The love affair education policymakers have had with standardized tests seems to be cooling off.
First, the new state superintendent and State Board of Education reduced the amount of time K-12 students will spend on taking standardized tests this school year. And last week, the Legislature passed a new teacher and administrator evaluation bill that reduces the impact of standardized test results on evaluations. While that is only one aspect of the new evaluation process, it is a major step forward in education reform.
Teachers, administrators and experts in the education field have joined forces in calling for a reduction in standardized testing. Recent polling also shows the general public shares that view. In a PDK-Gallup poll conducted this summer, 64 percent of respondents felt there was too much emphasis placed on standardized tests, while 63 percent of public school parents oppose using standardized tests for teacher evaluations. Parents understand that the continual increase in standardized testing decreases the amount of time available for teachers to actually teach. Once seen as the panacea to all perceived deficiencies in public education, policymakers are beginning to understand that standardized tests are not the magic solution to higher student achievement.
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First, the new state superintendent and State Board of Education reduced the amount of time K-12 students will spend on taking standardized tests this school year. And last week, the Legislature passed a new teacher and administrator evaluation bill that reduces the impact of standardized test results on evaluations. While that is only one aspect of the new evaluation process, it is a major step forward in education reform.
Teachers, administrators and experts in the education field have joined forces in calling for a reduction in standardized testing. Recent polling also shows the general public shares that view. In a PDK-Gallup poll conducted this summer, 64 percent of respondents felt there was too much emphasis placed on standardized tests, while 63 percent of public school parents oppose using standardized tests for teacher evaluations. Parents understand that the continual increase in standardized testing decreases the amount of time available for teachers to actually teach. Once seen as the panacea to all perceived deficiencies in public education, policymakers are beginning to understand that standardized tests are not the magic solution to higher student achievement.
Click here to read the entire article