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Opinion Across The Fence Testing takes a toll on learning The topic in this space last week was the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, or TAKS test.
My key point related to the nonprofit status granted to Educational Testing Services (ETS), an international company that has a virtual monopoly on educational testing. I'll have to confess to a mixed moment of apprehension and excitement when a letter from ETS actually arrived at my home last week. “Ohmygosh," I thought, “I've finally stomped too hard on someone's toes." Then sanity resurfaced and my paranoia about landing on some national watch list faded. About three weeks ago, I sat down in front of a computer in a secure cubicle to take the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) that is required of all students seeking an advanced degree. Guess who administers the GRE, the SAT, and Major Field Tests? Yep, it's those folks at ETS. More than 30 tests, most of them either registered or trademarked, are listed on their Web site. They include the PRAXIS tests that states use for teacher certification, the Measure of Academic Progress and Proficiency (MAPP) taken by college freshmen and sophomores so that, according to the ETS Web site, “…institutions can demonstrate program effectiveness for accreditation and funding purposes." The National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (NMSQT) is co-sponsored by The College Board and the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, but according to the Web site, it is “…developed, administered and scored for the co-sponsors by ETS." Curiosity got the better of me and I ran a search to see who runs the tests for admission to law, business, medical and pharmacy schools. Two company names came up: Pearson and Prometric. ETS, you'll remember from last week is a subcontractor for Pearson. Prometric runs all of the testing sites. And the deeper I dug, the more obvious it became that these three closely-tied companies have cornered the market on testing. The letter that came to me from ETS contained the scores from my GRE. The report didn't vary significantly from my expectations: I scored in the upper quadrant in the verbal part of the test, in the bottom quadrant on the math portion and in the top 15 percent on the writing segment. Coupled with my undergraduate grade point average, it should be enough for my admission to the graduate program at West Texas A&M University this fall. News also arrived this week regarding the performance of Amarillo Independent School District students on the reading portion of their TAKS tests. Those tests were administered the first week in March to students in the third, fifth and eighth grades. Results released by AISD indicated that students at most schools performed pretty well. If you listened closely, you may have heard collective sighs of relief from language arts and reading teachers across town. Here's why: federal and state funding, teaching positions and salaries are all tied to TAKS scores. Is it any wonder that so much classroom time is directly related to the TAKS tests? But while pressure may have decreased for some, it's building for others. Testing in math begins next week and this entire month is filled with test dates, with the biggest push coming April 28-May 2. The enormous amount of time devoted to TAKS preparation and testing cannot help but take a toll on actual learning and eventually on student performance. I was dismayed — but not surprised — by an Associated Press story Tuesday morning revealing that 17 of the nation's 50 largest cities, including Dallas, had high school graduation rates less than 50 percent. But don't worry. Education Secretary Margaret Spelling announced the same day that summits will be held in every state during the next two years to find better ways to prepare students for college and the work force. (Gee, that's what we need: another national study and more unfunded federal mandates.) I have a few ideas that might save time, money and maybe even produce better results. First, stop testing our students more than 50 times a year. Let teachers do their jobs, which includes helping students develop a love of learning they can carry throughout their lives. That love of knowledge will reduce drop-out rates, boost college enrollment and provide a better prepared workforce. Second, review ETS's nonprofit status and use the taxes it should be paying on its monopolistic profits to raise teacher salaries and provide more books, technology and equipment to American schools. Finally, make congressmen, senators and presidents directly accountable for the success of the educational mandates they force upon states and local school districts. Kathie Greer: Columnist and consultant for the Amarillo Independent. She can be reached at kathie@amarilloindy.com. E-mail
comments about this story Posted: April 3, 2008
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