.After FCAT scores plunge, state quickly lowers the passing grade
After changes in the statewide writing test sent students’ scores into a tailspin, officials Tuesday reduced the passing score to a 3 from a 4.
After conceding that poor communication with teachers could have contributed to the unprecedented plunge in Florida students’ writing scores this year, the state Board of Education voted Tuesday to lower the passing mark for the test.
Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson defended the decision against critics who said it was a quick fix for bad results on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, or FCAT. He said changing the test’s passing score to a 3 from a 4 (out of 6) “corrected the process.”
“The results still stand,” he said.
Just 27 percent of fourth-graders statewide earned a 4 or better on the writing FCAT, a steep decline from last year’s 81 percent. Eighth- and 10th-graders showed similar drops.
The news sparked widespread concern and a dramatic response, with more than 800 parents, teachers and school officials dialing into an emergency conference call held Tuesday by the state board.
Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said after Tuesday’s decision, “The State Board of Education should be thanked for taking on this matter in such a direct, forthright manner.”
During more than an hour of public comment, parents and teachers criticized the amount of testing that Florida students undergo, the effect test results can have on students, and how prepared teachers were for changes to this year’s writing test.
Switching to a 3 puts scores on par with last year’s results. Final results for schools and districts could be released by the end of the week, state officials said.
Robinson acknowledged Tuesday that teachers were not adequately prepared for how strictly the tests were going to be graded this year, and said he “realized that overnight students didn’t just become bad writers.”
But Robinson also warned Tuesday that substantial declines were coming for scores on the state’s high-stakes reading and math tests.
Third-graders must pass the reading FCAT to be promoted, and high school students must pass the reading and math FCATs to graduate.
“I can tell you there’s going to be a big wake-up moment,” Robinson said.
Some state leaders expressed concern about the writing results.
In a prepared statement, Florida Senate Minority Leader Nan Rich, D-Weston, said: “This major blunder by the Department of Education in changing the FCAT without adequate notice to school boards, teachers, parents and students underscores once again the dangers inherent in relying on one single — and obviously flawed — test to measure learning progress.”
State board members said they wanted to hold schools “harmless” and give officials a chance to better explain the writing test’s changes to teachers and parents.
They emphasized that the decision was not a retreat from the state’s increasingly strict accountability measures, which are part of a national move toward common — and more rigorous — academic standards. They will decide in the fall what the proficiency standard will be for next year’s writing test.
“I think the 3.0, for what we have done this year, is not lowering the standards,” said Board Chairwoman Kathleen Shanahan of Hillsborough County.
Meg Sload, a parent in Pasco County, said testing was sucking the joy of learning out of students.
“Students are tested, to me, a ridiculous amount,” she said.
Robinson praised the state board’s decision, saying it was a step for “continual improvement.” He defended the state’s accountability measures, and said “some people simply do not like testing.”
This year, the state reverted to using two scorers per test — after switching to one a couple years ago to save money — and asked scorers to grade essays more strictly, with an eye on accurate punctuation, grammar and the quality of word choice and relevance.
Robinson said that contributed to the dramatic drop in scores.
The state also will consider whether to give students more time for the test. Students now have 45 minutes to write their essays; some teachers suggested they need more time to correct grammar, spelling and punctuation mistakes.
Robinson said the biggest lesson he took from the decline in test scores was simple: “That communication matters.”
Miami Herald
After conceding that poor communication with teachers could have contributed to the unprecedented plunge in Florida students’ writing scores this year, the state Board of Education voted Tuesday to lower the passing mark for the test.
Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson defended the decision against critics who said it was a quick fix for bad results on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, or FCAT. He said changing the test’s passing score to a 3 from a 4 (out of 6) “corrected the process.”
“The results still stand,” he said.
Just 27 percent of fourth-graders statewide earned a 4 or better on the writing FCAT, a steep decline from last year’s 81 percent. Eighth- and 10th-graders showed similar drops.
The news sparked widespread concern and a dramatic response, with more than 800 parents, teachers and school officials dialing into an emergency conference call held Tuesday by the state board.
Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said after Tuesday’s decision, “The State Board of Education should be thanked for taking on this matter in such a direct, forthright manner.”
During more than an hour of public comment, parents and teachers criticized the amount of testing that Florida students undergo, the effect test results can have on students, and how prepared teachers were for changes to this year’s writing test.
Switching to a 3 puts scores on par with last year’s results. Final results for schools and districts could be released by the end of the week, state officials said.
Robinson acknowledged Tuesday that teachers were not adequately prepared for how strictly the tests were going to be graded this year, and said he “realized that overnight students didn’t just become bad writers.”
But Robinson also warned Tuesday that substantial declines were coming for scores on the state’s high-stakes reading and math tests.
Third-graders must pass the reading FCAT to be promoted, and high school students must pass the reading and math FCATs to graduate.
“I can tell you there’s going to be a big wake-up moment,” Robinson said.
Some state leaders expressed concern about the writing results.
In a prepared statement, Florida Senate Minority Leader Nan Rich, D-Weston, said: “This major blunder by the Department of Education in changing the FCAT without adequate notice to school boards, teachers, parents and students underscores once again the dangers inherent in relying on one single — and obviously flawed — test to measure learning progress.”
State board members said they wanted to hold schools “harmless” and give officials a chance to better explain the writing test’s changes to teachers and parents.
They emphasized that the decision was not a retreat from the state’s increasingly strict accountability measures, which are part of a national move toward common — and more rigorous — academic standards. They will decide in the fall what the proficiency standard will be for next year’s writing test.
“I think the 3.0, for what we have done this year, is not lowering the standards,” said Board Chairwoman Kathleen Shanahan of Hillsborough County.
Meg Sload, a parent in Pasco County, said testing was sucking the joy of learning out of students.
“Students are tested, to me, a ridiculous amount,” she said.
Robinson praised the state board’s decision, saying it was a step for “continual improvement.” He defended the state’s accountability measures, and said “some people simply do not like testing.”
This year, the state reverted to using two scorers per test — after switching to one a couple years ago to save money — and asked scorers to grade essays more strictly, with an eye on accurate punctuation, grammar and the quality of word choice and relevance.
Robinson said that contributed to the dramatic drop in scores.
The state also will consider whether to give students more time for the test. Students now have 45 minutes to write their essays; some teachers suggested they need more time to correct grammar, spelling and punctuation mistakes.
Robinson said the biggest lesson he took from the decline in test scores was simple: “That communication matters.”
Miami Herald
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