Ten+Reasons+to+Opt+Out+-+Angela+Engel

There will be at least one blank CSAP test in my daughter’s third grade class this year. The decision to abstain from the Colorado State Assessment Program was not made lightly. Research and experience in education has led us to the following conclusions:

1) Test scores alone are not an accurate indicator of school qu... ality. According to the 2005 CSAP, 86 percent of fourth grade readers were considered proficient. Yet, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), only 28 percent of Colorado students scored high enough to be labeled proficient as calculated by that measure. The qualities we value in our school are not reflected in a number.

2) CSAP costs 18.5 million for the tests and another 50 million to administer each year. Considering the limited financial resources directed to our schools, we would like to see tax dollars directed at smaller class sizes, staff development training, technology, music and arts, teacher compensation, extended learning opportunities, enrichment programs such as foreign language, science tools, literature, curriculum, and classroom resources.

3) We find classroom assessments and teacher evaluations to be more reliable than a standardized test. The labels of “advanced proficient, proficient, partially proficient, and unsatisfactory” are ultimately rendered by CSAP graders working for $10.50 an hour. Bloomberg news recently reported on the quality of the test graders at CTB/McGraw Hill, CSAP publishers. Regulations required college degrees for readers but it was found that one only had an Associates Degree, one was a personal trainer who couldn’t spell physical and the other was a janitor. CTB/McGraw Hill declined to comment. A rash of computer failures have resulted in flawed scores. SAT incorrectly scored 4,000 students last year, jeopardizing their opportunities for college.

4) We are concerned that the goal to have every child learn, think, and demonstrate the same skills in an identical fashion are a misguided objective. The United States is competing in a global arena. Today’s jobs, and even more so tomorrow’s, will require innovation, creativity, adaptability, resourcefulness, diverse thinking, complex reasoning, and determination – skills not measured by the CSAP. No Child Left Behind and a National goal for sameness, uniformity, and conformity fails to cultivate the diverse talents of our children and compromises our future.

5) All children differ biologically, emotionally, culturally, genetically, and socially, not to mention their varied learning styles, adaptive resources, areas of interest, and temperament. The CSAP tests are written for the median. They do not accurately reflect the thinking of gifted and talented children, learning disabled, emotionally challenged, economically disadvantaged or the “out of the box” kind of thinkers. It is essential to recognize that “out of the box” thinkers are today’s inventors and CEO’s.

6) Standardized tests are limited by their design, format and necessity for fast automated grading. One session on a third grade reading CSAP test consists of 42 items; 34 represent multiple choice questions worth 34 points total, and 8 require short answer responses worth 18 points**.**[i] These questions fail to assess higher-order thinking skills, varied problem solving, and complex reasoning. Because test scores are the “standard of quality,” the curriculum is being narrowed to cover the subject represented on the test. We have higher expectations for our daughter’s education than conforming to the lowest common denominator. We value depth of understanding rather than superficial exposure to a breadth of concepts.

7) High-stakes testing has created a monopoly for test publishers such as McGraw Hill/CTB, publishers of CSAP. Most text books have been replaced with McGraw Hill text books or test preparation guides. Our daughter will graduate and never take another CSAP test again, so we’re not much interested in a McGraw Hill education. Furthermore, we object to the exploitation of our child and our tax dollars by the CEO’s driving the “education marketplace.” Don’t take our word for it – @http://investor.mcgraw-hill.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=96562&p=irol-investorfactbook. To download the report click on McGraw-Hill Education, p22-36

8) As parents, we are interested in what’s happening all 172 days of the year and not just the 12-20 days of standardized testing. The practice of measuring a single outcome on isolated discreet variables in a timed session fails to honor the learning process and support each child’s human development.

9) It is not just standardized tests and the CSAP that are at issue here. The problem lies in the fact that we have transferred the crucial responsibility of informing, guiding, and monitoring the educational system to test publishers who have no accountability. Policy makers, distantly removed from the classrooms, rely on a single indicator for making the vital school and classroom decisions that impact our children. Since it’s inception in 1997, the Colorado State Assessment Program operates without any oversight – the tests have never been independently audited for accuracy or reliability.

10) Finally, as parents we strive to work collaboratively with teachers and school administrators to ensure that our daughter has a meaningful, challenging, and personalized educational experience. We are unwilling to defer to this crucial responsibility to multiple-choice and short answer test questions. A more accurate picture of student achievement and school success happens on the inside rather than monitoring our schools from the comfort of our sofas and the abstract numbers printed in the local newspaper.

Seven years of grading schools based on students standardized tests and the results are clear: lower graduation rates, a wider achievement gap, shorter recesses, larger classes, a reduction in opportunities for children, and more red tape. Our hope is that our non-participation in the Colorado State Assessment Program sends a clear message to our legislators and school board members. For the sake of our tax investments, our children’s vital education, and the future of our nation – we must do better.