High Stakes Assessments
High
stakes assessments come in many forms and are used for a wide variety of
purposes in different countries, schools, districts, and states. The writing
below reflects my perspectives on this type of assessments as a teacher and a
parent.
Definition:
A high-stakes test is any test used to make important decisions about students,
educators, schools, or districts, most commonly for the purpose of
accountability—i.e., the attempt by federal, state, or local government
agencies and school administrators to ensure that students are enrolled in
effective schools and being taught by effective teachers.
High
stakes assessments at ICSA
Measures
of Academic Progress (MAP) are applied for all students from grade 1 to 10 twice
per year. High school seniors, grade 10-12, take SAT plus semester exams twice
per year.
The
difference between MAP and exams is the time tests are taken place. MAP is often
held in the fall and the spring, while exams are administered at the end of
each semester.
However,
the scores from the above assessments are not used for moving up. In the other
words, there is nearly no case of repeating grade. So are no bonuses or rewards
given to teachers whose students score high, meaning no test scores is used for
teacher evaluations.
Why are
high stakes assessments critical for expatriate families?
For
expatriate students, MAP scores can be considered as an entry ticket to enroll
in international schools. No matter what curricula or standards that students
are taught, MAP is a standardized reference for most schools. The
computer-based assessment allows students to proceed to next levels. Its
objectivity and independence from the school curricula makes it reliable. So
far my child has been continuously accepted and placed in appropriate levels in
many different schools through this fact-based evidence.
The impact of high stakes assessments critical on students
and teachers
For
teachers:
In
my teaching subject, LS Visual Arts, I do not deal with the pressure of high
stakes assessment. But as a Math tutor for some HS students including my son; I
definitely feel extremely stressed when there come exams and MAP tests. It is
simply because test results, at least in my opinion, may be used for
evaluations, reputations, and reliability. Teachers are not the unique factor
accountable for test results, students’ effort and family support do. But
results must be counted as one important outcome or target of effective
teaching.
Some
schools in Asian like Vietnam, Singapore, and China where the competition is
used as an engagement in teaching and learning, student test results are being
factored into teacher evaluations, potentially influencing decisions related to
compensation, tenure, hiring, and firing. Recently, many states have changed
teacher-evaluation policies and systems to make student test scores a
“significant” factor in the evaluation process.
In
the States, annual tests for every child in reading and math in grades 3
through 8, plus one in high school, have been a centerpiece of federal
education law since 2002. No Child Left Behind, the current incarnation of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, requires them. But this law has been
overdue for reauthorization since before President Obama took office.
For
students:
If
high stakes assessments are the factors to determine whether students will be
moved up or promote in their education, these are motivations for students to
work harder, learn more, and take the tests more seriously, which can promote
higher student achievement.
The positive side is
that it establishes high expectations for
both educators and students, which can help reverse the cycles of low
educational expectations, achievement, and attainment that have historically
disadvantaged some student groups, particularly students of color, and that
have characterized some schools in poorer communities or more troubled urban
areas.
In
some countries like Vietnam, India, South Korea, and Scotland, there is a
series of high-school-exit/college-entrance exams that are high stakes for
students, as well as semester tests, national tests from LS to MS, MS to HS.
Imagine how stressful education is in these countries. As a result, there are
some cases of painful suicides happening for the youth in India and South
Korea.
It
calls the urgent attention of policy makers, reformers, and educational leaders
in developing new laws, regulations, and school-improvement strategies to
ensure the student performance, the future career related, and the test scors.
The
reform to Modern Assessments:
National
education policy emphasizes a wide range of approaches to assessment, including presentations, performances and
reports. Many competitions created as platforms designed to measure
higher-order skills like creativity, students' well-being and technological
literacy as well as traditional academics, to find and train talents in Math,
Science, and Technology.
The Partnership
for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is a group of
states working together to develop a modern assessment that replaces previous state
standardized tests. It provides better information for teachers and parents to
identify where a student needs help, or is excelling, so they are able to
enhance instruction to meet individual student needs.
States can
administer PARCC in English language arts/literacy and mathematics for grades
3-8 and high school. The tests are fully accessible and
were were developed based on years of research and development. PARCC is computer-based and uses interactive questions to determine
whether students have mastered the fundamentals, as well as higher-order skills
such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and analyzing sources to write
arguments and informational essays – skills not easily assessed by traditional
multiple-choice tests.
The world-class education requires
students not only scores at school but also skills for future jobs. Therefore, high
stakes assessments should not be the only factor to measure the success of learners.
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