.
>
> Dee and Jacobs said, "These results suggest that exit exams have the 
> capacity to improve student and school performance but also appear to have 
> exacerbated the inequality in educational attainment."  So clearly the 
> problem is not simply the exit exam - but also not doing enough to get 
> kids ready for it and not doing enough for kids who don't pass it on the 
> first try.  I don't see these issues addressed in the exit exam research. 
> It's interesting that the Public Agenda poll says that most students and 
> most teachers support a high school exit exam.
>
> Art
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Monty Neill <monty@fairtest.org>
> To: arn-l@interversity.org
> Sent: Thu, 29 Nov 2007 9:21 am
> Subject: Re: [arn-l] FairTest op ed versus grad tests in Phil Inquirer 
> today
>
>
> Warren and colleagues have done the most detailed national study on the
> impact of grad tests on graduation rates. They concluded that more than 
> 40K
> students were denied a diploma based on the tests. That was before CA
> implemented them; and TX rate of denial has been increasing. A summary of
> his research is at
> http://www.fairtest.org/examarts/August%202006/Grad_tests_Droppouts.html.
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <aburke5054@aol.com>
>
> To: <arn-l@interversity.org>
>
> Sent: Saturday, November 17, 2007 12:13 PM
>
> Subject: Re: [arn-l] FairTest op ed versus grad tests in Phil Inquirer 
> today
>
>
>
> > What is the source for the claim that "tens of thousands of students
> are
> > denied diplomas each year simply because they did not pass a
> standardized
> > state test?"
>
> >
>
> > Art
>
> >
>
> >
>
> > -----Original Message-----
>
> > From: Monty Neill <monty@fairtest.org>
>
> > To: care@yahoogroups.com; ARN-state@yahoogroups.com;
> > ndsgroup@yahoogroups.com; ARN-L <arn-l@interversity.org>;
> arn2-strategy
> > <arn2-strategy@yahoogroups.com>
>
> > Sent: Fri, 16 Nov 2007 8:40 am
>
> > Subject: [arn-l] FairTest op ed versus grad tests in Phil Inquirer
> today
>
> >
>
> > The following op ed appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer today:
>
> >
>
> > Exit exams aren't aiding education
>
> > Monty Neill and Lisa Guisbond are with FairTest, the National Center
> for
> > Fair &
>
> > Open Testing
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >  Across the nation, tens of thousands of students are denied diplomas
> each
> > year
>
> > simply because they did not pass a standardized state test. After 12
> years
> > of
>
> > playing by the rules, working hard, and completing all other
> graduation
>
> > requirements, students can find that their future hinges on just one
> or
> > two
>
> > points.
>
> >
>
> >  Misguided exit-exam mandates have increased dropout rates,
> especially
> > among
>
> > minority groups, and have focused classroom teaching on test
> preparation
> > rather
>
> > than 21st century skills. The full record in states like Texas and
> > Massachusetts
>
> > shows that high-stakes tests are the wrong prescription for what ails
> > public
>
> > education. That's why Pennsylvania civil rights and disability
> advocates,
>
> > teachers, administrators, school board members, public school
> parents, and
>
> > others have expressed serious concerns about Gov. Rendell's
> high-stakes
> > testing
>
> > plan.
>
> >
>
> >  A poll from the respected Susquehanna Institute shows they are not
> alone.
> > By a
>
> > landslide 62 percent to 31 percent, Pennsylvanians responding to a
> recent
> > survey
>
> > opposed denying diplomas to students if they fail a statewide test
> but
> > have
>
> > passed all their classes.
>
> >
>
> >  The problems exit exams are meant to solve are certainly real.
> > Pennsylvania,
>
> > like most states, has gaps in educational access, quality and
> outcomes.
> > But exit
>
> > exams won't cure these ills. For too many students, the cure is worse
> than
> > the
>
> > disease. Rather than provide better education and expanded
> opportunities,
>
> > graduation tests add punishment - denial of a diploma - to those who
> most
> > need
>
> > help.
>
> >
>
> >  Proponents incorrectly claim that exit exams will narrow achievement
> > gaps. The
>
> > National Assessment of Educational Progress reports no narrowing of
> > achievement
>
> > gaps at the high school level among racial groups. Nor have average
> high
> > school
>
> > scores increased.
>
> >
>
> >  Real progress has been elusive because high-stakes testing,
> including No
> > Child
>
> > Left Behind, undermines rather than improves education. Untested
> subjects
> > are
>
> > ignored, while tested topics narrow to test-coaching programs. Test
> prep
> > is like
>
> > holding a match to a thermostat and believing the room is warmer:
> Scores
> > rise on
>
> > that test; real learning does not.
>
> >
>
> >  The most thorough independent national research also confirms a link
> > between
>
> > graduation tests and higher dropout rates. Texas introduced exit
> exams in
> > 1992.
>
> > Fifteen years later, Texas used test results to deny diplomas to a
> record
> > 40,200
>
> > students in the Class of 2007. In 2006, Boston's annual dropout rate
> rose
>
> > sharply, from 7.7 percent to 9.9 percent. At the same time, the city
> > suffered a
>
> > wave of youth violence. Boston City Council issued a report stating,
> > "Students .
>
> > . . expressed massive frustration and boredom with the endless
> drilling
> > and
>
> > practice of the MCAS [Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System,
> a
> > statewide
>
> > standardized test] . . . and test preparation. . . . Far too many
> students
>
> > describe their school experience as an MCAS-centric environment. . .
> . [As
> > a
>
> > result,] the incentive for students to remain in school is tenuous."
>
> >
>
> >  Tests have "measurement error," which means some children will fail
> even
> > though
>
> > they know the subject. Being able to take the test more than once
> helps,
> > but
>
> > does not solve this problem. There is also the well-documented
> problem of
> > test
>
> > anxiety: An accomplished student may freeze, not do well on the test,
> and
> > be
>
> > denied a diploma.
>
> >
>
> >  No one wants to see youth leave school without the skills needed for
> > success.
>
> > Exam supporters say students shouldn't get meaningless diplomas if
> they
> > can't
>
> > pass the tests. But it's a student's overall transcript that makes a
> > diploma
>
> > truly meaningful. For example, high school grades are better
> predictors of
>
> > college success than the SAT. A standardized test is not a solid
> > foundation for
>
> > establishing meaning.
>
> >
>
> >  The individual and societal costs of denying a diploma based on a
> state
> > test
>
> > score are high. Students without diplomas earn much less, are far
> less
> > likely to
>
> > maintain stable families, and are far more likely to end up in
> prison.
>
> >
>
> >  Pennsylvania must take strong action to address the problems of
> unequal
> > schools
>
> > and inadequate outcomes, from providing funding equity among rich and
> poor
> > towns
>
> > to stronger staff development and high-quality assessments. That
> means
> > ensuring
>
> > all children experience a well-rounded education and avoiding the
> > magic-bullet
>
> > false solution of a high-stakes graduation test.
>
> >
>
> > Monty Neill is co-executive director of FairTest, and Lisa Guisbond
> is
> > testing
>
> > reform analyst. E-mail Neill at monty@fairtest.org.
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >
>
> > Find this article at:
>
> >
> http://www.philly.com/inquirer/opinion/20071116_Exit_exams_arent_aiding_education.html
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >
>
> > Monty Neill, Ed.D.
>
> > Co-Executive Director
>
> > FairTest
>
> > 342 Broadway
>
> > Cambridge, MA 02139
>
> > 617-864-4810 x 101;  fax 617-497-2224
>
> > monty@fairtest.org
>
> > http://www.fairtest.org
>
> > Donate: https://secure.entango.com/servlet/donate/MnrXjT8MQqk=
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >
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