If you would like to post a comment to an existing post:

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO POST A COMMENT:

1) Find Blog Archive in the right hand column. Click on a particular month and then find a topic you're interested in. Another option is to find "Labels" in the right hand column. (Ex: Homework) Click on the label you're interested in and you'll have choice of posts on that topic appear in the middle column of the Blog.
2) Go to the end of the post where you'll find the word "comments" (or No Comments) highlighted. Click on this.
3) You'll then see a space to "enter your comment." At the bottom of that "page" you'll find a pull down menu asking you to "Comment as." You can pick Name/URL. If you pick Name/URL, then insert your name (or initials) and ignore the URL space. You'll note that most of the comments are submitted by contributors using their initials. This is because almost all of the current contributors are students in a course I teach at Salve.

4) Then, in the next box, click "continue". Then, you should click on the "Publish" button.

5) I'd ask that you refrain from critiquing individuals, unless they are public figures such as Obama, Duncan or Gist. I reserve the right to delete posts which I feel are "over the top." I'd prefer this Blog to involve a "battle of ideas" rather than a bashing of individuals. Also, please feel free to post alternative views or offer amendments to my assertions and/or specifics. I am far from being an expert on these matters, so there should be lots of room for amendments. If you look thru the Blog, you will see that I have included articles on opposite sides of issues (Ex: pro and con on Common Core; pro and con on Portfolio, etc)

You will also notice that I encourage my students to critique my ideas, and to use a "devil's advocate" approach upon occasion.

5) IF YOU'D LIKE TO CONTRIBUTE AN ARTICLE (POST) ON A TOPIC OF YOUR CHOOSING INSTEAD, THEN EMAIL ME THE POST AND I'LL PUT IT ON THE BLOG. (JBuxton564@cox.net)

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Testing the (PARCC) Test

Below is an article on the field testing of the PARCC test. I have a couple of questions:

1) Do the students know that "scores from the practice test will not count for any student or teacher evaluations"? If they know that, will they not try to their fullest? This was a problem with the NECAP in the earlier stages.

2) Will this testing be on top of NECAP testing? How much total time will students that take both the NECAP and PAARC spend in testing (and, therefore, not learning)?

Testing the Test

By Elisabeth Harrison of the Providence Journal; 3/18/2014

In school districts across Rhode Island, some 9,000 students are about to get a taste of the test replacing NECAP next year. The students are participating in field testing for the test, known as PARCC, starting next week.
PARCC is slated to be used in 17 states. Rhode Island's Education Commissioner Deborah Gist says the field testing comes as designers refine the exam, and will give teachers, administrators and students a chance to prepare for next year.
"So there are about 9,000 students who are participating in the PARCC testing in about 260 of our schools," Gist said. "Its just a sampling really of different grades and classes at schools across the state."
Scores from the practice test will not count for any students or teacher evaluations. Gist says the field testing will involve 3-5 hours of testing for students, spread out over a three-week period.
The PARCC test represents a transition to computer-based testing in Rhode Island, which means school districts must have enough computers available to their students. Paper versions of PARCC will be available for next year and for the upcoming practice test.
Rhode Island is one of several states where critics have moved to delay implementation of PARCC, arguing the test is too hard. It was designed to include a large portion of short and long answer questions, instead of the multiple choice questions common in standardized testing
Rhode Island Education Commissioner Deborah Gist rejects claims the new test is too difficult. She says it is complex, but she believes it will push students just the right amount.
"We don’t want to create a culture in our schools where people feel stressed out," Gist said. "But we want them to be stretched, we want them to strive to the greatest of their abilities."
When PARCC is in full effect, it will be administered twice a year, once in April and once closer to the end of the school year.

No comments:

Post a Comment

If you want to know more about this blog......,

The purpose of this Blog is to create dialogue regarding the status of HS Social Studies in RI. It is not designed to discuss elementary or Middle School issues. It is not designed to discuss HS Math issues, and it's not designed to discuss Social Studies issues in Oregon. Although readers are welcome to post on the aforementioned topics, the focus will nonetheless be on HS Social Studies in RI. I have sat through all too many generic Professional Development days, and read far too many pages in K-12 Education texts where they talk about Mrs. Brown's second grade class. Both formats expect me to apply this generic information about teaching to my HS US History class. Frequently, it was and is a stretch! Additionally, it seems to me that we have far too many people with Elementary School backgrounds making educational policy decisions that might be appropriate at the pre-HS level, but not at the HS level.

The idea for this Blog came about after my conversations with numerous HS Social Studies teachers in my capacity of observing Salve Regina student teachers at a wide variety of RI high schools. Additionally, I have many Social Studies colleagues in a variety of high schools inside and outside RI as a result of my attending Model United Nations conferences. I noticed that there were many common concerns that these teachers had in common. My sense is that these Social Studies teachers expressed their concerns and shared best practices with others in their department, but didn't necessarily have a non-NEA forum to discuss common issues with HS Social Studies teachers from other schools.

Lastly, I feel like I'm in a unique position to assist the pendulum in swinging, which I observe many HS teachers are looking forward to. I have 32 years of HS teaching under my belt; I have 5 years of experience teaching at URI, so I have some ability to evaluate how the product of RI HS Social Studies courses fares at the next level. I also have lots of experience in the Salve Regina Education Department where I have gotten a greater sense for educational reforms, some of which I support, and some of which I have serious concerns about. Additionally, I have had the opportunity to speak to many Social Studies teachers, in a wide variety of settings, and hear their concerns. Finally, I feel I'm in a unique position, because I feel like I'm a lot more free to express my opinions regarding these matters than many other teachers are in the state.

In closing, I'd like to admit the following:
1) I like to write, and I like the Blog format. I used it frequently with my URI classes, and I also, for a period of time, managed a Blog that dealt with appropriate youth soccer coaching ideas.
2) I don't like to complain without doing something about the issues. Hence, at 4 different times in my 3 decades of SKHS teaching, I wrote lengthy pieces defending SKHS, which were published in the SK newspapers. My hope is that this Blog may be a forum to express concern, but may also, eventually, lead to action to improve education for our students.
3) I'm semi-retired and have some time on my hands.