Teachers and parents: is this for real? Scores Up Since 'No Child' Was Signed (WP, pg1)

[DeepModem Mom]

Scores Up Since 'No Child' Was Signed
Study's Authors Unsure Whether to Credit Law for Gains
By Amit R. Paley
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, June 6, 2007; Page A01

The nation's students have performed significantly better on state reading and math tests since President Bush signed his landmark education initiative into law five years ago, according to a major independent study released yesterday.

The study's authors warned that it is difficult to say whether or how much the No Child Left Behind law is driving the achievement gains. But Republican and Democratic supporters of the law said the findings indicate that it has been a success. Some said the findings bolster the odds that Congress will renew the controversial law this year.

"This study confirms that No Child Left Behind has struck a chord of success with our nation's schools and students," U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings said in a statement. "We know the law is working, so now is the time to reauthorize."

The report, which experts called the most comprehensive analysis of test data from all 50 states since 2002, concluded that the achievement gap between black and white students is shrinking in many states and that the pace of student gains increased after the law was enacted. The findings were particularly significant because of their source: the nonpartisan Center on Education Policy, which in recent years has issued several reports that have found fault with aspects of the law's implementation.

Jack Jennings, president of the District-based center and a former Democratic congressional aide, said a decade of school improvement efforts at local, state and national levels has contributed to achievement gains....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/05/AR2007060502684.html?hpid=topnews

[mzmolly]

1. That's because teachers are "teaching to the test" and eliminating recess,

and other activities in order to meet goals. Also many Dems supported the "notion" but resented the lack of funding to assist schools in meeting the goals.

:shrug:

[blondeatlast]

5. Exactly. In my son's school now, PE, music, and art are referred to as

"specials" and rotated twice a week. No joke--he had PE once every week and a half.

[Clark2008]

11. My son has those - but no band.

I started band in the fifth grade, but he can't. I guess he has to wait until middle or high school now.

:grr:

[triguy46]

2. Absolute proof that teaching to the test works...

to raise scores. No corresponding evidence that anything else happens. My wife is an educator of 30 years in public schools and it is absolutely clear that NCLB dominates the curriculum today.

[trotsky]

3. Precisely.

Test scores have improved. Education, however, has regressed. The public school haters scored a major victory with NCLB.

[gatorboy]

4. They should call it the "Test Surge"

Our school concentrates 2 hours of the day to these tests, costing these kids most of their P.E. classes (Which have been whittled down to an hour and a half A WEEK). Recess also is kaput.

[DeepModem Mom]

8. Two hours a day teaching to the test -- I don't see how this can be a good thing. nt

[blondeatlast]

9. Yep--no recess, PE cut in half, but it's junk food alone (not that that isn't part

of it) that is making our children obese. Art, music, and PE alternate twice a week in my son's school. Shameful.

Dumb, fat, and happy is easy to manipulate, I suppose.

[gatorboy]

12. But, but..They have deskercise!

:eyes: When my son told me about their desk exercises, I cracked up. What are these kids? Friggin' veal now?

When i was in school, we had 2 recesses (Which weren't included in the lunch time-frame like now), P.E. daily, Art daily, Hell ,we had social studies (And Bible study.-Catholic school) and we still had enough time to learn our basics. These tests are killing the future of our kids. While these scores keep getting more and more priority, the GPA declines because there is less concentration on the basic studies. It's criminal what these folks are doing to our educational system.

[DKRC]

15. We even receive instructions

for what to feed our kids & how much rest they need leading up to the test so they can make high scores. It's an assembly line for producing a regulated commodity, not an education for future citizens.

[blondeatlast]

6. Scores are virtually meaningless to evaluate learning. nt

[gollygee]

7. My daughter is going into kindergarten in the fall

she had a 45-minute assessment to see if she was ready for kindergarten. Every child is assessed, and if they don't pass, they go into a "young 5" program. It's usually younger kids in that program, but not all of them are younger - many just didn't do well in the assessment. They were tested in motor skills, reading skills, letter recognition, speech, and math.

I said we didn't have anything like that when I was a kid, and asked when they started it. They said 2002. Coincidence?

[proud2BlibKansan]

20. They have been doing those kingergarten readiness screenings

here where I teach for the entire 27 years of my career. They certainly aren't new here. Maybe in your state, but they are very common across the country. And they are not mandated by NCLB.

[gollygee]

23. I didn't say they were mandated

One of the teachers who was doing the assessment said they're necessary because there are much greater expectations of students entering kindergarten now.

[proud2BlibKansan]

27. That's true

But it surprises me that this screening is new. Like I said, they have been doing these for decades.

[gollygee]

30. Not here

in the past, it was done by birthdate, and only kids whose birthdays were around the cut-off were assessed. Then, it wasn't a very intense assessment, and the decision was left mainly to the parent. The assessments for every child, and the level of assessment, is new. I actually think the assessments are a good idea, but I think the motivation was probably at least partly because they were having to get into math and reading earlier and needed kids to be ready for it.

[proud2BlibKansan]

31. Kindergarten has become watered down 1st grade

Here, it is all day and there are no naps and no snacks.

[T Wolf]

10. Any "real" educator who truly cares about children will tell you that

No Cannon-fodder Left Behind is a disaster in everything except test scores, precisely because, like everything in the repuke world, it is designed to establish a rigged system.

And American idiots continue to swallow the shit thrown flung around by the Chimp-in-Chief.

[Goblinmonger]

13. They are also grading them more easily, too.

Certainly there is teaching to the test being done, but states seem to be grading a bit less strictly, too. Can't look like a failing state, now can we?

[proud2BlibKansan]

21. And how is that accomplished?

The majority of the tests are fill in the bubble multiple choice and are scored by a computer. How do you suppose they are being graded easier?

[Goblinmonger]

33. Several ways

1. The state gets to decide what a level of proficient (of whatever the state is calling a "passing" level) is and that can be adjusted.

2. Many states are changing from a norm-based test to a criterion-based test which eliminates the "need" for a bell curve and can increase the amount of proficients. (As a side note, I think that a criterion-based test is a much better assessment of learning than the traditional norm-based, but it certainly can be used to increase the number of proficient students.)

3. The writing portion of the test is very subjective. I have seen the percentage of students in our district that are advanced writers clearly go up in the past years.

[proud2BlibKansan]

34. States have to use a norm-based test

That is required under NCLB. We used to have a great criterion referenced test here but we can no longer use that.

[Goblinmonger]

37. I don't think so.

The WKCE (Wisconsin's test) is changing to a criterion-based test.

It is statistically impossible for a norm-based test to produce every student at proficient.

On edit: It HAS changed. Google WKCE-CRT.

[proud2BlibKansan]

40. Read the law

NCLB mandates norm based testing.

[Goblinmonger]

41. Well, then, Wisconsin stands firmly

and obviously against the law. Even the name of our test is the "Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Examination – Criterion-Referenced Tests." Maybe we're just flipping them the bird; maybe things have changed.

[proud2BlibKansan]

44. Do you take another standardized test that is norm referenced?

Like the SAT9/10 or the ITBS? You could be meeting the mandate that way. We used to do the SAT here and also took our state criterion referenced test. But it got expensive so they just changed the state test to a normed test.

[ulysses]

14. ask them how much science & social studies they're learning. n/t

[proud2BlibKansan]

22. That is all we have done in May this year

Since we were ordered not to teach Science or Social Studies, we have gone into hyper drive with those subjects since testing ended in April.

[ulysses]

28. we do that too,

in addition to trying to catch up on IEP objectives...

[greenbriar]

25. exactly...Science and SS in my building each get 42 minutes while math and english get 87

each day the students get double math and english

[ulysses]

29. same here.

This spring they flat collapsed the science and social studies classes into the language arts and math classes for a month or so before the test period.

[proud2BlibKansan]

32. And we don't teach those subjects at all

Until testing in April, we teach only Math and Communication Arts. Then when testing is over, we cram as much Science and Social Studies into the month of May as we can. It's ridiculous.

[rucky]

16. I have no doubt that reading and math aptitude are up.

But critical thinking, science and social studies are out of the picture - much less anything that has to do with arts, PE, and even recess.

We have successfully created little test-bots.

[ComerPerro]

18. Well, non-thinking, mass-produced test bots are what Republicans want

[fishwax]

38. I doubt that reading and math aptitude are even up

and the study referenced in the OP does nothing to allay my suspicions. As the study itself says, while there have been (far from conclusive) gains on state tests, the scores on the national assessment test (NAEP) have not increased accordingly, and indeed grew at a slower rate between 2003 and 2005, after NCLB was passed, then they did in the period prior to that.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=1053309&mesg_id=1054890

[DKRC]

17. Rec'd this for the replies by parents & educators

not for the Bushlickers pushing this bullshit agenda.

[DeepModem Mom]

42. Thanks for the rec, DKRC. I think this is an important discussion. nt

[DKRC]

43. I agree wholeheartedly. Thanks for posting it for us. nt

[proud2BlibKansan]

19. No I think this is different data

I don't know if you remember, but about this time last year, dubya was making a big deal out of 4th grade reading scores going up. Turns up he was talking about the NAEP, which tests a small sample of 4th graders in districts hand picked by each state. In my district, only the schools that made AYP were chosen to participate in the NAEP.

So I don't trust this data either.

[greenbriar]

24. not true scores...maybe teaching to the test scores or weeding out

all bad ones they can

[ellisonz]

26. Last week's Time Magazine confirmns the thread consensus.

Time graded NCLB and gave an incomplete on test score improvement because the statistical significance is in doubt. Yes, there has been an uptick, but it is meaningless. Even more important is that they gave NCLB an F on improving failing schools.

[fishwax]

35. No, it isn't for real. The actual conclusions weren't nearly so dramatic as the story seems to imply

More importantly, perhaps, the positive results are limited to state tests, while the study itself acknowledges that "many of the gains on state tests are not confirmed by NAEP" (page 70 of the report; emphasis mine). The NAEP is the only national assessment test, and the scores on that test do not suggest improvement in the years since NCLB went into effect. (This is not to say, as the study says, that the NAEP results should be considered more significant than state results, but it certainly counters the enthusiasm some are finding in the study's results.)

The main conclusions are quite generic. I've copied them below from the center's report, which you can find in PDF form here: http://www.cep-dc.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=document.showDocumentByID&nodeID=1&DocumentID=200. I think that there is a lot of spin in the WaPo article, attempting to paint this study as more conclusive and more positive than it actually is.

1. In most states with three or more years of comparable test data, student achievement in reading and math has gone up since 2002, the year NCLB was enacted.

The second page of the WaPo article makes clear that the number represented by "most" varies widely: "In elementary school math, 37 out of 41 states with adequate data showed significant gains. In middle school reading, such increases were found in 20 out of 39 states, and in high school reading, in 16 out of 37." So barely half of the states in middle school reading, and less than half the states in high school reading, showed significant gains in test scores.

There is more evidence of achievement gaps between groups of students narrowing since 2002 than of gaps widening. Still, the magnitude of the gaps is often substantial.

14 out of 38 states showed narrowing achievement gaps. That's less than half. That there was no evidence of widening achievement gaps since NCLB in the remaining 24 states is hardly convincing proof of NCLB's effectiveness at closing that gap, especially since--to the degree that these results are positive--they don't demonstrate causality.

In 9 of the 13 states with sufficient data to determine pre- and post-NCLB trends, average yearly gains in test scores were greater after NCLB took effect than before.

So only 13 states had adequate data, and only 9 states actually showed faster improvement after NCLB took effect, while four states showed slower improvement. The sample size (as the study itself notes) is too small to be anything near conclusive.

It is very difficult, if not impossible, to determine the extent to which these trends in test results have occurred because of NCLB. Since 2002, states, school districts, and schools have simultaneously implemented many different but interconnected policies to raise achievement.

I would also add that (as the study itself notes) there are other factors as well, such as increased teaching to the test, that can add to this. (Indeed, I would question the study's title: Answering the Question That Matters Most: Has Student Achievement Increased Since No Child Left Behind?" Actually, what they are answering is "have scores on specific standardized tests increased since NCLB?"

Although NCLB emphasizes public reporting of state test data, the data necessary to reach definitive conclusions about achievement were sometimes hard to find or unavailable, or had holes or discrepancies. More attention should be given to issues of the quality and transparency of state test data.

I wonder if this doesn't suggest a sort of selection bias, in that in situations where scores have not improved, administrators have obscured the data out of fear of losing funding? Just a possibility ...

Additionally, there is another interesting conclusion in the study that contradicts the assertion that NCLB has improved student achievement. While the study shows that scores on state tests have increased, the scores on the NAEP--a national standardized test--have not increased. Indeed, scores on this test have declined in many cases. (And, interestingly, is more likely to decline in the same states where state scores have increased, suggesting that state scores have increased precisely because teacher's--pressured by the high stakes of NCLB--have increasingly taught to the state tests, leaving less time for other parts of the curriculum:

Overall, NAEP trends since 2002 show a less positive picture of student achievement than the state test results reported in this study ... The 2005 NAEP results for grades 4 and 8 indicate that reading achievement has remained essentially flat since 2003 ... during that same period, average NAEP scores also increased in math but at a slower rate than in previous years. Math results for grades 4 and 8 climbed dramatically in the early 1990s, leveled off in the mid-1990s, and then rose again between 2000 and 2003. Scores increased more modestly between 2003 and 2005, when the 4th grade average score increased by 3 points to 238, and the 8th grade average score rose by 1 point to 279. (page 62 of the study; emphasis mine)

In summary: (1) The results are actually quite muted, far from concrete proof of rising test scores or narrowing achievement gaps in the years since NCLB went into effect; (2) There is no evidence of causality between the requirements of NCLB and the changes in test scores noted in the study; (3) While scores on state standardized tests have increased, scores on national test scores have not improved as quickly post-NCLB as they did prior to its passing.

[yardwork]

36. Who cares? As a parent, I know that those standardized tests don't indicate jack shit

Standardized tests are no measure of the quality of a person's education.

[xultar]

39. What pisses me off about this is....republics and fundies home school their kids

so they don't get the 1/2 ass NCLB bullshit test taking classes.

All the kids will be able to do now is the NCLB minimum and they won't be able to use their brains to figure shit out.