The idea has appeal, since parents are highly important stakeholders in public education. However, an article in the peer reviewed Public Administration Review suggests that "most parentsmay lack information to accurately judge the quality of schools their children attend" (Favero, et al
On the other hand, parents' views should be taken into consideration because some school characteristics that "administrative records often ignore might include the quality of a school's counseling service" or other services, so it is the opinion of this paper that parents should have a hand in the evaluation of schools and of teachers' performance. Another alternate course of action would be to scrap the standardized testing format and instead go back to the grades "given to students by teachers," which are determined by teachers based on "grade-point average and rank in class" (Tanner, 2013)
But we also established portfolios, not digital portfolios (we didn't really have the technology to create digital portfolios) but rather folders with hard copies of student work (the expanding kind of folders) that I paid for out of my own pocket (many teachers bought supplies for their classes because the budget at our school was very tight). We (the two other faculty that rejected strict adherence to preparing for standardized tests) kept assessment journals that increased "…teaching efficiency and effectiveness," and attempted to help in the teaching to "diverse learners" by interviewing and systematic observations (Vacca, et al
Well-documented gaps between mean scores of white and minority populations regularly raise the question of racial and socioeconomic bias with regard to how the tests are written." (Kingman, p
They're also cheap, says Robert Schaeffer, public education director of FairTest." (Koebler, p
Indeed, the article by Neal (2011) calls for nothing short of broad-based policy change, not just in the way that these tests are designed and administered but also in the degree to which these are used as ways of measuring and predicting student performance. As the text by Neal charges, "standardized tests allow colleges to practice social discrimination in the name of academic selectivity, when, in reality, high school grades are the best predictor of future collegiate success" (Neal, p
However, when used in high-stakes accountability, as the sole indicator of an individual student's achievement or the quality of a single school or school district, these tests can be imprecise." (Rubenstein, p
Today, prospective college students can choose between the SAT and ACT, although high school students may also be faced with taking preparatory college entrance examinations prior to their senior year (von Kampen). In 1992 the Texas legislature passed educational reforms that would hold teachers accountable for student academic performance, the first of its kind in the nation and the precursor for NCLB (Blakeslee)
Standardized testing has been rummaging around academic circles in America for close to a century ("Americans Instrumental"), but what has garnered the most controversy is the mandated nationwide testing under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2002 (Hudson 10-15)
' Preparing Students for Testing To succeed in meeting expected scores on standardized tests the totality of the educational environment becomes important. An analysis of an elementary school consistently scoring high in reading and writing revealed motivated administrators, parents, and teachers, a strong emphasis on teacher professional development, plenty of support staff, and the delegation of writing and reading curriculum development to the most qualified teachers (Pressley, Mohan, Raphael, and Fingeret 225)
These efforts eventually led to the establishment of the not-for-profit Educational Testing Service in 1948, with Conant as Chairman of the Board. Today, prospective college students can choose between the SAT and ACT, although high school students may also be faced with taking preparatory college entrance examinations prior to their senior year (von Kampen)
In other words, the purpose was to find out exactly what problems ADHD sufferers encounter when trying to achieve knowledge. In order to ascertain the difficulties -- and to help ADHD students become more academically competent -- that present roadblocks for those individuals, the first study looks at existing literature and uses "…quantitative, meta-analytic procedures" as a research design in order to thoroughly interpret the results in previous work (Frazier)
The study reports that from each of the phases of the study findings include the following findings: (1) a tremendous amount of pressure is felt by both teachers and students related to high-stakes testing; (2) the pressure results in learning through drill and practice type of curriculum and instruction; (3) the pressure of high stakes testing is felt greater in schools that are disadvantaged; and (4) students who are gifted and talented feel pressure to perform well so as to raise all scores and it found to disengage them from the learning process. (Moon, Brighton, Jarvis, and Hall, 2007, p
The reasons stated include that public school teachers oppose the tests "…because they focus so narrowly on reading and math that the young are learning to hate reading, math, and school; because they measure only "low level" thinking processes; because they put the wrong people -- test manufacturers -- in charge of American education; because they allow pass-fail rates to be manipulated by officials for political purposes; because test items simplify and trivialize learning." (Strauss, 2011, p
When we use the word alternative assessment, we think of certain instances of alternative assessment like exhibitions, investigations, demonstrations, written or oral responses, journals, and portfolios. (Cora, 2001) The following are some of the tools utilized in authentic assessment: checklists; simulations; essays and other writing samples; demonstrations or performances; intake and progress interviews; oral presentations; informal and formal observations by instructors, peers, and others; self-assessments; and constructed-response queries
Assessment may have an effect on choices about grades, advancement, placement, instructional needs, and curriculum. (Dietel; Herman; Knuth, 1991) Many educationalists adhere to the idea that education should deal mainly with reading, writing, and arithmetic
To record activities, assessments must be intended to be longitudinal, to test the baseline, the growth, and the conserved levels of alterations that follow from teaching. (Epstein; Schweinhart; DeBruin-Parecki; Robin, 2004) To conclude authentic assessment gives a more superior and suitable option than standardized testing
They might gather writing folders that have outline and reviews showing changes in spelling and mechanics, revision strategies, and their history as a writer. (Kerka, 1995) When taking into account assessment design and use, evaluation with traditional standardized tests will help to explain what authenticity really signifies
By preparing students to do completely on these tests, schools give emphasis to the skills kids really require. (Lehmann-Haupt, "http://c
Constructivists understand that standard-orientation; standardized testing cannot sufficiently disclose authentic learning or knowledge. (McCarty; Davis, 1992) Standardized test is utilized to calculate the performance of a group against that of a larger group