With the schoolhouse twelvemonth moving toward the blessed, blessed finish, everything is winding down…except testing. Students all over the country will spend hours this calendar month taking a norm-referenced, computer-based, adaptive "benchmark" exam intended to show students' progress in a diversity of standards.

My schoolhouse'southward pretty anxious near benchmark scores, because they're written into our charter and we are required to bear witness improvement. This, despite the fact that the assessment is seriously flawed, the standard divergence is huge, and generally speaking even the best teacher should await virtually half her kids to exercise worse than they did in the final testing session. Moreover, we're doing this the concluding week of schoolhouse, and we're too required to requite cumulative finals in all core areas. Our poor kids don't stand a chance. I'm trying to toe the party line, merely I'm having trouble with this.

I'm Supposed to Say: This test will really aid the states, guys! It'll help your teachers make up one's mind what you've mastered and where you're struggling, and then we tin can brand sure you lot're learning exactly what you need to know.
I Actually Say: Oh, you got a 713 in math and an 841 in reading? Um, that's…skilful? Perchance?
I Want to Say: This test is not aligned to the aforementioned standards every bit our state standardized examination, nor is it in the same format. It's non even scored in a like style. The scores have such a wide range that they're basically meaningless, and fifty-fifty though we went through hours of preparation to interpret them, I don't know a single teacher in the schoolhouse who tin can tell y'all what these scores really signify.

I'thousand Supposed to Say: It's really of import that you exercise your best on this. Get a practiced night'southward slumber and eat a healthy breakfast the morning of the examination!
I Actually Say: I know y'all've got terminal exams this week, and I know yous're basically tapped out for the year. I'll make you a deal: if you lot'll really try on the criterion test instead of blowing it off completely, I'll requite you a super like shooting fish in a barrel final and no homework all week. Bargain?
I Want to Say: I am and so deplorable.  I don't think that educational abuse is actually a term people use, but it definitely applies to benchmark testing. Making you lot take hours more tests on height of final exams just two weeks after you finish state testing is cruel and morally reprehensible. I'd fix it for you if I could.

I'm Supposed to Say: This is a great opportunity to show what y'all know and demonstrate how much yous've learned this year!
I Actually Say: No, I'm deplorable, you lot can't utilise the classroom computers to research your social studies project. Nobody is allowed to use the internet during criterion testing. But piece of work on it at home. Y'all don't have internet at home? Well…good luck. Possibly the public library?
I Want to Say: Benchmark testing is the reason we tin can't do assemblies or watch the moving-picture show I'd planned or do any kind of enquiry project or take class outside or do a host of other things, because once over again testing is prioritized over instruction.

I'thousand Supposed to Say: This helps the states make up one's mind which parts of the standardized examination you're prepare for and where you need more work.  It's going to brand standardized testing so much easier for you!
I Actually Say: Y'all're right. Your form in my class is a much ameliorate predictor of how you lot'll do on standardized testing than the criterion examination. Just you have to take information technology anyway, so just try to bear witness you lot learned something, okay?
I Want to Say: This examination predicts whether you'll pass state standardized testing with about 80% accurateness. I could exercise better than that if I'd never met y'all, just by looking at your family unit's annual income.

I'g Supposed to Say: Information technology'southward of import that you do well on this.
I Really Say: It'south of import that you exercise well on this.
I Want to Say:  It'south importantfor methat you do well on this. This examination isn't actually about showing what you lot've learned; it's nearly showing what we've taught. We're non measuring your success here, we're measuring the success of the teachers and the schoolhouse, and nosotros need you to perform in order to keep the doors open and the lights on.

We'll make it through criterion testing. I'll bribe the kids with snacks and frequent grade breaks and a lack of homework, and somehow nosotros'll all survive. Most of them will do worse this fourth dimension effectually, since information technology'southward far from optimal testing conditions, so there volition exist a meeting in which nosotros're all reprimanded for non impressing the importance of this exam on the kids.

This problem isn't unique to my school; this examination is HUGE, and more schools are using information technology every yr. For every school that uses the examination, information technology's three extra weeks of testing for the kids, three weeks that school computers are unavailable for educatee utilise, not to mention the thousands of dollars systems beat out out for the testing system.  I'grand convinced that someday, common sense will prevail and those in accuse will realize that it's impossible to teach kids when we spend all our time and resources on assessments. Until then, I'll continue bitter my tongue—every bit much every bit I can—and trying to squeeze in a little quality pedagogy during the breaks betwixt tests.

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