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Interversity Quotes"I think it's time to ask the Standardistos: Where's the test for compassion? For honesty? For curiosity? For moral commitment? Until they can answer, let's tell them to shut up." —Susan Ohanian (One Size Fits Few: The Folly of Educational Standards) Interversity ProjectsEchoes of Orwell:The purpose of this webforum is to promote a lively discussion among students and faculty alike about George Orwell's 1984 and the parallels or echoes found in today's society. |
[Author Prev][Author Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Author Index][Thread Index] Fw: TAKS test not gone yet
One amusing inference we might draw from this article is that a major reason for replacing TAKS with end of course exams is that kids forget what they were taught, leading to lots of refresher time to prepare them for TAKS. That is, the state is acknowledging that whatever it may test kids on, inevitably much will be forgotten. But of course, they should be denied a diploma if they do not learn what they will soon likely forget. Monty Monty -------------------------------------------------------------------------- TAKS test not gone yet By Rhiannon Meyers The Daily News Published July 1, 2007 It ain't over yet. Gov. Rick Perry has signed a law replacing high school TAKS tests with 12 end-of-course exams. But students will continue to take the state's standardized exam for years to come. The law takes effect in the 2011-12 school year - and only for the ninth-grade class. Students in the upper-level grades will continue to take the high-stakes exit-level TAKS test until the class of 2015 enters 12th grade. The exit exam drew criticism after 43,000 Texas seniors - 16 percent of the class of 2007 - failed the test and subsequently didn't earn diplomas. Until the law takes effect, test writers at the Texas Education Agency will be working feverishly to develop new end-of-course exams for high school students only, said spokeswoman Suzanne Marchman. The state has already implemented an algebra I end-of-course exam. TEA plans to implement geometry and biology end-of-course exams next spring. Before 2011, TEA will have to develop nine more end-of-course exams for courses in English, algebra II, world geography, world history and U.S. history. Unlike TAKS, which is a cumulative test, end-of-course exams will assess students only on the courses they have taken in any one year, the bill's co-author Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, wrote in a statement. "With the TAKS test, students were being tested on material not necessarily fresh in their minds," Marchman said. "Some schools felt they spent a great deal of time reviewing old material before moving on to the new." According to the new law, end-of-course exams will be worth 15 percent of a student's final grade. Some of the test questions will be designed to measure college readiness, the new law mandates. TEA will spend the next few years determining how to create questions that measure college preparedness, Marchman said. While the law does alter the state's testing arena, most schools will continue to go about business as usual for the next few years. Some may choose to voluntarily "test out" some end-of-course exams before they officially go into effect. So the only change some high school students may notice is more tests. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 2007 The Galveston County Daily News Monty Neill, Ed.D. Co-Executive Director FairTest 342 Broadway Cambridge, MA 02139 617-864-4810 fax 617-497-2224 monty@fairtest.org http://www.fairtest.org Donate: https://secure.entango.com/servlet/donate/MnrXjT8MQqk
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