NYC Test Scores Question
Jared Gellert is the Executive Director of CITE
A Reaction to the NY Test Scores
By: Jared Gellert
The test scores that came out on August 7th revealed a dramatic plunge. The proportion of New York students who were “proficient” in English/Language Arts fell from 55.1% to 31.1%. The percentage of students “proficient” in math fell even more, from 64.8% to 31%, according to Education Week. This decline mirrors the results from Kentucky in 2012 when they switched to tests more oriented towards the Common Core.
Now, students didn’t get that less proficient in a year. Obviously, the 2012 tests measured something different than the 2011 tests did, and the students were simply not prepared for the material and/or the approach used in the testing.
The question for policy makers, administrators, teachers and parents is now how to proceed. Do we simply abandon the common core after a few more years of terrible test results? Do we change how we teach so that students will be able to pass the test? Do we renorm the tests so that some acceptable percentage will be proficient, even if the raw scores don’t improve?
What do you think we should do?
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Jared has been the executive director of CITE for the past 20 years, graduated Phi Betta Kappa from the University of Chicago in Philosophy, has an MA in Religious Studies from University of Virginia, and an MSW.
