Opting Out - Think About It
From Seattle Education blog:
Would you like to learn more about what tests will be administered to your child in the Seattle Public School District, from kindergarten through 12th grade (See page 3 of this document to see how many standardized tests your child will take unless you opt out), and how to opt-out of those that are not necessary for graduation?
Do you have a testing experience with your student(s) that other caregivers and parents would benefit from hearing, or would you like to listen to the concerns and questions parents of Seattle Public School students have, to find common ground?
For additional information on standardized tests, see What’s wrong with standardized tests?
For more on the opt out movement, see United Opt Out for opt out letter forms and other information for Washington State and Stop Common Core in Washington State.
Also check out the following Facebook pages:
Would you like to learn more about what tests will be administered to your child in the Seattle Public School District, from kindergarten through 12th grade (See page 3 of this document to see how many standardized tests your child will take unless you opt out), and how to opt-out of those that are not necessary for graduation?
Do you have a testing experience with your student(s) that other caregivers and parents would benefit from hearing, or would you like to listen to the concerns and questions parents of Seattle Public School students have, to find common ground?
Join us for an informative meeting. All are welcome!
Thursday, December 11, 2014
For additional information on standardized tests, see What’s wrong with standardized tests?
For more on the opt out movement, see United Opt Out for opt out letter forms and other information for Washington State and Stop Common Core in Washington State.
Also check out the following Facebook pages:
There are more Facebook pages about opting out. This will give you a start.
Comments
Ruffled
Smarter Balanced Practice Test
System Requirements
A computer connected to the Internet is required with one of the following Web browsers:
Microsoft Internet Explorer 10 and 11
Mozilla Firefox 3.6 and higher
Google Chrome 18 and higher
Apple Safari 5 and higher
Default Web browsers on iPad and Android tablets
Smarter Balanced Secure Browser External link opens in new window or tab. (required for text-to-speech functionality)
An individual user account is not required to take the Practice Tests. Use the GUEST login and session when prompted.
fyi
http://sbac.portal.airast.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/G6_Practice-Test-Scoring-Guide-5.14.14-Final.pdf
fyi
Ruffled
One change that I notice from the linked document is that middle school students will no longer be able to take EOCs for Algebra and Geometry taken in middle school (based on a recent update from the state).
http://www.hawaiipublicschools.org/TeachingAndLearning/Testing/StateAssessment/Pages/Smarter-Balanced-Practice-Questions.aspx
fyi
This is a document that shows you can still take an EOC in middle school.
http://www.seattleschools.org/modules/groups/homepagefiles/cms/1583136/File/Departmental%20Content/research,%20evaluation%20and%20assessment/MAP/2014-15_ASSESSMENT_CALENDAR.pdf
Seems to conflict with Tolley's document, or, at least, render his lacking the full picture.
AS
Also, being "able" to take an EOC in middle school is not necessarily the same thing as that EOC actually meaning anything later on. I know that Hamilton is not planning to give the Alg 1 EOC starting this year--since these kids will need to take the SBAC for graduation regardless, there's no longer a point to that EOC.
I have a question in re: the Biology EOC, though. Last I heard HIMS was still planning to give that one to 8th graders, but per the Tolley memo there will be a new and improved Bio EOC exit exam as well, so there might not be any point to the current EOC either...
test questioner
For those that have tracked these things in the past, there was a year some time ago when the legislature made a decision about a graduation exam the night before testing was to begin.
--- swk
As far as the conflicting SPS documents, part of the issue is that the state has provided updates - some maybe just a month ago - since SPS has posted testing info.
We're wanting to opt-in now to avoid additional tests in high school.
ap
The district wants to purchase 2700 computers at a cost of $1.2M. These computers are for tests, but can be used for other things. However, these computers will need to be replaced in 3-4 years.
Just to be clear, the state superintendent cannot unilaterally eliminate the tests as a graduation requirement. Only the legislature can do that.
--- swk
scary
For LA, I see a lot of "show your evidence" type of assignments, but I'm not seeing complex readings being selected, nor am I seeing the coverage of language standards related to grammar and usage. For 6th grade, for example, they are supposed to be learning about pronoun usage and punctuation with commas, parentheses, and dashes. Vocabulary acquisition is supposed to include common Greek and Latin affixes and roots.
At curriculum night, our child's teacher said "studies show" language acquisition is best done in context, meaning there will be no explicit vocabulary instruction.
So when I read the Oregon Live article about anticipated low passage rates, I'm not surprised. If content is not taught at a level commensurate with the standards, why would you expect students to perform at high levels on the tests?
ap
HP
The LA teachers need to get over themselves. As a former high school English teacher, I love me some Shakespeare, Faulkner, Salinger, Angelou, et al but students definitely need to be able to read, comprehend, and analyze non-fiction text. It's just not the same as fiction.
--- swk
-literature please
When my child first took the test scores were posted on the screen, but not the second time around. Maybe they blocked results the second time around.
wondering