From the Inquirer.
Pa. coalition favors testing high school seniors
By Dan Hardy Posted on Thu, Apr. 23, 2009
Inquirer Staff Writer
A newly formed statewide coalition added its voice yesterday to the debate about whether Pennsylvania should develop statewide tests that some high school students would have to pass to get a diploma.
The group - which includes teachers' unions, parent groups, advocates for special education and the gifted, school administrators' organizations, and the Pennsylvania NAACP - said it favored the voluntary use of proposed state tests by school districts as final exams in 10 subjects.
But it said it opposed a state Education Department proposal that would make passing such tests a condition for graduation.
Some of the tests, the group said, might also be used in the future to replace Pennsylvania's 11th grade math and reading PSSAs - the state's No Child Left Behind competency tests. But the state test could count for no more than 20 percent of any final course grade, it said.
The group - Coalition for Effective and Responsible Testing (CERT) - announced its proposals at a news conference in Harrisburg.
State Sen. Andrew Dinniman (D, Chester), the minority chair of the Education Committee, joined the coalition members, saying the proposal "provides local teachers and school boards some degree of control over the test."
In a statement, Senate Education Committee Chairman Jeffrey Piccola (R., Dauphin) said this was "another positive development in the conversation and ongoing debate to enact a system of strengthened assessments that can be supported by everyone."
Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak said in a statement that "we have seen nearly every state-level education association acknowledge the limitations of the status quo and the need for reform." But under CERT's proposal, he said, "you lose the assurance that any student in any school is actually able to show they are meeting high school academic standards."
The CERT plan is the latest round in a contentious exchange about whether Pennsylvania should beef up graduation requirements, which now are determined mainly by school districts with little uniformity across the state.
Since early 2008, the state Board of Education, the Department of Education, and the Rendell administration have pushed for comprehensive state tests, saying thousands of graduates lack the skills needed to succeed in college and the workforce. Any change would be phased in over several years and would not affect current high school students.
The state now requires that to graduate from high school, students must complete a senior project and either pass the math or reading PSSAs or pass graduation assessments set by their districts. Most districts use their own measures to set graduation eligibility.
Critics complain that a district's assessments often have not been evaluated by any outside group to see whether they really meet state standards. For example, a required course such as Algebra 1 in one district could be very different from another district's version of it - and both could differ from state standards.
This year, a study by two Pennsylvania State University researchers said most districts could not show that their local assessments met state benchmarks.
The debate over graduation requirements began last year when the Board of Education and the Education Department proposed the adoption of 10 math, reading, writing, science and social studies tests that would be offered in all school districts.
Students who failed the 11th grade math and reading PSSAs would have to pass the equivalent state tests to graduate, pass a similar local test or pass the equivalent Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate tests.
Special education students would only have to meet individualized requirements set by local teams of educators and parents.
The plan faced widespread opposition from school boards and lawmakers. They said that students should not have to take more tests, and that standardized exams were poor indicators of student proficiency and students who do not do well on that kind of test would be denied a diploma. Last July, legislators shelved the plan for a year.
In March, the Pennsylvania School Boards Association, the Board of Education and the Education Department proposed a compromise: the 10 tests could be developed and used as graduation requirements, starting in 2015, but it would be up to school districts whether to give them and whether to use them for graduation requirements even if they did give them. They plan to introduce the revised proposal in July.
The three groups agreed to strengthen local graduation assessments. A committee of experts would set guidelines for them and all the assessments would be evaluated.
Yesterday, CERT also proposed a review of local graduation assessments by a committee of experts, parents, educators and students.
Showing posts with label student testing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label student testing. Show all posts
Friday, April 24, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Student Testing and Sports Analogies
From pennlive.com
Graduation exams necessary for PA's students to succeed
by Dan Rooney, Sunday March 29, 2009, 3:01 AM
Rooney believes state should have graduation tests
Our goal for the Pittsburgh Steelers is to compete at the highest level. We expect nothing less from our players and coaches, and believe they can achieve this if we provide the resources and support necessary. Our track record bears out the wisdom of this approach.
I write today about a subject infinitely more important than a football game, but one for which we as a state must make the same commitment the Steelers do on the gridiron. The subject is the education of our children, and specifically, the need to raise the standards required for students to successfully complete high school.
This is a personal passion of mine, as well as a deep concern as a businessperson. My daughter, Mary Duffy, teaches young children in Allegheny County's Woodland Hills School District.
Each year, she has several students labeled "difficult or challenging." My daughter gives these students all the attention she can, while also teaching the rest of the class -- itself a difficult and challenging task.
But Mary often tells the story of the payoff for her hard work when one of these difficult students walked into the room, put his arms around her, and said, "Miss Rooney, we love you."
No one has greater respect for our teachers than I. So, knowing many don't agree with Governor Rendell's plan for strengthening graduation assessments is not something I take lightly. I share teachers' concern that the six to eight hours a day they have with children isn't enough to ensure academic success and fully agree parents' responsibility and accountability for their child's education, is greater than the teachers'.
However, to teachers, parents and anyone else who feels we should not bolster our graduation standards in Pennsylvania, I say: We are not changing the standards for high school graduates; they have already been changed for us.
When my father founded the Steelers, professional football wasn't much more than a hobby. Players suited up during the fall, and held other jobs the rest of the year. Training camp was a time to get in shape and learn the playbook.
Back then, an education at the local school, with a diploma that satisfied the needs of local businesses, was sufficient to find a job and provide for your family.
Today, anybody showing up at camp not in tip-top shape with a thorough understanding of what is expected of him won't be on the roster for long. These standards weren't changed by the colleges sending their best players to the NFL, but by the ever increasing competition among the professional teams themselves, competing for ever greater stakes.
So it is with education. The modern world and job market require a high school diploma that says the holder is in tip-top academic shape, ready right now to compete with the best not just in his or her community, Pennsylvania, or the United States, but to compete with the best in the world.
We all see how our children today communicate, interact and engage one another with little regard to national boundaries or political maps. We are truly in a worldwide community, and this will expand only in regard to the economy.
Given this reality, our children who continue their education beyond high school must go into those classrooms prepared to gain the knowledge and training necessary for them to be the innovators that have always been the biggest part of the American spirit.
Our children who go directly into jobs must be immediately ready to compete within a global marketplace by possessing the skills, work ethic and determination that has made the American work force the pride of the world.
We must never shortchange our children with shallow expectations. Our children can and will meet any challenge if we give them the resources and support necessary.
This requires that we have strong, consistent graduation assessments throughout Pennsylvania, so colleges and employers know a student coming to them from a Pennsylvania high school is ready for what's next. Our students need this confidence, too.
That young boy, the difficult student who said, "Miss Rooney, we love you," didn't come to love my daughter as a teacher because she let him just get by, but because she believed in him and demanded he become the best he could be.
Our students will always bring the greatness of our nation to the world. We must always believe in them and their ability to be the best. Consistent, rigorous graduation assessments are a great way to start.
Dan Rooney is chairman and owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He is slated to be the next U.S. ambassador to Ireland.
COMMENTS (1)Post a comment
Posted by elvisc on 03/29/09 at 9:01AM
I'm going to write a column on how to run a football team. I really have no idea how, but I have watched a few games. So I hope the Patriot News will publish it.
As a former engineer/manager and current physics teacher, I am grateful for Mr. Rooney's concern about education. But part of our current problem is in giving too much weight to the ideas of people who have not actually been in the classroom and who have no apparent expertise in the field.
How about Mr. Rooney be required to field a team by randomly selecting 20 or 30 people off the street? He may set his standards high if he likes, but it will not change the fact that they will be his only team members, and they will have to meet those standards. This is why I hate sports (or even business) analogies to education.
There is no doubt that we need to make changes in the education system, but anyone involved in business and manufacturing knows that you can not inspect quality into a product at the end of the production line...that will simply lead to a lot of failures and rejects.
As an engineer and manager, I was critical of education, too. So I entered the field myself, partly to learn more about what's right and wrong with it. And I can assure readers that it is a far more difficult and complex job than it appears on the outside. In a business, many of these students would be fired in a minute, or not hired in the first place. That is not an option for teachers.
Until we offer some alternatives to the non-performing, disruptive, uninterested students (like a vocational path as they do in many European systems), we will be hurting our current system.
You can set standards as high as you like, but the fact is that there will still be many students who just don't give a damn about those standards. We need to do everything we can to help those students find a rewarding and positive path in life, but more and more testing and higher and higher standards will not get us there.
Graduation exams necessary for PA's students to succeed
by Dan Rooney, Sunday March 29, 2009, 3:01 AM
Rooney believes state should have graduation tests
Our goal for the Pittsburgh Steelers is to compete at the highest level. We expect nothing less from our players and coaches, and believe they can achieve this if we provide the resources and support necessary. Our track record bears out the wisdom of this approach.
I write today about a subject infinitely more important than a football game, but one for which we as a state must make the same commitment the Steelers do on the gridiron. The subject is the education of our children, and specifically, the need to raise the standards required for students to successfully complete high school.
This is a personal passion of mine, as well as a deep concern as a businessperson. My daughter, Mary Duffy, teaches young children in Allegheny County's Woodland Hills School District.
Each year, she has several students labeled "difficult or challenging." My daughter gives these students all the attention she can, while also teaching the rest of the class -- itself a difficult and challenging task.
But Mary often tells the story of the payoff for her hard work when one of these difficult students walked into the room, put his arms around her, and said, "Miss Rooney, we love you."
No one has greater respect for our teachers than I. So, knowing many don't agree with Governor Rendell's plan for strengthening graduation assessments is not something I take lightly. I share teachers' concern that the six to eight hours a day they have with children isn't enough to ensure academic success and fully agree parents' responsibility and accountability for their child's education, is greater than the teachers'.
However, to teachers, parents and anyone else who feels we should not bolster our graduation standards in Pennsylvania, I say: We are not changing the standards for high school graduates; they have already been changed for us.
When my father founded the Steelers, professional football wasn't much more than a hobby. Players suited up during the fall, and held other jobs the rest of the year. Training camp was a time to get in shape and learn the playbook.
Back then, an education at the local school, with a diploma that satisfied the needs of local businesses, was sufficient to find a job and provide for your family.
Today, anybody showing up at camp not in tip-top shape with a thorough understanding of what is expected of him won't be on the roster for long. These standards weren't changed by the colleges sending their best players to the NFL, but by the ever increasing competition among the professional teams themselves, competing for ever greater stakes.
So it is with education. The modern world and job market require a high school diploma that says the holder is in tip-top academic shape, ready right now to compete with the best not just in his or her community, Pennsylvania, or the United States, but to compete with the best in the world.
We all see how our children today communicate, interact and engage one another with little regard to national boundaries or political maps. We are truly in a worldwide community, and this will expand only in regard to the economy.
Given this reality, our children who continue their education beyond high school must go into those classrooms prepared to gain the knowledge and training necessary for them to be the innovators that have always been the biggest part of the American spirit.
Our children who go directly into jobs must be immediately ready to compete within a global marketplace by possessing the skills, work ethic and determination that has made the American work force the pride of the world.
We must never shortchange our children with shallow expectations. Our children can and will meet any challenge if we give them the resources and support necessary.
This requires that we have strong, consistent graduation assessments throughout Pennsylvania, so colleges and employers know a student coming to them from a Pennsylvania high school is ready for what's next. Our students need this confidence, too.
That young boy, the difficult student who said, "Miss Rooney, we love you," didn't come to love my daughter as a teacher because she let him just get by, but because she believed in him and demanded he become the best he could be.
Our students will always bring the greatness of our nation to the world. We must always believe in them and their ability to be the best. Consistent, rigorous graduation assessments are a great way to start.
Dan Rooney is chairman and owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He is slated to be the next U.S. ambassador to Ireland.
COMMENTS (1)Post a comment
Posted by elvisc on 03/29/09 at 9:01AM
I'm going to write a column on how to run a football team. I really have no idea how, but I have watched a few games. So I hope the Patriot News will publish it.
As a former engineer/manager and current physics teacher, I am grateful for Mr. Rooney's concern about education. But part of our current problem is in giving too much weight to the ideas of people who have not actually been in the classroom and who have no apparent expertise in the field.
How about Mr. Rooney be required to field a team by randomly selecting 20 or 30 people off the street? He may set his standards high if he likes, but it will not change the fact that they will be his only team members, and they will have to meet those standards. This is why I hate sports (or even business) analogies to education.
There is no doubt that we need to make changes in the education system, but anyone involved in business and manufacturing knows that you can not inspect quality into a product at the end of the production line...that will simply lead to a lot of failures and rejects.
As an engineer and manager, I was critical of education, too. So I entered the field myself, partly to learn more about what's right and wrong with it. And I can assure readers that it is a far more difficult and complex job than it appears on the outside. In a business, many of these students would be fired in a minute, or not hired in the first place. That is not an option for teachers.
Until we offer some alternatives to the non-performing, disruptive, uninterested students (like a vocational path as they do in many European systems), we will be hurting our current system.
You can set standards as high as you like, but the fact is that there will still be many students who just don't give a damn about those standards. We need to do everything we can to help those students find a rewarding and positive path in life, but more and more testing and higher and higher standards will not get us there.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Officials worried about cost of graduation tests
From the BCCT.
Officials worried about cost of graduation tests
By RACHEL CANELLI
Although school directors are relieved that they’ll get to keep some control over statemandated graduation tests, officials are still worried about their cost.
The state Department of Education and the Pennsylvania School Boards Association struck a compromise on graduation requirements this week, reducing tensions from the past two years not only at the state level but among area school boards.
The deal will let districts use their own tests for math, English, social studies and science as long as they meet state standards. The state Education Department will split the costs of verifying the tests’ quality with local districts.
“One thing we did not need was yet another unfunded state mandate,” said Neshaminy school board member William Spitz.
He added he was pleased state education officials accepted the school board association’s input. Spitz described the proposal as strengthening graduation requirements, while allowing districts to decide what works best for them.
The agreement cleared a major hurdle to the controversial graduation competency tests by preserving the right of school districts to administer their own tests. It also delays implementation of the tests for an additional year, in place for students who graduate in 2015.
“Each district needs the flexibility and latitude to do what is best for their student population and additional state mandates are not the answer, especially unfunded mandates,” said Gregory Lucidi, president of the Pennsbury school board.
Under a new policy, juniors in that district, next year’s graduating class, will have to pass the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments in reading and math to receive diplomas, officials said. Teachers there also use alternative assessments and student portfolios to gauge pupils’ success, administrators said.
Even though Lucidi acknowledged the state’s willingness to contribute financially to the new assessments, he said it’s still not enough because taxpayers will end up footing the bill.
That’s a “huge challenge” to ask of taxpayers, especially in the current financial climate, said Harry Kramer, president of the Bensalem school board.
“Districts all over Bucks are trying to save and cut expenses without sacrificing education,” Kramer said.
But officials said they don’t know the price tag of administering the tests because it involves staffing and materials.
“There is no funding to help the students prepare for these exams, or funding to support students who cannot prove proficiency under these new rules,” said Lucidi. “I believe PDE needs to be less concerned with doing the jobs of locally elected school boards and needs to focus on more critical issues such as skyrocketing pension and special education costs.”
But the state Department of Education has argued for the graduation competency exams, saying studies show too many high school graduates aren’t prepared for higher education or work and local tests are inadequate.
State law passed last July established a one-year moratorium on any regulations regarding high school graduation requirements. The State Board of Education will continue its public hearing and input process over the next several months and will formally revisit the proposed regulations once the moratorium expires at the end of June 2009.
That’s one reason why Bristol Township school board President W. Earl Bruck said he’s reluctant to pass final judgment on the plan.
Bruck called the agreement encouraging and promising, but said his other major concern is whether the regulations will be imposed on charter, cyber and non-public schools as well.
“While there could still be an unfunded cost to local school boards, it is certainly less imposing than the proposal previously presented by the PDE,” said Bruck. “[It] reflects a recognition by the PDE that local school boards really do have the best interest of the children at heart and that their opposition to the previous plan was primarily the imposition of more involuntary, unfunded mandates.”
Staff writers Manasee Wagh and Joan Hellyer and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Officials worried about cost of graduation tests
By RACHEL CANELLI
Although school directors are relieved that they’ll get to keep some control over statemandated graduation tests, officials are still worried about their cost.
The state Department of Education and the Pennsylvania School Boards Association struck a compromise on graduation requirements this week, reducing tensions from the past two years not only at the state level but among area school boards.
The deal will let districts use their own tests for math, English, social studies and science as long as they meet state standards. The state Education Department will split the costs of verifying the tests’ quality with local districts.
“One thing we did not need was yet another unfunded state mandate,” said Neshaminy school board member William Spitz.
He added he was pleased state education officials accepted the school board association’s input. Spitz described the proposal as strengthening graduation requirements, while allowing districts to decide what works best for them.
The agreement cleared a major hurdle to the controversial graduation competency tests by preserving the right of school districts to administer their own tests. It also delays implementation of the tests for an additional year, in place for students who graduate in 2015.
“Each district needs the flexibility and latitude to do what is best for their student population and additional state mandates are not the answer, especially unfunded mandates,” said Gregory Lucidi, president of the Pennsbury school board.
Under a new policy, juniors in that district, next year’s graduating class, will have to pass the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments in reading and math to receive diplomas, officials said. Teachers there also use alternative assessments and student portfolios to gauge pupils’ success, administrators said.
Even though Lucidi acknowledged the state’s willingness to contribute financially to the new assessments, he said it’s still not enough because taxpayers will end up footing the bill.
That’s a “huge challenge” to ask of taxpayers, especially in the current financial climate, said Harry Kramer, president of the Bensalem school board.
“Districts all over Bucks are trying to save and cut expenses without sacrificing education,” Kramer said.
But officials said they don’t know the price tag of administering the tests because it involves staffing and materials.
“There is no funding to help the students prepare for these exams, or funding to support students who cannot prove proficiency under these new rules,” said Lucidi. “I believe PDE needs to be less concerned with doing the jobs of locally elected school boards and needs to focus on more critical issues such as skyrocketing pension and special education costs.”
But the state Department of Education has argued for the graduation competency exams, saying studies show too many high school graduates aren’t prepared for higher education or work and local tests are inadequate.
State law passed last July established a one-year moratorium on any regulations regarding high school graduation requirements. The State Board of Education will continue its public hearing and input process over the next several months and will formally revisit the proposed regulations once the moratorium expires at the end of June 2009.
That’s one reason why Bristol Township school board President W. Earl Bruck said he’s reluctant to pass final judgment on the plan.
Bruck called the agreement encouraging and promising, but said his other major concern is whether the regulations will be imposed on charter, cyber and non-public schools as well.
“While there could still be an unfunded cost to local school boards, it is certainly less imposing than the proposal previously presented by the PDE,” said Bruck. “[It] reflects a recognition by the PDE that local school boards really do have the best interest of the children at heart and that their opposition to the previous plan was primarily the imposition of more involuntary, unfunded mandates.”
Staff writers Manasee Wagh and Joan Hellyer and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Stalemate broken on school tests
From the Inquirer.
Stalemate broken on school tests
By Dan Hardy
Inquirer Staff Writer
A Pennsylvania stalemate over adopting mandatory high school tests as a graduation requirement was broken yesterday when state education officials backed down and agreed to voluntary tests.
To graduate under current regulations, students must pass the PSSAs or, if they fail, they must pass an assessment given by their local districts. Those include standardized local tests, passing core courses, or showing proficiency from an examination of students' course work.
Last year, state education officials proposed a set of mandatory state subject tests that students who failed the PSSAs could take and had proposed limiting the use of local assessments to standardized tests. School boards and teachers' unions blocked that plan; yesterday's proposal was an effort to break the logjam.
Under the new plan, a third option would be added: a battery of new state tests to be developed in various subject areas, including English, math, sciences, and social studies. Passing those tests would show that a student had met the standards in that area. Good scores on Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests would also meet the graduation requirement.
The plan is to be formally proposed by the state Board of Education this summer. If it goes through the regulatory process intact, it will apply to seniors graduating in June 2015.
Students who failed the state tests, which would be called "Keystone Exams," would get remedial help and retake them; the state is developing a model curriculum and diagnostic tools to help teachers find out what material students don't understand.
Also, the proposal said that school district assessments must be examined by an independent organization to confirm that they meet state academic standards. The state and local districts would share the cost of making sure the local assessments meet state benchmarks. Special education students can graduate if they meet the requirements of their individualized education plans.
A study released last week said that only a handful of Pennsylvania's school districts could show that their local reading and math assessments met state standards and were being used in a way that ensured that all high school graduates had mastered all required material. In 2007, about 56,000 11th-grade students who had failed at least one PSSA test the year before graduated after passing passed a local assessment.
At a news conference, the new plan was announced yesterday by Thomas Gentzel, the executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association; Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak and Board of Education Chairman Joseph Torsella. The association had opposed mandatory testing. Gentzel said he supports the the new plan because the state tests are voluntary and the local assessments can still be used.
"We believe this new language recognizes the need to ensure that all students in the commonwealth graduate from high school with essential skills, yet balances that with the need to provide local school boards with significant and meaningful flexibility in achieving that goal," he said in a statement.
Zahorchak said the proposal would ensure that for students taking a course "across the hall or across the state," the subject matter would be equally rigorous.
Eventually, the state would like to see the Keystone Exams replace the 11th-grade PSSA - the state's No Child Left Behind Accountability tests, Zahorchak said.
In January 2008, the state Board of Education proposed that all districts must use state subject tests. That plan was met with a storm of opposition from the school boards association, teachers' unions and education-reform groups. In July, the state legislature placed a one-year hold on the proposal.
This year, Sen. Jane Orie (R, Allegheny) introduced a bill that would block the Board of Education from imposing any new state graduation requirement without legislative approval. In a statement yesterday, Orie said the new proposal did not change her mind. "The truth is, we already know what schools are struggling and what students are failing," she said.
State Sen. Andrew E. Dinniman (D., Chester), was even more emphatic in his opposition. The 10 new proposed state tests and the process of making sure local tests meet state standards would cost "tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars," he said, adding, "We have struggling taxpayers, not just struggling students - how would he [Zahorchak] pay those bills?"
Education Department spokesman Michael Race said that the tests would cost about $30 million to develop and that the state is asking for $9.8 million to develop them this year. No cost estimate of the expense for validating the local tests has been arrived at.
State Rep. James R. Roebuck Jr. (D., Phila.), the chairman of the House Education Committee, was more positive. "I think this is a substantial step forward - this begins to move them into the necessary dialogue that will ultimately resolve much of the opposition," he said.
But James Testerman the president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association, while saying that the union had not made a final decision about the new proposal, said: "On the surface, it looks like they are still trying to put in place a series of high-stakes exit exams for high school, and we're opposed to that."
Stalemate broken on school tests
By Dan Hardy
Inquirer Staff Writer
A Pennsylvania stalemate over adopting mandatory high school tests as a graduation requirement was broken yesterday when state education officials backed down and agreed to voluntary tests.
To graduate under current regulations, students must pass the PSSAs or, if they fail, they must pass an assessment given by their local districts. Those include standardized local tests, passing core courses, or showing proficiency from an examination of students' course work.
Last year, state education officials proposed a set of mandatory state subject tests that students who failed the PSSAs could take and had proposed limiting the use of local assessments to standardized tests. School boards and teachers' unions blocked that plan; yesterday's proposal was an effort to break the logjam.
Under the new plan, a third option would be added: a battery of new state tests to be developed in various subject areas, including English, math, sciences, and social studies. Passing those tests would show that a student had met the standards in that area. Good scores on Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests would also meet the graduation requirement.
The plan is to be formally proposed by the state Board of Education this summer. If it goes through the regulatory process intact, it will apply to seniors graduating in June 2015.
Students who failed the state tests, which would be called "Keystone Exams," would get remedial help and retake them; the state is developing a model curriculum and diagnostic tools to help teachers find out what material students don't understand.
Also, the proposal said that school district assessments must be examined by an independent organization to confirm that they meet state academic standards. The state and local districts would share the cost of making sure the local assessments meet state benchmarks. Special education students can graduate if they meet the requirements of their individualized education plans.
A study released last week said that only a handful of Pennsylvania's school districts could show that their local reading and math assessments met state standards and were being used in a way that ensured that all high school graduates had mastered all required material. In 2007, about 56,000 11th-grade students who had failed at least one PSSA test the year before graduated after passing passed a local assessment.
At a news conference, the new plan was announced yesterday by Thomas Gentzel, the executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association; Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak and Board of Education Chairman Joseph Torsella. The association had opposed mandatory testing. Gentzel said he supports the the new plan because the state tests are voluntary and the local assessments can still be used.
"We believe this new language recognizes the need to ensure that all students in the commonwealth graduate from high school with essential skills, yet balances that with the need to provide local school boards with significant and meaningful flexibility in achieving that goal," he said in a statement.
Zahorchak said the proposal would ensure that for students taking a course "across the hall or across the state," the subject matter would be equally rigorous.
Eventually, the state would like to see the Keystone Exams replace the 11th-grade PSSA - the state's No Child Left Behind Accountability tests, Zahorchak said.
In January 2008, the state Board of Education proposed that all districts must use state subject tests. That plan was met with a storm of opposition from the school boards association, teachers' unions and education-reform groups. In July, the state legislature placed a one-year hold on the proposal.
This year, Sen. Jane Orie (R, Allegheny) introduced a bill that would block the Board of Education from imposing any new state graduation requirement without legislative approval. In a statement yesterday, Orie said the new proposal did not change her mind. "The truth is, we already know what schools are struggling and what students are failing," she said.
State Sen. Andrew E. Dinniman (D., Chester), was even more emphatic in his opposition. The 10 new proposed state tests and the process of making sure local tests meet state standards would cost "tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars," he said, adding, "We have struggling taxpayers, not just struggling students - how would he [Zahorchak] pay those bills?"
Education Department spokesman Michael Race said that the tests would cost about $30 million to develop and that the state is asking for $9.8 million to develop them this year. No cost estimate of the expense for validating the local tests has been arrived at.
State Rep. James R. Roebuck Jr. (D., Phila.), the chairman of the House Education Committee, was more positive. "I think this is a substantial step forward - this begins to move them into the necessary dialogue that will ultimately resolve much of the opposition," he said.
But James Testerman the president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association, while saying that the union had not made a final decision about the new proposal, said: "On the surface, it looks like they are still trying to put in place a series of high-stakes exit exams for high school, and we're opposed to that."
Thursday, February 26, 2009
PA graduation tests inadequate
From the Centre Daily Times
Study finds many Pa. graduation tests inadequate
By MARK SCOLFORO - Associated Press Writer Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Many of the graduation tests being used in Pennsylvania schools fail to adequately measure whether students perform at 11th grade levels in math and reading, according to a study released Wednesday.
* Copy of the Study
Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak said the study shows Pennsylvania needs to take steps to ensure its high school graduates are ready for post-secondary education and the workplace.
"It's not a good situation," he said Wednesday. "The data obviously tell the story."
The study by two Penn State University education professors found great variation in the type of tests being used and how they are administered and applied.
The professors called it the most comprehensive look at the tests school districts use as an alternative to the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment, which measures all students at various stages, including 11th grade.
It was commissioned by the state Education Department at a cost of $276,000.
The study found there are districts that measure reading skills in ways that do not involve actual reading - by testing vocabulary, for example. Some districts' graduation assessments give students credit for their attendance, course grades or good citizenship.
Math and reading tests in just 18 of the 418 districts that were evaluated passed muster by fully meeting the study's standards, which compared the local tests with statewide proficiency standards. Unpaid panels of Pennsylvania public school educators examined the local tests.
Panelists described some assessments as thorough and professional, while others evidenced a lack of concern for the purpose of graduation tests, the report said.
As a condition of participation in the study, school districts were promised that their ratings by the panelists would not be disclosed publicly, although superintendents can get their own.
The Pennsylvania State Board of Education has proposed a statewide standard for graduation by 2014 that would include final exams in English, math, science and social studies. But opposition by the state school boards' association and some state lawmakers has stalled it.
In July, the Independent Regulatory Review Commission issued a report saying graduation tests should be tailored to individual districts rather than imposed uniformly across the state.
More than 50,000 students graduated in 2007 based on their local district's alternative test, and the Education Department has concluded that tens of thousands of students are currently allowed to graduate without sufficient skills.
Education Department spokesman Mike Race said the study "raises very serious questions about these local assessments, which is what we've been saying for months."
Study finds many Pa. graduation tests inadequate
By MARK SCOLFORO - Associated Press Writer Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Many of the graduation tests being used in Pennsylvania schools fail to adequately measure whether students perform at 11th grade levels in math and reading, according to a study released Wednesday.
* Copy of the Study
Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak said the study shows Pennsylvania needs to take steps to ensure its high school graduates are ready for post-secondary education and the workplace.
"It's not a good situation," he said Wednesday. "The data obviously tell the story."
The study by two Penn State University education professors found great variation in the type of tests being used and how they are administered and applied.
The professors called it the most comprehensive look at the tests school districts use as an alternative to the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment, which measures all students at various stages, including 11th grade.
It was commissioned by the state Education Department at a cost of $276,000.
The study found there are districts that measure reading skills in ways that do not involve actual reading - by testing vocabulary, for example. Some districts' graduation assessments give students credit for their attendance, course grades or good citizenship.
Math and reading tests in just 18 of the 418 districts that were evaluated passed muster by fully meeting the study's standards, which compared the local tests with statewide proficiency standards. Unpaid panels of Pennsylvania public school educators examined the local tests.
Panelists described some assessments as thorough and professional, while others evidenced a lack of concern for the purpose of graduation tests, the report said.
As a condition of participation in the study, school districts were promised that their ratings by the panelists would not be disclosed publicly, although superintendents can get their own.
The Pennsylvania State Board of Education has proposed a statewide standard for graduation by 2014 that would include final exams in English, math, science and social studies. But opposition by the state school boards' association and some state lawmakers has stalled it.
In July, the Independent Regulatory Review Commission issued a report saying graduation tests should be tailored to individual districts rather than imposed uniformly across the state.
More than 50,000 students graduated in 2007 based on their local district's alternative test, and the Education Department has concluded that tens of thousands of students are currently allowed to graduate without sufficient skills.
Education Department spokesman Mike Race said the study "raises very serious questions about these local assessments, which is what we've been saying for months."
Monday, August 25, 2008
Test Fatigue
From the BCCT this morning.
Schools blast state for PSSA changes
Testing will be done from April 15 to May 15, a time when juniors will be preparing for final exams and Advanced Placement tests.
By HILARY BENTMAN
On the eve of the new school year, some local administrators are positively reeling.
The source of their beef is a late announcement about a change to the testing dates for this year’s PSSA, which administrators said will wreak havoc with their already-established calendars and monopolize an entire month of instructional time at one of the most critical periods of the school year.
“It would be a lot of days lost in the fourth marking period,” said Council Rock Superintendent Mark Klein.
Each year, students are required to take the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments, which tests students in math, reading, writing and science. The math and reading tests are for students in third through eighth, and 11th grade. The science test is given to students in fourth, eighth and 11th grades. All are required under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. The goal is to have all children proficient by 2014.
The state also requires a writing test but that is not required by No Child Left Behind.
In previous years, these exams, which can last two to three hours a day, were spread out over several months, with test windows lasting several days at a time.
But the Pennsylvania Department of Education informed districts on Wednesday that the PSSAs will be given during a four-week window from April 15 to May 15, which the department said is being implemented upon the recommendation of educators surveyed around the state who thought this was less disruptive to learning.
“Educators wanted to see more time with kids in the classroom,” said PDE spokeswoman Sheila Ballen.
But shortly after the new schedule was released, the department began receiving calls from school administrators around the state upset with the move.
Council Rock administrators sent emails to the state education department and was prepared to join other Bucks County districts in sending a letter of protest to the PDE, Klein said.
On Friday, the schedule was removed from the department’s Web site and replaced with a note saying “COMING SOON: Stay Tuned for More Information on the 08-09 Testing Schedule.”
Ballen said the department would consider the administrators’ comments and “try to find a solution.”
“We truly hope they do so,” said Klein. “Otherwise it’s seven to 10 days of one marking period.”
A condensed four-week testing schedule fails to hit the mark for several reasons, said local school principals and superintendents.
For some students, particularly juniors who are tested in all four subject areas, it means they will be sitting for exams two or three days a week. Administrators are concerned they will lose what amounts to a month of productive instructional time during a period when they should be preparing for final exams and Advanced Placement tests.
Eleventh grade “is one of most crucial years for a high school student. They’re building up a transcript and getting their best foot out” for colleges, said Mario Galante, director of special services for the Quakertown School District. “It’s almost like an oxymoron. We have to get kids up to standards and they’re taking more instructional time away from kids.”
The Advanced Placement tests begin on May 5 and will overlap with the PSSA. Administered by the College Board, AP exams, which can award students college credit, must be given on specific days. The PSSAs are flexible and will have to be moved around to accommodate students.
Juniors will be pulled out of classes, interrupting not only their instructional time, but that of the sophomores, juniors and seniors who are in some of their classes, officials said.
Administrators worry about test exhaustion and question how effective students will perform on the PSSAs under this new set-up.
“It’s gone from bad to unconscionable,” said Souderton High School Principal Sam Varano. “Our 11th graders are going to think that testing is all that school is about.”
The state, he added, “has thrown high schools across the state off for a solid month. They couldn’t pick a four-week time period that was more crucial.”
Adding to their woes is the timing of the announcement.
Many school districts had already printed their calendars and were preparing to distribute them to parents.
The new testing dates means having to rework the schedules for everything from special school programs, to teacher inservice days, to community events. Families will also be unable to take trips during this time because students must be in school for the exams.
“We build everything around the PSSAs. Now I’m blown out of the water,” said Upper Moreland Superintendent Robert Milrod, who called the state irresponsible and said his initial reaction was to band together with other Montgomery County schools and draft a letter protesting the move.
Although the department of education said schools are always told that PSSA dates are tentative, “we were admittedly late in telling them (of the changes). We understand the schools’ concerns,” said Ballen, who said the PDE is hearing from
Education department officials had been waiting for the completion of contract negotiations with the test provider, DRC.
The Minnesota firm provides the state with its PSSA exams and was coming off a five-year contract. Ballen said the state could not announce the testing dates until the new contract was officially signed.
Varano acknowledged that the department indicated the schedule was tentative, but said “you don’t do anything this important on the eve of the school year.”
Schools blast state for PSSA changes
Testing will be done from April 15 to May 15, a time when juniors will be preparing for final exams and Advanced Placement tests.
By HILARY BENTMAN
On the eve of the new school year, some local administrators are positively reeling.
The source of their beef is a late announcement about a change to the testing dates for this year’s PSSA, which administrators said will wreak havoc with their already-established calendars and monopolize an entire month of instructional time at one of the most critical periods of the school year.
“It would be a lot of days lost in the fourth marking period,” said Council Rock Superintendent Mark Klein.
Each year, students are required to take the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments, which tests students in math, reading, writing and science. The math and reading tests are for students in third through eighth, and 11th grade. The science test is given to students in fourth, eighth and 11th grades. All are required under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. The goal is to have all children proficient by 2014.
The state also requires a writing test but that is not required by No Child Left Behind.
In previous years, these exams, which can last two to three hours a day, were spread out over several months, with test windows lasting several days at a time.
But the Pennsylvania Department of Education informed districts on Wednesday that the PSSAs will be given during a four-week window from April 15 to May 15, which the department said is being implemented upon the recommendation of educators surveyed around the state who thought this was less disruptive to learning.
“Educators wanted to see more time with kids in the classroom,” said PDE spokeswoman Sheila Ballen.
But shortly after the new schedule was released, the department began receiving calls from school administrators around the state upset with the move.
Council Rock administrators sent emails to the state education department and was prepared to join other Bucks County districts in sending a letter of protest to the PDE, Klein said.
On Friday, the schedule was removed from the department’s Web site and replaced with a note saying “COMING SOON: Stay Tuned for More Information on the 08-09 Testing Schedule.”
Ballen said the department would consider the administrators’ comments and “try to find a solution.”
“We truly hope they do so,” said Klein. “Otherwise it’s seven to 10 days of one marking period.”
A condensed four-week testing schedule fails to hit the mark for several reasons, said local school principals and superintendents.
For some students, particularly juniors who are tested in all four subject areas, it means they will be sitting for exams two or three days a week. Administrators are concerned they will lose what amounts to a month of productive instructional time during a period when they should be preparing for final exams and Advanced Placement tests.
Eleventh grade “is one of most crucial years for a high school student. They’re building up a transcript and getting their best foot out” for colleges, said Mario Galante, director of special services for the Quakertown School District. “It’s almost like an oxymoron. We have to get kids up to standards and they’re taking more instructional time away from kids.”
The Advanced Placement tests begin on May 5 and will overlap with the PSSA. Administered by the College Board, AP exams, which can award students college credit, must be given on specific days. The PSSAs are flexible and will have to be moved around to accommodate students.
Juniors will be pulled out of classes, interrupting not only their instructional time, but that of the sophomores, juniors and seniors who are in some of their classes, officials said.
Administrators worry about test exhaustion and question how effective students will perform on the PSSAs under this new set-up.
“It’s gone from bad to unconscionable,” said Souderton High School Principal Sam Varano. “Our 11th graders are going to think that testing is all that school is about.”
The state, he added, “has thrown high schools across the state off for a solid month. They couldn’t pick a four-week time period that was more crucial.”
Adding to their woes is the timing of the announcement.
Many school districts had already printed their calendars and were preparing to distribute them to parents.
The new testing dates means having to rework the schedules for everything from special school programs, to teacher inservice days, to community events. Families will also be unable to take trips during this time because students must be in school for the exams.
“We build everything around the PSSAs. Now I’m blown out of the water,” said Upper Moreland Superintendent Robert Milrod, who called the state irresponsible and said his initial reaction was to band together with other Montgomery County schools and draft a letter protesting the move.
Although the department of education said schools are always told that PSSA dates are tentative, “we were admittedly late in telling them (of the changes). We understand the schools’ concerns,” said Ballen, who said the PDE is hearing from
Education department officials had been waiting for the completion of contract negotiations with the test provider, DRC.
The Minnesota firm provides the state with its PSSA exams and was coming off a five-year contract. Ballen said the state could not announce the testing dates until the new contract was officially signed.
Varano acknowledged that the department indicated the schedule was tentative, but said “you don’t do anything this important on the eve of the school year.”
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Y Cant Johnee Reed and Test Good?
At last! The answer to why our students can't read or perform well on tests: Wikipedia!
This is a piece of fallacious crap. Just because bad information is out there doesn't mean we have to read it or accept it as gospel. One of the skills acquired through consistent reading is the ability to apply critical thinking to the information.
The internet is a wonderful place to research information. At the single press of an "enter" key, all sorts of information is thrown at you. It's up to you to read and comprehend that Elvis is not Bigfoot and that JFK did not stage Diana's death. What used to take me hours to research at the library can be done in moments. I'll agree that Encyclopedia Brittanica is an "authoritative resource" far more responsible than Wikipedia ever will be, but even back in the pre-digital day, I still had to cite three authoritative sources for my information that did not use the same root information.
The answer is not to ban Wikipedia. That's the cowardly and easy way out. Do the hard work of retraining the students to use their brains for more than just insulation and to constantly carry a 50 pound of bag of salt for use while reading. A lot of grains are needed for each trip through cyberspace.
Memo to students: The teachers know about Google too. Do the real work. The shortcuts will lead to disaster.
Is there a message in there for our intrepid Emperor and accomplices as well?
Falling exam passes blamed on Wikipedia 'littered with inaccuracies'
Published Date: 21 June 2008
By MARTYN McLAUGHLIN
WIKIPEDIA and other online research sources were yesterday blamed for Scotland's falling exam pass rates.
The Scottish Parent Teacher Council (SPTC) said pupils are turning to websites and internet resources that contain inaccurate or deliberately misleading information before passing it off as their own work.
The group singled out online encyclopedia Wikipedia, which allows entries to be logged or updated by anyone and is not verified by researchers, as the main source of information.
Standard Grade pass rates were down for the first time in four years last year and the SPTC is now calling for pupils to be given lessons on using the internet appropriately for additional research purposes "before the problem gets out of hand".
Eleanor Coner, the SPTC's information officer, said: "Children are very IT-savvy, but they are rubbish at researching. The sad fact is most children these days use libraries for computers, not the books. We accept that as a sign of the times, but schools must teach pupils not to believe everything they read.
"It's dangerous when the internet is littered with opinion and inaccurate information which could be taken as fact.
"Internet plagiarism is a problem. Pupils think 'I'll nick that and nobody will notice', but the Scottish Qualifications Authority has robust ways of checking for plagiarism and parents are worried their children will fail their exams."
Ronnie Smith, the general secretary of the Educational Institute of Scotland, said there was a higher risk of inaccurate information on the internet than in books. He added: "We need to make sure youngsters don't take what they read online as fact."
Several further education institutions have already banned students from using the interactive encyclopaedia. At one college in Vermont in the US, a history professor found several students repeated the same error in exam papers. On discovering the information came from Wikipedia, the college outlawed its future use.
Ms Coner said overuse of the internet also meant students did not develop interpretative skills.
She said: "Pupils are in danger of believing what they read. It's part of our short-cut culture, where we will do anything to pass a test, without properly engaging with the information or questions that are being asked.
"It's all very well to glance at a website for research, but you have to check what you are reading is correct. Anything can be untrue. I can claim to be a world expert on anything if I set up a website on the internet."
Alan Johnson, the UK Education Secretary, was lambasted earlier this year for suggesting the website could be a positive educational tool for children.
He described the internet as "an incredible force for good in education", singling out Wikipedia for praise.
A disclaimer on Wikipedia states "it is important to note that fledgling, or less well monitored, articles may be susceptible to vandalism and insertion of false information".
Boasting over two million articles, Wikipedia is used by about 6 per cent of internet users, significantly more than the traffic to more authorised sites, such as those of newspapers. Its articles are mainly edited by a team of volunteers.
'There is a great deal of misinformation on the net'
LAST week I heard the writer Colin Bateman describe how, on looking himself up on Wikipedia, he was dismayed to discover that his young son had gone online and added the sentence: "Mr Bateman is currently suffering from penile dysfunction." Fortunately his dad saw the funny side – and was proud his child could spell "dysfunction" correctly.
In common with students everywhere, I use Wikipedia as a research tool, and so does my son. Occasionally, I come across areas where there is academic dissent – for example on whether Homer was an individual poet, and this is usually clearly indicated.
There are subjects on which I wouldn't trust any open-edit web resource, because I've come across too many conspiracy theorists in my time. But generally I think the biggest risk of using any internet source is that it leads to plagiarism, intended or unintended.
It is so easy to cut and paste, meaning only to put together some useful notes, and then to draw on them too heavily without acknowledging the source. At the extreme it is all too easy to buy "off the peg" essays on any subject.
When I was studying public health, we were trained to test the reliability of health-related websites, because there is a great deal of subjective misinformation on the net which may appear reliable.
The great strength of the internet is that it means we can amass information very readily, but it is hard to distinguish between authoritative, scientifically tested information, and something more akin to rumour.
One topic in my son's Higher History course is the civil rights movement in the US. Starting from the simplest of internet queries, it wasn't long before he got into quite contentious issues, which were presented in very partial terms by organisations with vested interests.
It was hugely useful to him to develop the skill of challenging what was presented as "fact", but it is a skill that has to be learnt, and which many internet users won't have. Of course, that skill isn't just useful for assessing the reliability of the internet. Mr Bateman, for example, earns his living by making up stories.
• Miranda Harvey is a parent of a pupil at Boroughmuir High School, Edinburgh.
Politics
POLITICIANS and their parties are among those Wikipedia entries most vulnerable to deliberate misinformation.
During his time in Downing Street, Tony Blair may have been alarmed to find himself slurred as "George Bush's bitch-boy".
The SNP's entry has previously seen the party described as one "influenced by childish Jacobitism", while Scottish Labour has been dubbed a "fascist organisation".
Celebrity
AS WELL as political heavy-hitters, the realm of celebrity is a favourite for Wikipedia's mischief-makers.
At different times, Kylie Minogue has had her genealogical history thrown into doubt after her entry claimed that she was "the more beautiful and talented older sister" of Michael Jackson.
Robbie Williams suffered an even crueller entry – it was at one point alleged on Wikipedia that he made a living from eating hamsters in pubs in and around Stoke.
Fantasists
WIKIPEDIA is seen by some as a blank canvas where self-publicists can promote themselves. In 2006, a call centre worker from Glasgow was exposed after concocting an elaborate alter ego through his Wikipedia page, which gave the impression he was a highly decorated war hero.
Alan Mcilwraith, renaming himself Captain Sir Alan, claimed to have been an officer in the Parachute Regiment, who finished top of his class at Sandhurst before going on to become a terrorism expert.
After two years of conducting this charade, someone who knew Mcilwraith revealed the sham.
This is a piece of fallacious crap. Just because bad information is out there doesn't mean we have to read it or accept it as gospel. One of the skills acquired through consistent reading is the ability to apply critical thinking to the information.
The internet is a wonderful place to research information. At the single press of an "enter" key, all sorts of information is thrown at you. It's up to you to read and comprehend that Elvis is not Bigfoot and that JFK did not stage Diana's death. What used to take me hours to research at the library can be done in moments. I'll agree that Encyclopedia Brittanica is an "authoritative resource" far more responsible than Wikipedia ever will be, but even back in the pre-digital day, I still had to cite three authoritative sources for my information that did not use the same root information.
The answer is not to ban Wikipedia. That's the cowardly and easy way out. Do the hard work of retraining the students to use their brains for more than just insulation and to constantly carry a 50 pound of bag of salt for use while reading. A lot of grains are needed for each trip through cyberspace.
Memo to students: The teachers know about Google too. Do the real work. The shortcuts will lead to disaster.
Is there a message in there for our intrepid Emperor and accomplices as well?
Falling exam passes blamed on Wikipedia 'littered with inaccuracies'
Published Date: 21 June 2008
By MARTYN McLAUGHLIN
WIKIPEDIA and other online research sources were yesterday blamed for Scotland's falling exam pass rates.
The Scottish Parent Teacher Council (SPTC) said pupils are turning to websites and internet resources that contain inaccurate or deliberately misleading information before passing it off as their own work.
The group singled out online encyclopedia Wikipedia, which allows entries to be logged or updated by anyone and is not verified by researchers, as the main source of information.
Standard Grade pass rates were down for the first time in four years last year and the SPTC is now calling for pupils to be given lessons on using the internet appropriately for additional research purposes "before the problem gets out of hand".
Eleanor Coner, the SPTC's information officer, said: "Children are very IT-savvy, but they are rubbish at researching. The sad fact is most children these days use libraries for computers, not the books. We accept that as a sign of the times, but schools must teach pupils not to believe everything they read.
"It's dangerous when the internet is littered with opinion and inaccurate information which could be taken as fact.
"Internet plagiarism is a problem. Pupils think 'I'll nick that and nobody will notice', but the Scottish Qualifications Authority has robust ways of checking for plagiarism and parents are worried their children will fail their exams."
Ronnie Smith, the general secretary of the Educational Institute of Scotland, said there was a higher risk of inaccurate information on the internet than in books. He added: "We need to make sure youngsters don't take what they read online as fact."
Several further education institutions have already banned students from using the interactive encyclopaedia. At one college in Vermont in the US, a history professor found several students repeated the same error in exam papers. On discovering the information came from Wikipedia, the college outlawed its future use.
Ms Coner said overuse of the internet also meant students did not develop interpretative skills.
She said: "Pupils are in danger of believing what they read. It's part of our short-cut culture, where we will do anything to pass a test, without properly engaging with the information or questions that are being asked.
"It's all very well to glance at a website for research, but you have to check what you are reading is correct. Anything can be untrue. I can claim to be a world expert on anything if I set up a website on the internet."
Alan Johnson, the UK Education Secretary, was lambasted earlier this year for suggesting the website could be a positive educational tool for children.
He described the internet as "an incredible force for good in education", singling out Wikipedia for praise.
A disclaimer on Wikipedia states "it is important to note that fledgling, or less well monitored, articles may be susceptible to vandalism and insertion of false information".
Boasting over two million articles, Wikipedia is used by about 6 per cent of internet users, significantly more than the traffic to more authorised sites, such as those of newspapers. Its articles are mainly edited by a team of volunteers.
'There is a great deal of misinformation on the net'
LAST week I heard the writer Colin Bateman describe how, on looking himself up on Wikipedia, he was dismayed to discover that his young son had gone online and added the sentence: "Mr Bateman is currently suffering from penile dysfunction." Fortunately his dad saw the funny side – and was proud his child could spell "dysfunction" correctly.
In common with students everywhere, I use Wikipedia as a research tool, and so does my son. Occasionally, I come across areas where there is academic dissent – for example on whether Homer was an individual poet, and this is usually clearly indicated.
There are subjects on which I wouldn't trust any open-edit web resource, because I've come across too many conspiracy theorists in my time. But generally I think the biggest risk of using any internet source is that it leads to plagiarism, intended or unintended.
It is so easy to cut and paste, meaning only to put together some useful notes, and then to draw on them too heavily without acknowledging the source. At the extreme it is all too easy to buy "off the peg" essays on any subject.
When I was studying public health, we were trained to test the reliability of health-related websites, because there is a great deal of subjective misinformation on the net which may appear reliable.
The great strength of the internet is that it means we can amass information very readily, but it is hard to distinguish between authoritative, scientifically tested information, and something more akin to rumour.
One topic in my son's Higher History course is the civil rights movement in the US. Starting from the simplest of internet queries, it wasn't long before he got into quite contentious issues, which were presented in very partial terms by organisations with vested interests.
It was hugely useful to him to develop the skill of challenging what was presented as "fact", but it is a skill that has to be learnt, and which many internet users won't have. Of course, that skill isn't just useful for assessing the reliability of the internet. Mr Bateman, for example, earns his living by making up stories.
• Miranda Harvey is a parent of a pupil at Boroughmuir High School, Edinburgh.
Politics
POLITICIANS and their parties are among those Wikipedia entries most vulnerable to deliberate misinformation.
During his time in Downing Street, Tony Blair may have been alarmed to find himself slurred as "George Bush's bitch-boy".
The SNP's entry has previously seen the party described as one "influenced by childish Jacobitism", while Scottish Labour has been dubbed a "fascist organisation".
Celebrity
AS WELL as political heavy-hitters, the realm of celebrity is a favourite for Wikipedia's mischief-makers.
At different times, Kylie Minogue has had her genealogical history thrown into doubt after her entry claimed that she was "the more beautiful and talented older sister" of Michael Jackson.
Robbie Williams suffered an even crueller entry – it was at one point alleged on Wikipedia that he made a living from eating hamsters in pubs in and around Stoke.
Fantasists
WIKIPEDIA is seen by some as a blank canvas where self-publicists can promote themselves. In 2006, a call centre worker from Glasgow was exposed after concocting an elaborate alter ego through his Wikipedia page, which gave the impression he was a highly decorated war hero.
Alan Mcilwraith, renaming himself Captain Sir Alan, claimed to have been an officer in the Parachute Regiment, who finished top of his class at Sandhurst before going on to become a terrorism expert.
After two years of conducting this charade, someone who knew Mcilwraith revealed the sham.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
PA Statewide Tests Unlikely
It looks like the proposed statewide graduation testing plan in Pennsylvania is not going to be gaining any traction any time soon now. The politicians want the power to institute testing, taking it away from the state board of education.
Pa. senators advance bill to block graduation testing
MARTHA RAFFAELE, The Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. - A state Senate panel has advanced a bill to effectively block a proposal to require new state graduation tests for Pennsylvania high school students.
The Senate Education Committee voted 10-1 Monday to approve a measure that would give the Legislature the sole authority to impose any new statewide high school graduation requirements.
The State Board of Education has proposed creating a series of 10 final examinations covering math, science, English and social studies. Students would have to pass six to graduate, starting with the class of 2014.
Education Committee Chairman James Rhoades opposes the new tests. The Schuylkill County Republican says money the state would spend on developing the exams would be better spent on other strategies to boost student achievement.
Pa. senators advance bill to block graduation testing
MARTHA RAFFAELE, The Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. - A state Senate panel has advanced a bill to effectively block a proposal to require new state graduation tests for Pennsylvania high school students.
The Senate Education Committee voted 10-1 Monday to approve a measure that would give the Legislature the sole authority to impose any new statewide high school graduation requirements.
The State Board of Education has proposed creating a series of 10 final examinations covering math, science, English and social studies. Students would have to pass six to graduate, starting with the class of 2014.
Education Committee Chairman James Rhoades opposes the new tests. The Schuylkill County Republican says money the state would spend on developing the exams would be better spent on other strategies to boost student achievement.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Pennsylvania School Standards
Here's an editorial from the BCCT this morning calling for better state education standards. Our school board, and many others in the area, have passed resolutions opposing many of the proposals.
What do you think?
Empty diplomas Raising the bar
School districts shouldn’t be allowed to graduate students who can’t read, write or do math.
If you’re not familiar with the term “empty diploma,” it refers to the shameful and destructive practice of graduating kids who lack basic skills. This is a big problem in Pennsylvania.
According to the state Department of Education, more than 56,000 high school seniors graduated from Pennsylvania high schools last year even though they failed state math and reading tests. This happened because the state PSSA (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment) tests aren’t the final word on who gets diplomas and who doesn’t.
School districts have final say via so-called local graduation assessments. And so the PSSAs, which are Pennsylvania’s No Child Left Behind tests, can be and routinely are summarily dismissed as a graduation requirement.
How it helps graduates to enter the work force or go on to college while lacking basic math and language skills is a mystery to us — and a disservice to the ill equipped graduates. It’s why the Education Department, at Gov. Rendell’s urgings, has developed a battery of graduation tests in 10 core subjects. Sensibly, the tests would be administered at the completion of each course as opposed to combining the subject areas into a single comprehensive test in students’ senior year.
That would be less troubling for students. And with remediation provided along the way, it would be a more effective way to help students learn the basic skills they need to succeed in today’s world. Besides, we have to do something.
State Education officials can’t allow watered-down graduation standards to remain in place. It’s impractical if not ruinous from a national perspective; it also violates the state’s legal and moral obligation to provide students with an education.
Unfortunately, the proposal is getting panned by school districts and teacher unions. They warn against burdening already test weary students and fret that more students will drop out if standards are raised. Additionally, they claim that districts are the best judges of whether students are qualified to graduate.
Seems to us local standards are much too weak if students who can’t pass basic skills tests are getting diplomas anyway.
What’s worrisome is that lawmakers are joining the opposition. And so we encourage citizens to chime in. Public comment on the proposal to standardize graduation requirements will be accepted through June 16.
Stand up for real graduation standards and against handing out diplomas just for showing up.
What do you think?
Empty diplomas Raising the bar
School districts shouldn’t be allowed to graduate students who can’t read, write or do math.
If you’re not familiar with the term “empty diploma,” it refers to the shameful and destructive practice of graduating kids who lack basic skills. This is a big problem in Pennsylvania.
According to the state Department of Education, more than 56,000 high school seniors graduated from Pennsylvania high schools last year even though they failed state math and reading tests. This happened because the state PSSA (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment) tests aren’t the final word on who gets diplomas and who doesn’t.
School districts have final say via so-called local graduation assessments. And so the PSSAs, which are Pennsylvania’s No Child Left Behind tests, can be and routinely are summarily dismissed as a graduation requirement.
How it helps graduates to enter the work force or go on to college while lacking basic math and language skills is a mystery to us — and a disservice to the ill equipped graduates. It’s why the Education Department, at Gov. Rendell’s urgings, has developed a battery of graduation tests in 10 core subjects. Sensibly, the tests would be administered at the completion of each course as opposed to combining the subject areas into a single comprehensive test in students’ senior year.
That would be less troubling for students. And with remediation provided along the way, it would be a more effective way to help students learn the basic skills they need to succeed in today’s world. Besides, we have to do something.
State Education officials can’t allow watered-down graduation standards to remain in place. It’s impractical if not ruinous from a national perspective; it also violates the state’s legal and moral obligation to provide students with an education.
Unfortunately, the proposal is getting panned by school districts and teacher unions. They warn against burdening already test weary students and fret that more students will drop out if standards are raised. Additionally, they claim that districts are the best judges of whether students are qualified to graduate.
Seems to us local standards are much too weak if students who can’t pass basic skills tests are getting diplomas anyway.
What’s worrisome is that lawmakers are joining the opposition. And so we encourage citizens to chime in. Public comment on the proposal to standardize graduation requirements will be accepted through June 16.
Stand up for real graduation standards and against handing out diplomas just for showing up.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
An Initiative on Reading Is Rated Ineffective
New York Times
By SAM DILLON
President Bush's $1 billion a year effort to teach reading to low-income children has not helped improve their reading comprehension, according to a Department of Education.
In 123-page guide, state offers schools tips on stopping bullies
Boston Globe
The goal is to dispel myths: that bullies have low self-esteem, that bullying is just a part of childhood, and that victims often overreact to taunts. The advice is often simple: Increase supervision where students get on and off buses and in the lunchroom, where some of the worst bullying can take place.
Californians divided over new taxes for schools, poll finds
Los Angeles Times
By Mitchell Landsberg
Californians want their public schools protected from state budget cuts and are willing to tax the rich to make that happen. But despite the threat of schools taking a beating in next year's state budget, residents are sharply divided over whether they would support higher taxes for themselves, according to a statewide poll released late Wednesday.
New York Times
By SAM DILLON
President Bush's $1 billion a year effort to teach reading to low-income children has not helped improve their reading comprehension, according to a Department of Education.
In 123-page guide, state offers schools tips on stopping bullies
Boston Globe
The goal is to dispel myths: that bullies have low self-esteem, that bullying is just a part of childhood, and that victims often overreact to taunts. The advice is often simple: Increase supervision where students get on and off buses and in the lunchroom, where some of the worst bullying can take place.
Californians divided over new taxes for schools, poll finds
Los Angeles Times
By Mitchell Landsberg
Californians want their public schools protected from state budget cuts and are willing to tax the rich to make that happen. But despite the threat of schools taking a beating in next year's state budget, residents are sharply divided over whether they would support higher taxes for themselves, according to a statewide poll released late Wednesday.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
Despite 25 years of reform, US schools still fall short
Christian Science Monitor
New studies echo a key call from landmark 1983 report: boost teacher training and pay.
Chicago - The report that launched an education-reform movement - released 25 years ago Thursday - is causing some reform advocates to issue the same sort of dire warnings today.
Supreme Court of Canada rules random sniffer-dog searches are unlawful
By Conners(Conners)
Clair Catholic District School Board, told The Canadian Press prior to the ruling that allowing sniffer dogs into schools can be an important tool for ensuring student safety. "Parents send their children to school with the underlying ...
Studies: SAT writing portion good predictor of grades
USA Today
The controversial new writing portion of the SAT is actually a better predictor of grades for freshmen college students than the older, more-established, critical reading and mathematics portions, according to preliminary results of two new studies.
No Child Left Behind faces changes
Associated Press
Unable to push education fixes through Congress, the Bush administration is taking its own pen to the No Child Left Behind law. The Education Department plans to make a host of changes to the education law through regulations being unveiled Tuesday, according to administration sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because the new rules had not yet been published.
An American kid drops out of high school every 26 seconds.
Clueless in America
New York Times
By BOB HERBERT
Ignorance in the United States is not just bliss, it's widespread. That's more than a million every year, a sign of big trouble for these largely clueless youngsters in an era in which a college education is crucial to maintaining a middle-class quality of life - and for the country as a whole in a world that is becoming more hotly competitive every day.
New Report From KIPP Charters
Washington Post
Jay Mathews
Educators argue often whether their work should be judged by test scores. There are thoughtful people on both sides of the debate. We journalists tend to focus on exam results because so many of our readers say that is what they want, and such information is relatively easy to get from regular public schools.
The need for charter schools
Real Life Advice for graduating seniors
Christian Science Monitor
Christian Science Monitor
New studies echo a key call from landmark 1983 report: boost teacher training and pay.
Chicago - The report that launched an education-reform movement - released 25 years ago Thursday - is causing some reform advocates to issue the same sort of dire warnings today.
Supreme Court of Canada rules random sniffer-dog searches are unlawful
By Conners(Conners)
Clair Catholic District School Board, told The Canadian Press prior to the ruling that allowing sniffer dogs into schools can be an important tool for ensuring student safety. "Parents send their children to school with the underlying ...
Studies: SAT writing portion good predictor of grades
USA Today
The controversial new writing portion of the SAT is actually a better predictor of grades for freshmen college students than the older, more-established, critical reading and mathematics portions, according to preliminary results of two new studies.
No Child Left Behind faces changes
Associated Press
Unable to push education fixes through Congress, the Bush administration is taking its own pen to the No Child Left Behind law. The Education Department plans to make a host of changes to the education law through regulations being unveiled Tuesday, according to administration sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because the new rules had not yet been published.
An American kid drops out of high school every 26 seconds.
Clueless in America
New York Times
By BOB HERBERT
Ignorance in the United States is not just bliss, it's widespread. That's more than a million every year, a sign of big trouble for these largely clueless youngsters in an era in which a college education is crucial to maintaining a middle-class quality of life - and for the country as a whole in a world that is becoming more hotly competitive every day.
New Report From KIPP Charters
Washington Post
Jay Mathews
Educators argue often whether their work should be judged by test scores. There are thoughtful people on both sides of the debate. We journalists tend to focus on exam results because so many of our readers say that is what they want, and such information is relatively easy to get from regular public schools.
The need for charter schools
Real Life Advice for graduating seniors
Christian Science Monitor
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
Pride in public schools fuels positive involvement
Boston Globe
According to her job description, West Roxbury's Kathleen Colby is the YMCA's liaison to the classrooms of this city, charged with assuring parents that Boston public schools offer "good and valid options" for their children.
Many Mass. graduates unprepared in college
Boston Globe
Thousands of Massachusetts public high school graduates arrive at college unprepared for even the most basic math and English classes, forcing them to take remedial courses that discourage many from staying in school, according to a statewide study released yesterday.
At a McLean Elementary School, Tag Is Banned
Washington Post
In a letter to parents, principal calls activity a game "of intense aggression," touching off debate among those who call ban an example of overzealous rules and others who say caution is best.
Math report recommends teachers focus on basic skills
Salt Lake Tribune
Al Hartmann/The Salt Lake Tribune
In a small room deep within the Salt Palace Convention Center, about 70 teachers from across the nation spent Friday morning learning how to better teach fractions.
Fla. Schools Fear Gains May Vanish
The Ledger
With budget cuts upcoming, educators are afraid national ranking may drop. TALLAHASSEE | Just as Florida's public school system - long ranked among the worst in the nation - has begun to show marked improvement, a series of state budget cuts threatens to derail that progress, particularly for students and schools already struggling to keep pace. The lack of an income tax meant less money for schools. And the large retired population seemed uncommitted to funding schools.
Students deficient at being proficient
San Diego Union-Trubune
Cal State schools are a long way from their goal of seeing 90 percent of entering freshmen ready for college-level work. Instead, 37 percent of freshmen entered a California State University campus last fall needing remedial math, while 46 percent were unprepared for college-level English, according to new data.
Special-ed costs taxing town budgets
Boston Globe
Special-education costs are due to rise by $1 million or more in some local school districts next year, further straining budgets at a time when many face a gloomy financial outlook.
No Reform Left Behind
Washington Post
The Education Department lets states try more flexible ways to meet 'No Child' requirements. FEDERAL education officials are holding out a promise of flexibility to states that have chafed under the "one size fits all" aspects of the No Child Left Behind law. There's no question that individual schools need different strategies. States should be encouraged to innovate.
Boston Globe
According to her job description, West Roxbury's Kathleen Colby is the YMCA's liaison to the classrooms of this city, charged with assuring parents that Boston public schools offer "good and valid options" for their children.
Many Mass. graduates unprepared in college
Boston Globe
Thousands of Massachusetts public high school graduates arrive at college unprepared for even the most basic math and English classes, forcing them to take remedial courses that discourage many from staying in school, according to a statewide study released yesterday.
At a McLean Elementary School, Tag Is Banned
Washington Post
In a letter to parents, principal calls activity a game "of intense aggression," touching off debate among those who call ban an example of overzealous rules and others who say caution is best.
Math report recommends teachers focus on basic skills
Salt Lake Tribune
Al Hartmann/The Salt Lake Tribune
In a small room deep within the Salt Palace Convention Center, about 70 teachers from across the nation spent Friday morning learning how to better teach fractions.
Fla. Schools Fear Gains May Vanish
The Ledger
With budget cuts upcoming, educators are afraid national ranking may drop. TALLAHASSEE | Just as Florida's public school system - long ranked among the worst in the nation - has begun to show marked improvement, a series of state budget cuts threatens to derail that progress, particularly for students and schools already struggling to keep pace. The lack of an income tax meant less money for schools. And the large retired population seemed uncommitted to funding schools.
Students deficient at being proficient
San Diego Union-Trubune
Cal State schools are a long way from their goal of seeing 90 percent of entering freshmen ready for college-level work. Instead, 37 percent of freshmen entered a California State University campus last fall needing remedial math, while 46 percent were unprepared for college-level English, according to new data.
Special-ed costs taxing town budgets
Boston Globe
Special-education costs are due to rise by $1 million or more in some local school districts next year, further straining budgets at a time when many face a gloomy financial outlook.
No Reform Left Behind
Washington Post
The Education Department lets states try more flexible ways to meet 'No Child' requirements. FEDERAL education officials are holding out a promise of flexibility to states that have chafed under the "one size fits all" aspects of the No Child Left Behind law. There's no question that individual schools need different strategies. States should be encouraged to innovate.
Secret Meeting Agenda Revealed
Well, we finally have the first fruits of the Secret Meeting at the Worob's house, courtesy of the BCCT. I could not resist shouting at the monitor as I read this essay. My thoughts appear in italics. Anyone else want to rant at Steve?
People of Morrisville: Glad you’re finally paying attention
By STEPHEN WOROB
I’m glad that so many Morrisville residents now want to express their views about the future of our school district. My question though is where you have been! [As much as I hate to say it, I agree with Steve here. Where have you been? You elected a slate of angry small minded people to run the education system and we're now reaping the benefits.]
Now marks the tenth anniversary of the malicious dismantling of our once-decent school district. [What happened ten years ago? Who dismantled it and why? This is an accusation without substance to back it up.] For years, self servers [Glass House Alert: Be careful on your use of words.] have plagued this district with mismanagement, greed and corruption. Where have you people been? Like it or not, the Morrisville school district has become a big cow that is getting milked to death. [My tin foil hat is firmly on my head. Tell me more. And let me know where the line for milk starts.]
Since 1998, over $7 million has been appropriated toward physical improvements to our aging school buildings. This money was wasted; [You are alleging that seven million dollars has been wasted. What does "wasted" mean? And weren't you a part of that as a board member and officer?] now we have boilers that are said to be so bad that they may explode. [That's because they're 40 years old. Did you as a school board member ever appropriate money to replace the boilers?] Where have you people been?
Not even soaring taxes and horrible test scores could get most of you off your bottoms to demand changes, [true] but you tout the high paid administrators who continually pat themselves on the back for sub-mediocrity. Hence, self promoting [Glass House Alert 2] /substance-less things like domestic and international awards still attract your attention. [Since you brought the subject of attention up, your academic skills aren't well displayed here either. You're making accusations all around the place and not offering a shred of evidence. If you have something that is actionable, take it to the appropriate authorities. Otherwise, you're grandstanding just to hear the sound of your own voice. I know several Morrisville teachers who would grade these unsupported statements rather harshly. I know of one judge who did already.]
Now, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, 76 percent of our recently graduated students failed math and reading on their state assessment tests (worst in the county). [True. Sadly true. Why though? Test scores are dropping all over the country. What is your plan to fix it? Today, you are representing a group who has refused time after time to reveal a plan. SHAME ON YOU!! You personally harangued a sick man in public, shouting repeatedly at him, to the point of him being taken to the hospital and yet you sit there smugly, hurling accusation after accusation WITHOUT A PLAN OF YOUR OWN! That's called attention whoring and only adds to the problem. It fixes nothing but your pathetic need for attention.] If costs over the next 13 years could somehow stay the same and nothing else changes, each kindergartner entering this district will cost taxpayers more than a quarter of a million dollars and 76 percent of them will fail at math and reading. [That's a tortured twist to logic. I agree that throwing money at a problem does not solve it, and Morrisville is paying an extremely large amount to educate its students. We've talked about the math of per student costs. Diving the budget by the number of students yields a high number. Once you subtract the "free" money, the grants and gifts, the real per student cost is much lower. Ask your CPA buddy to explain it. Then, you use the worst score available to make your point. You learned that from the Emperor who keeps screaming that the interest rates are dropping and the old board was wrong in not defeasing earlier because the rates were dropping. What if the rates had actually risen? The argument fails. Same if this year's 11th graders do better in their test scores. Your logic fails.] Despite such dismal results, our prior lame duck school board locked the superintendent and teachers into lucrative long-term contracts. [That's a great use of code words. "Lucrative" in this context connotes luxury or overpayment and "lame-duck" reminding us that term expiring members actually did something. If you think Dr. Yonson or the teachers are overpaid, that's fine as far as your personal opinion, but the salaries are quite within the norm for Bucks County, the state of Pennsylvania, and the East Coast. Secondly, if you're so concerned about lame ducks sitting around while their term is expiring, put your money where your mouth is. On the morning after Election Day when your successor has been elected, I expect your resignation from Borough Council effective immediately. Otherwise, you're just attention whoring again.]
Where have you people been?
When it comes to education, if you expect that our state representatives who are in bed with entities such as the teachers unions and the superintendent’s association, are going to initiate needed changes, you better think again. [While this may be accurate, what does little Morrisville have to do with this? This needs to be attacked on the state level, and no amount of pain or anguish that you inflict upon the children of Morrisville will change this. The Emperor and his Court of Toadies regularly repeat this mealy mouthed drivel. You need to make changes to this at the state level. Stop posturing uselessly in board and council meetings, and use your elected office to make the changes needed.]
In a recent Courier Times article about outsourcing our high school students, teachers would not comment for concerns of crossing the state teachers union [Well, DUH! If there was a teacher who honestly supported a plan to do away with their own job, either they are an uncommon altruist, or silly enough that I would not want them to be teaching my children anyway. If your fight is with the state teachers union, Morrisville, again, is not the place to be holding this fight. Stop posturing uselessly on the local level and use your elected office at the state level where the fight belongs.] but parents and students rightfully expressed their concerns. Drastic changes can be upsetting but when this board of directors tells you that a major restructuring is necessary, you better believe them. [Ah. Believe. As in the statement "I trust the board to do what is right?" I believe this board to be bereft of common sense and ethically challenged. If they told me today was Saturday, I would want independent confirmation.]
At $22,000 per student and dismal test scores in the high school, this district would have gone bankrupt long ago in the real world. [Yes. Absolutely. There's a reason why the education system does not function in a 100% business style model, along with hospitals, and even government itself. They provides services that are of an incalculable future value at a large present cost and a zero immediate financial return. Can schools, hospitals, or governments function as complete profit making institutions? Of course, but what would be the resulting services?] With public education spiraling out of control, our careless lawmakers (whom are in the business of getting reelected) [Does anyone else see the irony of a career elected official spouting about being in the business of being re-elected?] don’t address the root of the problem but rather promote tax shifts and schemes that just pump more money on top of a failing institution. [Talk to the state and federal officials who put this into place. But we would be remiss if we did not take advantage of every break the state and federal governments offered, wouldn't we?]
Who of sound mind really believes that Act 1 legislation to cap and control runaway school spending is worth the paper it was written on? With its 10 exceptions that protect a bloated incumbent bureaucracy, Act 1 law is nothing more than pathetic smoke and mirror legislation. [Your fight is not in Morrisville. Shut up here, and go and fix it. In Harrisburg.]
Now in Morrisville we have a new and somewhat [somewhat?] novice school board that recognizes that status quo is unacceptable and drastic changes are necessary. Let the changes begin here in Morrisville. First we must stop taxing people out of their homes. [I'll agree with this, but who repealed the natural processes of inflation and declining purchasing power? Read Gibbon's "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire." Read about the inflations that beset the dying British Empire. Read about the "Great Depression." It was rather a big news item a few decades ago. But that's only a partial piece of the puzzle. Did these same people financially plan for their futures? I'm not immune to financial disasters and neither is anyone else by the simple virtue of being a homeowner.] Does anyone really believe that test scores will improve if we go from $22,000 per student to $30,000? I don’t think so. The more we feed the monster, the bigger it will get. [This is just ridiculous. Who is advocating raising the money we taxpayers send to the district?]
My point is not to say I told you so but rather we must all work together just to survive. And perhaps, if we all stick together,[I think you meant to say, "Just Cooperate!"] maybe we’ll gain the attention of our (don’t rock the boat) lawmakers.
Stephen Worob, Morrisville, is a former school board member and a current councilman in Morrisville.
People of Morrisville: Glad you’re finally paying attention
By STEPHEN WOROB
I’m glad that so many Morrisville residents now want to express their views about the future of our school district. My question though is where you have been! [As much as I hate to say it, I agree with Steve here. Where have you been? You elected a slate of angry small minded people to run the education system and we're now reaping the benefits.]
Now marks the tenth anniversary of the malicious dismantling of our once-decent school district. [What happened ten years ago? Who dismantled it and why? This is an accusation without substance to back it up.] For years, self servers [Glass House Alert: Be careful on your use of words.] have plagued this district with mismanagement, greed and corruption. Where have you people been? Like it or not, the Morrisville school district has become a big cow that is getting milked to death. [My tin foil hat is firmly on my head. Tell me more. And let me know where the line for milk starts.]
Since 1998, over $7 million has been appropriated toward physical improvements to our aging school buildings. This money was wasted; [You are alleging that seven million dollars has been wasted. What does "wasted" mean? And weren't you a part of that as a board member and officer?] now we have boilers that are said to be so bad that they may explode. [That's because they're 40 years old. Did you as a school board member ever appropriate money to replace the boilers?] Where have you people been?
Not even soaring taxes and horrible test scores could get most of you off your bottoms to demand changes, [true] but you tout the high paid administrators who continually pat themselves on the back for sub-mediocrity. Hence, self promoting [Glass House Alert 2] /substance-less things like domestic and international awards still attract your attention. [Since you brought the subject of attention up, your academic skills aren't well displayed here either. You're making accusations all around the place and not offering a shred of evidence. If you have something that is actionable, take it to the appropriate authorities. Otherwise, you're grandstanding just to hear the sound of your own voice. I know several Morrisville teachers who would grade these unsupported statements rather harshly. I know of one judge who did already.]
Now, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, 76 percent of our recently graduated students failed math and reading on their state assessment tests (worst in the county). [True. Sadly true. Why though? Test scores are dropping all over the country. What is your plan to fix it? Today, you are representing a group who has refused time after time to reveal a plan. SHAME ON YOU!! You personally harangued a sick man in public, shouting repeatedly at him, to the point of him being taken to the hospital and yet you sit there smugly, hurling accusation after accusation WITHOUT A PLAN OF YOUR OWN! That's called attention whoring and only adds to the problem. It fixes nothing but your pathetic need for attention.] If costs over the next 13 years could somehow stay the same and nothing else changes, each kindergartner entering this district will cost taxpayers more than a quarter of a million dollars and 76 percent of them will fail at math and reading. [That's a tortured twist to logic. I agree that throwing money at a problem does not solve it, and Morrisville is paying an extremely large amount to educate its students. We've talked about the math of per student costs. Diving the budget by the number of students yields a high number. Once you subtract the "free" money, the grants and gifts, the real per student cost is much lower. Ask your CPA buddy to explain it. Then, you use the worst score available to make your point. You learned that from the Emperor who keeps screaming that the interest rates are dropping and the old board was wrong in not defeasing earlier because the rates were dropping. What if the rates had actually risen? The argument fails. Same if this year's 11th graders do better in their test scores. Your logic fails.] Despite such dismal results, our prior lame duck school board locked the superintendent and teachers into lucrative long-term contracts. [That's a great use of code words. "Lucrative" in this context connotes luxury or overpayment and "lame-duck" reminding us that term expiring members actually did something. If you think Dr. Yonson or the teachers are overpaid, that's fine as far as your personal opinion, but the salaries are quite within the norm for Bucks County, the state of Pennsylvania, and the East Coast. Secondly, if you're so concerned about lame ducks sitting around while their term is expiring, put your money where your mouth is. On the morning after Election Day when your successor has been elected, I expect your resignation from Borough Council effective immediately. Otherwise, you're just attention whoring again.]
Where have you people been?
When it comes to education, if you expect that our state representatives who are in bed with entities such as the teachers unions and the superintendent’s association, are going to initiate needed changes, you better think again. [While this may be accurate, what does little Morrisville have to do with this? This needs to be attacked on the state level, and no amount of pain or anguish that you inflict upon the children of Morrisville will change this. The Emperor and his Court of Toadies regularly repeat this mealy mouthed drivel. You need to make changes to this at the state level. Stop posturing uselessly in board and council meetings, and use your elected office to make the changes needed.]
In a recent Courier Times article about outsourcing our high school students, teachers would not comment for concerns of crossing the state teachers union [Well, DUH! If there was a teacher who honestly supported a plan to do away with their own job, either they are an uncommon altruist, or silly enough that I would not want them to be teaching my children anyway. If your fight is with the state teachers union, Morrisville, again, is not the place to be holding this fight. Stop posturing uselessly on the local level and use your elected office at the state level where the fight belongs.] but parents and students rightfully expressed their concerns. Drastic changes can be upsetting but when this board of directors tells you that a major restructuring is necessary, you better believe them. [Ah. Believe. As in the statement "I trust the board to do what is right?" I believe this board to be bereft of common sense and ethically challenged. If they told me today was Saturday, I would want independent confirmation.]
At $22,000 per student and dismal test scores in the high school, this district would have gone bankrupt long ago in the real world. [Yes. Absolutely. There's a reason why the education system does not function in a 100% business style model, along with hospitals, and even government itself. They provides services that are of an incalculable future value at a large present cost and a zero immediate financial return. Can schools, hospitals, or governments function as complete profit making institutions? Of course, but what would be the resulting services?] With public education spiraling out of control, our careless lawmakers (whom are in the business of getting reelected) [Does anyone else see the irony of a career elected official spouting about being in the business of being re-elected?] don’t address the root of the problem but rather promote tax shifts and schemes that just pump more money on top of a failing institution. [Talk to the state and federal officials who put this into place. But we would be remiss if we did not take advantage of every break the state and federal governments offered, wouldn't we?]
Who of sound mind really believes that Act 1 legislation to cap and control runaway school spending is worth the paper it was written on? With its 10 exceptions that protect a bloated incumbent bureaucracy, Act 1 law is nothing more than pathetic smoke and mirror legislation. [Your fight is not in Morrisville. Shut up here, and go and fix it. In Harrisburg.]
Now in Morrisville we have a new and somewhat [somewhat?] novice school board that recognizes that status quo is unacceptable and drastic changes are necessary. Let the changes begin here in Morrisville. First we must stop taxing people out of their homes. [I'll agree with this, but who repealed the natural processes of inflation and declining purchasing power? Read Gibbon's "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire." Read about the inflations that beset the dying British Empire. Read about the "Great Depression." It was rather a big news item a few decades ago. But that's only a partial piece of the puzzle. Did these same people financially plan for their futures? I'm not immune to financial disasters and neither is anyone else by the simple virtue of being a homeowner.] Does anyone really believe that test scores will improve if we go from $22,000 per student to $30,000? I don’t think so. The more we feed the monster, the bigger it will get. [This is just ridiculous. Who is advocating raising the money we taxpayers send to the district?]
My point is not to say I told you so but rather we must all work together just to survive. And perhaps, if we all stick together,[I think you meant to say, "Just Cooperate!"] maybe we’ll gain the attention of our (don’t rock the boat) lawmakers.
Stephen Worob, Morrisville, is a former school board member and a current councilman in Morrisville.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Inquirer Education Scorecard 2008
Today, the Philadelphia Inquirer published the regional report card for the schools. Take a look and let us know what parts of the report made you sit up and take notice.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
It STILL Ain't Just Us!
The results are in and it seems that students nationally are failing to be proficient. I'm not sure that my math skills are good enough to count up all of the children being left behind.
Let's be sure to note that all our students nationally should be doing better, but it's pretty clear that Dr. Yonson and her cabinet are doing the job here in Morrisville.
U.S. Students Achieve Mixed Results on Writing Test
New York Times
By SAM DILLON
About a third of the nation's eighth-grade students, and roughly a quarter of its high school seniors, are proficient writers, according to nationwide test results.
That proportion of students demonstrating writing proficiency is about the same as in 2002, when a similar exam was last given.
But the results of the latest test, administered last year, also found modest increases in the skills of lower-performing students. Nearly 9 students in 10 can now demonstrate at least a basic achievement in writing, defined as partial mastery of the skills needed for proficient work.
As in the past, girls outperformed boys by far, most decisively at the eighth-grade level, where 41 percent of them achieved proficiency, compared with 20 percent of boys. The racial achievement gap narrowed slightly, with black and Hispanic students’ writing improving a bit more than did whites’.
The results for eighth graders, though not for seniors, were broken down by states, the top performers of which were New Jersey, where 56 percent of students scored at or above proficiency levels, and Connecticut, where the number was 53 percent. Nineteen states ranked above New York, where it was 31 percent.
That a third of the nation’s eighth graders can write with proficiency may not sound like much, but it is the best performance by eighth-grade students in any subject tested in the national assessment in the last three years. Only 17 percent of eighth graders were proficient on the 2006 history exam, for example.
Though some experts questioned whether the writing test, which requires students to compose only brief essays in a short time, was an accurate measure of their ability, officials of the government’s testing program said they were encouraged by the results.
“I am happy to report, paraphrasing Mark Twain, that the death of writing has been greatly exaggerated,” said Amanda P. Avallone, an eighth-grade English teacher who is vice chairwoman of the board that oversees the testing program, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, known as “the nation’s report card.”
The results were released at the Library of Congress in Washington. The host, James H. Billington, the librarian of Congress, drew laughs when he expressed concern about “the slow destruction of the basic unit of human thought — the sentence,” as young Americans do most of their writing in disjointed prose composed in Internet chat rooms or in cellphone text messages.
“The sentence is the biggest casualty,” Mr. Billington said. “To what extent is students’ writing getting clearer?”
Ms. Avallone sought to allay his concern.
“I know that the sentence has not been put to rest as a unit of communication,” she said.
Ms. Avallone also said the difference in scores between girls and boys might result in part from lower literacy expectations for boys in the public schools.
“These days I seldom if ever hear the message that math and science do not matter for girls,” she said, “yet I do still encounter the myth that many boys won’t really need to write very much or very well once they leave school.”
The national writing test was given to 140,000 eighth graders and 28,000 12th graders selected to form a representative sample of all students nationwide in the two grades. Each student wrote two 25-minute essays intended to measure skills at writing to inform, persuade and tell stories.
Thirty-three percent of eighth graders scored at or above the proficiency level, which the test designers defined as competency in carrying out challenging academic tasks. Eighty-eight percent scored at or above the basic level, up from 85 percent in 2002.
“These results pleased and encouraged me,” said Michael Casserly, executive director of the Council of the Great City Schools, which represents the nation’s 60 largest urban districts. “A lot of cities have introduced explicit writing programs. You go into urban schools and you see hallways lined with samples of student writing. Writing programs have gotten better.”
If Mr. Casserly was encouraged, some others were not, particularly in light of other indicators of Americans’ writing prowess. A survey of 120 corporations conducted by the College Board in 2003, for instance, concluded that a third of employees in the nation’s blue-chip companies, including many recent college graduates, wrote poorly.
“American students’ writing skills are deteriorating,” said Will Fitzhugh, founder of The Concord Review, a journal that features history research papers written by high school students.
Mr. Fitzhugh expressed skepticism that the national assessment accurately measured students’ overall writing skills, because, he said, it tested only their ability to write brief essays jotted out in half an hour.
“The only way to assess the kind of writing that students will have to do in college,” he said, “is to have them write a term paper, and then have somebody sit down and grade it. And nobody wants to do that, because it’s too costly.”
Let's be sure to note that all our students nationally should be doing better, but it's pretty clear that Dr. Yonson and her cabinet are doing the job here in Morrisville.
U.S. Students Achieve Mixed Results on Writing Test
New York Times
By SAM DILLON
About a third of the nation's eighth-grade students, and roughly a quarter of its high school seniors, are proficient writers, according to nationwide test results.
That proportion of students demonstrating writing proficiency is about the same as in 2002, when a similar exam was last given.
But the results of the latest test, administered last year, also found modest increases in the skills of lower-performing students. Nearly 9 students in 10 can now demonstrate at least a basic achievement in writing, defined as partial mastery of the skills needed for proficient work.
As in the past, girls outperformed boys by far, most decisively at the eighth-grade level, where 41 percent of them achieved proficiency, compared with 20 percent of boys. The racial achievement gap narrowed slightly, with black and Hispanic students’ writing improving a bit more than did whites’.
The results for eighth graders, though not for seniors, were broken down by states, the top performers of which were New Jersey, where 56 percent of students scored at or above proficiency levels, and Connecticut, where the number was 53 percent. Nineteen states ranked above New York, where it was 31 percent.
That a third of the nation’s eighth graders can write with proficiency may not sound like much, but it is the best performance by eighth-grade students in any subject tested in the national assessment in the last three years. Only 17 percent of eighth graders were proficient on the 2006 history exam, for example.
Though some experts questioned whether the writing test, which requires students to compose only brief essays in a short time, was an accurate measure of their ability, officials of the government’s testing program said they were encouraged by the results.
“I am happy to report, paraphrasing Mark Twain, that the death of writing has been greatly exaggerated,” said Amanda P. Avallone, an eighth-grade English teacher who is vice chairwoman of the board that oversees the testing program, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, known as “the nation’s report card.”
The results were released at the Library of Congress in Washington. The host, James H. Billington, the librarian of Congress, drew laughs when he expressed concern about “the slow destruction of the basic unit of human thought — the sentence,” as young Americans do most of their writing in disjointed prose composed in Internet chat rooms or in cellphone text messages.
“The sentence is the biggest casualty,” Mr. Billington said. “To what extent is students’ writing getting clearer?”
Ms. Avallone sought to allay his concern.
“I know that the sentence has not been put to rest as a unit of communication,” she said.
Ms. Avallone also said the difference in scores between girls and boys might result in part from lower literacy expectations for boys in the public schools.
“These days I seldom if ever hear the message that math and science do not matter for girls,” she said, “yet I do still encounter the myth that many boys won’t really need to write very much or very well once they leave school.”
The national writing test was given to 140,000 eighth graders and 28,000 12th graders selected to form a representative sample of all students nationwide in the two grades. Each student wrote two 25-minute essays intended to measure skills at writing to inform, persuade and tell stories.
Thirty-three percent of eighth graders scored at or above the proficiency level, which the test designers defined as competency in carrying out challenging academic tasks. Eighty-eight percent scored at or above the basic level, up from 85 percent in 2002.
“These results pleased and encouraged me,” said Michael Casserly, executive director of the Council of the Great City Schools, which represents the nation’s 60 largest urban districts. “A lot of cities have introduced explicit writing programs. You go into urban schools and you see hallways lined with samples of student writing. Writing programs have gotten better.”
If Mr. Casserly was encouraged, some others were not, particularly in light of other indicators of Americans’ writing prowess. A survey of 120 corporations conducted by the College Board in 2003, for instance, concluded that a third of employees in the nation’s blue-chip companies, including many recent college graduates, wrote poorly.
“American students’ writing skills are deteriorating,” said Will Fitzhugh, founder of The Concord Review, a journal that features history research papers written by high school students.
Mr. Fitzhugh expressed skepticism that the national assessment accurately measured students’ overall writing skills, because, he said, it tested only their ability to write brief essays jotted out in half an hour.
“The only way to assess the kind of writing that students will have to do in college,” he said, “is to have them write a term paper, and then have somebody sit down and grade it. And nobody wants to do that, because it’s too costly.”
Monday, March 31, 2008
Education Articles of Note
The CSI crew won't be adding any new techs from the Las Vegas/Clark County Schools System anytime soon.
91% + 87% + 88% = FAILED
But...do we need to know this anyway?
What is the Rationale for Requiring Higher Mathematics Proficiency for All K-12 Students?
And why did we do so poorly?
It’s not easy to understand why students perform dismally on high school standard math tests
Starting over from scratch is easier than rebuilding and restoring?
Vallas: New Orleans is a breeze
91% + 87% + 88% = FAILED
But...do we need to know this anyway?
What is the Rationale for Requiring Higher Mathematics Proficiency for All K-12 Students?
And why did we do so poorly?
It’s not easy to understand why students perform dismally on high school standard math tests
Starting over from scratch is easier than rebuilding and restoring?
Vallas: New Orleans is a breeze
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Items to Think About
Here's a sample of some items that have crossed my browser.
Another submission for the Wayback Machine, from October 2003 where Steve Worob was concerned that a sham feasibility study was being used by the administration to build the new school. Wow. Now it's a sham study for renovation and squandering $2.4 million in administrative fees to defease the bond. Some things never change. (Thanks to the anonymous submitter.)
Defense of Testing Series: The Forgotten Middle: Improving Readiness for High School
The percentage of eighth graders on target to be ready for college-level work by the time they graduate from high school is so small that it raises questions not just about the prospect that these students can eventually be ready for college, but also about whether they are even ready for high school. But when students' skills are improved during middle school, the results by the end of high school can be astounding.
Who Shall Govern Our Schools?
The question of how best to "inform their discretion" while retaining control by "the people" is the task facing democratic-minded school reformers. If democracy be our ends, noted another famed educator, John Dewey, then it must also be our means.
Control school budgets; give the voters final say
Another submission for the Wayback Machine, from October 2003 where Steve Worob was concerned that a sham feasibility study was being used by the administration to build the new school. Wow. Now it's a sham study for renovation and squandering $2.4 million in administrative fees to defease the bond. Some things never change. (Thanks to the anonymous submitter.)
Defense of Testing Series: The Forgotten Middle: Improving Readiness for High School
The percentage of eighth graders on target to be ready for college-level work by the time they graduate from high school is so small that it raises questions not just about the prospect that these students can eventually be ready for college, but also about whether they are even ready for high school. But when students' skills are improved during middle school, the results by the end of high school can be astounding.
Who Shall Govern Our Schools?
The question of how best to "inform their discretion" while retaining control by "the people" is the task facing democratic-minded school reformers. If democracy be our ends, noted another famed educator, John Dewey, then it must also be our means.
Control school budgets; give the voters final say
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