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

Grad test in, "non-graduation" up could very well mean that kids are not graduating because of the test or non-grad could be up because of other things too. What I want to know is how many kids are failing to graduate solely because they did not pass the test.

Art

-----Original Message-----
From: Monty Neill <monty@fairtest.org>
To: arn-l@interversity.org
Sent: Mon, 3 Dec 2007 7:44 am
Subject: Re: [arn-l] FairTest op ed versus grad tests in Phil Inquirer today


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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