Re: PACE explores accountability policy impacts on

[George Sheridan <learn@jps.net>]

At 05:26 AM 3/2/2004 -0800, Peter Farruggio wrote:

> From PACE (notice there is no comment on the validity of the standardized 
> tests)...

Some of this stuff is what George Schmidt calls "Unicorn Studies." If you 
don't question the underlying assumptions, you can do all kinds of 
interesting research on the epiphenomena.

Still, the PACE report does point out some negative consequences of the 
high-stakes accountability system, including the fact that testing and test 
preparation are displacing other instructional activities. The quote from a 
teacher included in their press release is pretty significant: "The things 
that cause children to love school and learn on their own are being cut 
out." So is the teacher comment about the amount of time wasted in testing 
instead of learning.

I haven't been able to find the full report, the joint policy brief, or the 
reports from the other research organizations online. I've been waiting for 
these, because I heard a month ago that they were going to report that the 
II/USP (Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program) was a failure.

> PACE explores accountability policy impacts on educators
> http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/02/26_pace.shtml
> By Kathleen Maclay, Media Relations | 26 February 2004
>
> BERKELEY ­ California's educators appreciate state efforts to improve 
> student achievement and low-performing schools, but are frustrated by a 
> lack of support and teaching resources for addressing achievement gaps, 
> according to a new report and joint policy brief.
>
> Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE), a policy research center 
> at the University of California, Berkeley, UC Davis and Stanford 
> University, is presenting its research findings about the impacts of 
> public school accountability policies today (Thursday, Feb. 26) at a news 
> conference in Sacramento.
>
> Joining PACE to present additional data on school accountability reform in 
> California will be the American Institutes for Research and the Consortium 
> for Policy Research in Education. These three independent research 
> organizations will release a joint policy brief, discussing overlapping 
> findings and recommendations.

...

> PACE and the two other organizations investigating these issues have found 
> that, while the policies are producing benefits, they also are having 
> unintended, negative consequences.
>
> For example, testing and test preparation are displacing other 
> instructional activities. "There's so much that they expect you to do that 
> it's science that doesn't get taught, art doesn't get taught," a teacher 
> is quoted as saying in the PACE study. "The things that cause children to 
> love school and learn on their own are being cut out."
>
> Another teacher interviewed estimated that a month of each school year is 
> spent in testing. "And our kids are in school for only eight months. So 
> what is that? Twelve percent? And that is a long time that you cannot 
> really be teaching them..."
>
> Given teachers' time constraints, the PACE report says it is not 
> surprising that they focus on teaching the subjects that form the basis 
> for evaluating student, teacher and school performance.
>
> The study also found another shortcoming of the state system: Annual 
> testing is done late in the school year, with results unavailable until 
> late summer. The delay prevents teachers from using those test scores to 
> inform and modify instruction during the school year, it said.

George Sheridan
Northside School
Cool, California 95614