KUDOS to the Staples High School Inklings staff:

I have just read with great interest your reporting (April 7, 2015 Edition) on the upcoming SBAC tests that you will be directed to take when you return from April break.   I too have been questioning the purpose and integrity of this new, highly controversial, computer-adaptive testing experiment.  You are, indeed, entitled to answers and need to question what you are being told.  Your teachers, building administrators, and district leaders are required by the State Department of Education to comply with the mandates of the flawed No Child Left Behind law.  So, as a result, they are unable to answer your excellent questions honestly and fully.  Just like the SBAC website itself, school administrators and teachers only know what they have been told by the test company promoting its product.

There is, however, a great deal of controversy surrounding the tests, both SBAC and PARCC, as to whether they have been properly vetted and trialed according to psychometric principles of test development and design.  As a result, there are unanswered questions as to validity and reliability criteria and whether the SBAC even meets research specifications of a standardized measure.  The quotations in your piece that were taken from the SBAC website: “meaningful feedback”, “actionable data”, “specifications from the test blueprint”, and “sufficient information to provide accurate scores” are unsubstantiated in their own research and are totally unproven.  And, to make matters worse, the former Education Commissioner agreed to set a cut-score which establishes an arbitrary level of proficiency such that only 30% of students taking the test will meet that passing standard.  That means conversely, 70% of test-takers will fail to reach proficiency standard.  Now, it is suspected that students in a high-achieving district like Westport will perform more successfully, but – even if the Westport results reverse the algorithm, such that 70% are considered proficient and 30% fail to meet passing criteria – that is a significantly higher failure rate than had ever been measured on district CMT/CAPT in the entire past history of those tests.  You must decide now whether to touch that SBAC keyboard and risk having your score applied (as a sticky label) on your Cumulative Permanent Record Card and entered as a data-point in your personal state longitudinal data record (for eternity) as failing to meet the unsubstantiated college and career readiness standard of this statistically invalid test.  Entering your Senior year and learning that you are not college or career ready on a test that is unproven and has yet to quantify what “college- and career-ready” even means will not instill confidence as you enter the highly competitive college search process.

So much for the test itself.  You asked whether the district would lose funding if students refuse to take the test.  There is a statewide expectation that 95% of students in each district must take this test or the district may be identified as an “in need of improvement” district and risk “setting-aside” federal Title I funds.  However, the requirement to “set-aside” Title I funds will only occur after a district fails to meet the proficiency standard repeatedly.  It is unlikely that the Westport Public Schools receive much in Title 1 funding and, even in the likelihood of an unacceptable test participation rate, Staples has an off-setting high graduation rate with a large percentage of students going to college after H.S. graduation.  The threat of lost funding is simply an empty, scare tactic designed to deceive and frighten parents and district taxpayers.

Even Governor Malloy knows that testing 11th grade students poses the biggest challenge to his authority and that of the State Department of Education because it is this group of students who now think for themselves and are more likely to push-back against unreasonable demands placed upon them without clear understanding and a reasoned explanation as to why it is in their best interests to take these redundant tests in addition to the SATs, ACTs, AP tests as well as final exams at the conclusion of their Junior classes.  It is also this group of students that understands that over-emphasis on standardized tests re-defines the joyful pursuit of acquiring knowledge, stifles innovative problem-solving and creativity, and detracts from any natural curiosity inherent in the learning process.

Some see the refusal to participate in SBAC testing as an act of courage and conviction; they see it as willful push-back against flawed education reform policies that since the passage of NCLB have failed to improve education in America’s public schools and yet continue to be promoted by special interests who seek to profit at student, parent, and taxpayer expense.  Others see it as the only way to hold government accountable, to prove that it is ineffective teachers who prevent student achievement, not poverty, segregation, and language barriers.  Your compliance with this SBAC test will maintain the lie that our schools are failing while ignoring the reality that the government’s Education Cost Sharing formula has been underfunded since its inception, thereby leaving more impoverished communities without equitable financial resources.

I applaud your questions … and can only ask that you keep asking them until you receive satisfactory answers.  My colleagues and I are proud of the small part we have had in nurturing your independent thinking and willingness to pursue answers that will make sense.  Some may say that the points made above are over-stated, over-simplified, or perhaps do not fully reflect the whole story, but I believe they provide a solid starting point.  Unfortunately, corporate education reform is incredibly complicated and has sadly been rife with misinformation, conflicting viewpoints, and hardened political agendas.  The thoughts expressed in this response, though shared by many, are solely those of this writer and do not represent those of the Westport Public Schools.

Admiringly submitted,

Jack Bestor
LLS School Psychologist

Principal Dodig responds to concerns about SBAC

Dear Junior Students,

As you know, the state mandated SBAC test is replacing CAPT, which […] students have been taking for many years. Over those years, we have been able to embed into our daily curricula those specific skills that help students perform well on the test. Over time, this has led to our being recognized throughout the state for having some of the highest scores in all tested areas.  Now that CAPT is no more (except in science for a few more years) and is being replaced by SBAC, we must begin to embed required and specific skills into our curricula so that our students, over time, perform as well; so that we continue to be regarded by other schools in the state as among the very best if not THE best high school in Connecticut.  The way to achieve what I described above is to collect data. We need data on how our students perform on the test so that our teachers and administrators can analyze the data and make changes where required. Your

[…] graduation requirement as far as state testing is concerned has been met by passing CAPT or meeting a similar standard in one of our courses. However, I am asking you […] to help us become prepared for the sophomores and all others coming up through the grades to be ready to perform well on SBAC. I am asking [you]to, in a sense, give back to the Westport School System and to Staples as a token of appreciation for the stellar education [you]have received to date. The way to do this is to simply take the SBAC tests in May and to do [your] best.  The results will mean nothing to [you] personally. The score [you] receive will not count in anyway. What [your] contribution of time and effort will mean, however, is that Staples students in the future will be held in the same esteem as [you] are now by others in the state. I hope I receive your support in this important endeavor. It will help us maintain our stellar reputation among educators throughout our country.

Sincerely,

John Dodig