And You Wonder Why Teachers Raise Questions About Standardized Tests

Yesterday’s New York Times brought us an insightful essay from Todd Farley regarding the deep problems with standardized tests — including the “mad scramble” inside the industry to “score tests, meet deadlines and rake in cash.” Policy pundits and many erstwhile darlings of the media often portray teachers (and their associations) as anti-reform and purveyors of the status quo when they raise questions about the flaws in using standardized tests to assess student progress and teaching effectiveness. Farley’s piece is insightful — a must read for those who want to peel back the layers on the usual superficial criticisms of those who are uncertain that multiple choice tests serve as accurate barometers of student academic progress.

Farley identifies the endemic problems with how these tests are scored as well as the quality of specific items themselves. Others, such as economist Tim Sass, raise questions about the stability of value-added measures to determine who is an effective teacher and who is not. Sass' recent analyses show that in Duval County, Florida almost 20 percent of those who scored in the bottom quintile of teachers in year one scored in the top quintile the next. Such fluctuations cannot tell a meaningful story about good teaching.This is not to mean that standardized tests and value-added measures should not be used -- but they must be used carefully. It is time to question the pundits who vilify those who raise questions about using standardized test to carte blanche judge kids and the teachers who teach them.


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