The Tragedy of Testing Errors

Last year there were major disruptions in testing that were well documented & despite that the contract was renewed with CTB McGraw-Hill.  No matter how you sugar coat it, this was a major screw up.  What I would like to share with you is how this impacts students.

Last year, during this debacle I served our district as a technology coach.  On the days of online testing I worked to make sure our equipment was communicating the testing vendor.  Let me assure you, all was well from our end.  As students were working through the test several of them were asked to wait between every question.  Some were even asked to move to a different machine.  I witnessed one student in particular that was forced to restart her test more than seven times before she could successfully complete the assessment.  No matter how the testing environment is set up, it is a stressful time for those taking the tests.  Imagine being this student that was forced to restart the test multiple times.  Do you think you will perform you best?

Now imagine that you are set to take the tests the next year.  The school even ran the test to be sure that everything was working properly.  The first week of testing went well at other buildings.  Now it is your turn to test and the same error messages pop up again.  This forces you to restart your test multiple times.  Once again the test cannot be truly considered standardized at this point.  Beyond that, what would your emotional state be after experiencing this two years in a row?

Would it make you feel better knowing that the State Superintendent shares your frustration?

It doesn't comfort me any.  As a former technology coach, I am all about incorporating technology into instruction.  I love the idea of using technology tools to ease the burden of assessment.  When a company has proven they are not capable of handling the job, do we trust them to do it again?  When we have so much riding on this, I would think not.  I am glad that we don't have third grade reading tests online.  How would you like to be the one explaining to a parent that their child is being retained after failing the reading assessment?  Try explaining that the test was interrupted seven times before it could be completed.  Not including the lower grades in the online assessments may be one of the wisest decisions of this administration.  Maybe we should have maintained the paper pencil assessments.  Online testing is a great idea, but with so much at stake we probably shouldn't continue down this path with the current vendor.  

Beyond any doubt, this has been an absolute waste of taxpayer money from someone that claims to be a strong conservative that is fiscally responsible.