2014 Testing
Bursting the Bubbles: Reassessing Assessments
For Journalists Only
Since the advent of No Child Left Behind 12 years ago, standardized, fill-in-the-bubble tests have become a major part of the school experience. Some say too much of a part.
But beyond the debate over how much schools test, major changes are under way in how they test. Underlying those changes are questions about just what they’re testing for.
How can assessments get beyond rote memorization and capture the skills most valued in college and work? Can they judge how well students work together and communicate their ideas? Can tests measure critical thinking and creativity? Will tests tied to the Common Core State Standards provide a richer picture of how students stack up?
This journalists-only seminar will be held Nov. 18 - 19 at Stanford University. In addition to exploring the nuances of covering testing and assessment, participants will have the opportunity to visit Impact Academy in Hayward, Calif., which has implemented a student-centered learning and a portfolio model of assessing academic progress.
Questions? Call or email Lori Crouch at 202-452-9830 or lcrouch@ewa.org.
More Than Fun: Games That Gauge Student Learning
Games might provide a better way for teachers to figure out what students know.
Some say this playful format can provide teachers with serious information if the games are intentionally designed to assess learning. This can be used to develop a more nuanced portrait of a student’s skills. And sometimes students don’t know they are being tested.
Common Core Tests: Ready Or Not?
From California to New York, educators have by and large maintained their support for the Common Core State Standards after putting the new grade-level expectations into action. But the new tests are another story, according to a panel of experts speaking at a recent EWA seminar at Stanford University.
Showing – Not Just Telling – Stories About Testing
By now, many education reporters have written many times over about a new generation of standardized tests coming this spring. Most of the time, reporters have little space and use shorthand to explain that the exams are supposed to be more rigorous and measure critical thinking. Often, there is too much telling and not enough showing.
Covering Education Like a Science Writer
New York Times science writer Benedict Carey studied what cognitive psychologists have figured out for his book “How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where and Why it Happens.”
The Limits of Testing: Getting Beyond the Standard(ized) Story
Wealthy students have long outpaced their disadvantaged peers in American schools. That disparity bears more weight than ever as standardized tests become one of the main measures for holding schools and teachers accountable.
Impact Academy: Rethinking Student Assessment
On a recent Wednesday morning, 11th-grader Sophia Wellington took to the undersized stage at the front of her high school gym and with seamless poise demonstrated what smarter student assessment could look like.
To Fight Test Fatigue, Scholars Call for Fewer, Harder Exams
Here’s a counter-intuitive argument: The United States should spend more money on standardized tests.
With opposition to the new Common Core State Standards and the assessments linked to them reaching a fever pitch, advocating for better tests seems like an unpopular proposition. But what if U.S. students took fewer tests that measured their ability to understand academic concepts far more deeply than current tests permit?
Stand and Deliver: A School Where Students Defend Their Work
Education journalists took a field trip to Impact Academy of Arts and Technology this week to see project-based learning in action, including observing classrooms and watching a student defend her project on World War II and the Holocaust. Check out some Tweets from the visiting reporters, as well as more highlights from the first day at the EWA seminar at Stanford University. (Also, check out this earlier blog post about our testing seminar.)
Tweeting on Testing: EWA Seminar at Stanford
How can assessments get beyond rote memorization and capture the skills most valued to prepare young people for college and the workforce? Can tests effectively measure critical thinking and creativity? Will standardized tests tied to the Common Core provide a richer picture of student learning?
Bursting the Bubbles: Reassessing Assessment
Presentation slides are linked next to the presenter
Tuesday, Nov. 18
8 a.m. Welcome