Wendy Says

If you’re like most teachers, you’ve been spending countless hours prepping your students for this year’s round of state testing. Whether you agree with it or not, state testing has become the primary method for ranking schools in our nation. And in this time of funding cuts and lay-offs, if your students don’t perform well, you may be out of a job. I know I feel the pressure with my group of talkative, active kiddos.

Lucky for me, I work with a  group of teachers that share and pool resources so all our student can succeed. But what if you’re not so lucky? Here are some resources that might help:

• Buckle Down – While not free, these grade-specific books are a great resource of student and teacher workbooks that correlate directly with your own state’s standards and tests.
• Your state department Web site – Most states offer practice and sample tests that you can print for your students as you prepare for the yearly tests.
• EDinformatics – This site offers a listing of many states’ former tests that can be printed for sample and practice test questions.

Now, when it comes down to time to take the test, it’s up to your students to take their time and do their best. But if you’ve done your part in preparing them, you should have no fear. But be sure to pump up your class, offer them reasonable rewards for meeting their goals, and don’t put too much pressure on them. And good luck!

If you have strategies that have worked in the past, be sure to share!

The new year always brings a fresh perspective and new challenges. I love to sit back during this busy time of year and take a look back at where my students have been this year and where we’re headed, both as a class and as individuals. And, with that, I take a new look at our class's goals.

My school district is very goal-driven. Teachers and students alike create goals during the school year and we all map out what we will do to meet those goals. It’s not always easy, but I look for creative ways to help my students understand what the goal-setting process is all about.

I’m a runner and I have a specific goal of what I’d like to accomplish—a marathon. This requires training, just as students must “train” to meet their academic goals. I’ve mapped out for my students what I’m doing to achieve my goal, both short- and long-term, going as far as writing down the miles I run every day for them. Then we talk about how I can’t expect to not run, then go out one day and run 26 miles. Just as my students can’t expect to not do their homework or not study, then expect to meet the expectations at the end of the year.

As you head into this school year’s “home stretch” in January, set some goals for yourself—both personal and professional. Share them with your students. Then talk to them regularly about what you’re doing to meet those goals.

Similarly, have your students set their own goals. Give each student a manila folder with a goal sheet stapled inside. Have each student write down one personal and one academic goal using a template. Collect the folders for safe keeping, but review them with your students at least once a week. Are they doing what they said they needed to do? Did they meet their goals? If you have a class goal, display it prominently for everyone to see to encourage students to reach it.

Meeting specific goals boosts the self-confidence of everyone involved and paves the way for future success. For more information on setting goals, check out this Goal Setting Guide.

With testing season coming to a close (thank goodness!), I have to stop and wonder why we put our students through this. Sure, accountability is the old stand-by reasoning. But how much does it really benefit the kids?

Don’t get me wrong; I see the benefit in standardized tests. They can assist in showing students’ overall growth from year to year, especially in mobile areas where students change schools frequently. Many schools also use the results of these tests to help guide instruction and to place students in classes the following school year.

My issue with standardized tests is the loss of instructional time. We lose time for instruction when we give the tests—for sometimes as long as five days, as with my school’s fourth and eighth graders this year. But we also lose time when teachers teach to the test (and as much as teachers deny it, we all teach to the test to some extent). The kids have to know how to take the test, after all!

Assessment happens in classrooms constantly. Good teachers are up, moving around the classroom, talking to students throughout the day. Assignments and in-class activities are designed to showcase students’ talents and identify weaknesses. What teachers, schools, districts, and state education boards need to do is find a way for these formative assessments to count for something.

Personally, I am not a good multiple-choice test taker. Never have been. When I was a kid, I remember taking the Iowa Basic each year and I never did particularly well on it. But I still made it through a master’s degree as an adult. And, though I may not always show it, I think I’m pretty darn smart. Was the test reliable? Did it really measure where I was academically at the time?

How can we, as educators, help? When will formative assessments count toward a school’s label, instead of one very stressful (for students and teachers alike) series of summative assessments?