New State Testing May Cut into Your Summer Vacation
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 11:56 am
Did you take part in a school sponsored survey that was making the rounds in November or December, 2014? It asked parents and other stakeholders about whether a longer school day or a longer school year could help our students succeed. It appears that this survey was motivated by new state testing – PARCC testing. Have you heard that our school calendar may be amended? Most people I talk to have not heard about this and were angry when informed.
In December, the Observer included a feature titled "Ask Roxann" Looking At the School Calendar by Roxann Ramsey-Caserio. Ms. Ramsey-Caserio is Lakewood Schools’ assistant superintendent. She noted in part:
In August 2014, a committee of teachers and administrators formed to study our school calendar, and our first task was to take the pulse of our Lakewood community. The survey opened in early November and the district sought comments throughout the month. We were very pleased with the volume of feedback we received as it continued to confirm the interest and support of our community. Most recently the data was organized and presented to the committee for review, and these results will also be shared with all stakeholders prior to the winter break.
[i]Feedback from multiple community stakeholders revealed that respondents had questions pertaining to the motive behind making changes to the traditional calendar.
It would be hard to ignore the fact that the State Legislature has made significant changes to the testing schedule for the 2014-2105 school year and beyond. There are two testing windows. The first window opens in mid-February and the second opens in mid-April. All state-required assessment concludes May 15, 2015. While this is a significant reason to look at providing more instructional time to students prior to the beginning of the testing window, there is more to consider when innovation, technology and more rigorous standards have been infused into a more traditional schedule.
As a parent, I was disturbed that a single test, the new PARCC test, could throw everyone into such a frenzy so quickly. I was then upset to hear that our administration wanted to amend the 2015-2016 school calendar and start school early – August 17th is one version I have heard – in order to provide more instructional days early in the year.
When I questioned if the amended calendar was due to these new PARCC tests at a meeting I attended on February 4, 2015, I was told by Ms. Pam Griebel, Director of Teaching and Learning, that it was just one of the reasons. The only other reason provided was that starting the school year early provided for more natural breaks for the quarters. That is, the quarter would end before winter break if we started earlier in August. I never knew this was a problem! It seems clear to me that the only reason this is being suggested is the new testing requirements.
Ms. Griebel also noted that the district does not know exactly what the tests will be like but that they will test in a way that does not require teachers to “teach to the test.” If we don’t know what the testing will look like and we don’t have to teach to the test anymore, why do we need extra instructional days? I have also learned that there is a 20 day window in which to give the test – I may be missing something, but why not push the test back, then?
I don’t really have a problem with a school year that is a bit longer (extended into June or maybe taking away some of our longer breaks) but I do not want to give up a week, and possibly more than a week, of the warmest month of the year here in Lakewood.
More importantly, I do not want this test, or any other test, to dictate the way in which we teach our students. Effective teachers know that you don’t need more time, you need quality time and you need to set high expectations for your students every day (not just high expectations for test results).
If this proposed change bothers you, please contact someone on the school board or in the administration. The school board is expected to vote on this proposal in early March, so don’t delay!
Roxann Ramsey-Caserio - roxann.ramsey@lakewoodcityschools.org
Pamela Griebel – Pamela.griebel@lakewoodcityschools.org
Emma Petrie-Barcelona – President BOE – emma.petriebarcelona@lakewoodcityschools.org
In December, the Observer included a feature titled "Ask Roxann" Looking At the School Calendar by Roxann Ramsey-Caserio. Ms. Ramsey-Caserio is Lakewood Schools’ assistant superintendent. She noted in part:
In August 2014, a committee of teachers and administrators formed to study our school calendar, and our first task was to take the pulse of our Lakewood community. The survey opened in early November and the district sought comments throughout the month. We were very pleased with the volume of feedback we received as it continued to confirm the interest and support of our community. Most recently the data was organized and presented to the committee for review, and these results will also be shared with all stakeholders prior to the winter break.
[i]Feedback from multiple community stakeholders revealed that respondents had questions pertaining to the motive behind making changes to the traditional calendar.
It would be hard to ignore the fact that the State Legislature has made significant changes to the testing schedule for the 2014-2105 school year and beyond. There are two testing windows. The first window opens in mid-February and the second opens in mid-April. All state-required assessment concludes May 15, 2015. While this is a significant reason to look at providing more instructional time to students prior to the beginning of the testing window, there is more to consider when innovation, technology and more rigorous standards have been infused into a more traditional schedule.
As a parent, I was disturbed that a single test, the new PARCC test, could throw everyone into such a frenzy so quickly. I was then upset to hear that our administration wanted to amend the 2015-2016 school calendar and start school early – August 17th is one version I have heard – in order to provide more instructional days early in the year.
When I questioned if the amended calendar was due to these new PARCC tests at a meeting I attended on February 4, 2015, I was told by Ms. Pam Griebel, Director of Teaching and Learning, that it was just one of the reasons. The only other reason provided was that starting the school year early provided for more natural breaks for the quarters. That is, the quarter would end before winter break if we started earlier in August. I never knew this was a problem! It seems clear to me that the only reason this is being suggested is the new testing requirements.
Ms. Griebel also noted that the district does not know exactly what the tests will be like but that they will test in a way that does not require teachers to “teach to the test.” If we don’t know what the testing will look like and we don’t have to teach to the test anymore, why do we need extra instructional days? I have also learned that there is a 20 day window in which to give the test – I may be missing something, but why not push the test back, then?
I don’t really have a problem with a school year that is a bit longer (extended into June or maybe taking away some of our longer breaks) but I do not want to give up a week, and possibly more than a week, of the warmest month of the year here in Lakewood.
More importantly, I do not want this test, or any other test, to dictate the way in which we teach our students. Effective teachers know that you don’t need more time, you need quality time and you need to set high expectations for your students every day (not just high expectations for test results).
If this proposed change bothers you, please contact someone on the school board or in the administration. The school board is expected to vote on this proposal in early March, so don’t delay!
Roxann Ramsey-Caserio - roxann.ramsey@lakewoodcityschools.org
Pamela Griebel – Pamela.griebel@lakewoodcityschools.org
Emma Petrie-Barcelona – President BOE – emma.petriebarcelona@lakewoodcityschools.org