At a recent town hall meeting focused on Hispanic education one of the high school students asked President Obama if he could do something to reduce all the tests students have to take.
The President's answer seemed to contradict his policy on using standardized tests for accountability. Is he signaling a policy shift, or is the President misunderstanding his administration’s policy?
His answer differentiated between regular subject tests and standardized tests. He told the students emphatically if they wanted a break on regular tests, "Tough luck!" Students had to study hard, take tests, and find out if they understood the subject matter.
Then he said, "What is true, though, is that we have piled on a lot of standardized tests on our kids."
Standardized tests, the President explained, provide a baseline of where students are at and should be used as a tool to diagnose strengths and weaknesses. They should not require special study and should not be "pressure-packed."
Standardized Tests Should Not Be High Stakes Tests
What has been happening, the President said, is that standardized tests were being "used to punish students and, in some cases, schools."
He said, "…let's find a test that everybody agrees makes sense…and let's make sure that that's not the only way we are judging whether a school is doing well."
President Obama did not want schools "teaching to the test" because then students were learning less about the world, culture, science, and math, and were just learning tricks. Test preparation made education "boring," and students learned more when they were interested.
He summed up with, "…you're going to have to take some tests, man, you're not going to get completely out of that."
What is President Obama Saying?
If standardized tests are used to account for a school's success or failure, that’s high stakes testing.
When the President says if "everybody can agree on a test that makes sense” does he mean that buy-in by the stakeholders makes accountability to the test fair?
Or, is he suggesting that when other criteria besides standardized tests are included in the accountability system, then the test's stake is no longer high?
Could the President be saying that standardized tests are diagnostic tests and should not be part of the accountability system? That would be a policy shift.
Background Information:
PCM Core Article: What is Accountability in Education Policy?
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