Education
chief eyes changing state tests
U.S. may be asked for a year's
waiver
Thursday, October 06, 2005 • BY JOHN MOONEY •
Star-Ledger Staff
Wasting little time, New Jersey's new
education commissioner is rethinking the state's student
testing and may go to the federal government to seek changes
in how the state measures student and school
performance.
The state was to embark this year on the
biggest testing expansion yet, extending exams to cover
grades 5 to 7 in addition to the current grades 3, 4, 8 and
11. The federal No Child Left Behind act requires that
annual reading and math testing from grades 3 to 8 be in
place this spring.
But the multi-year contract for a company
to develop and score the new tests has stalled in the state
treasurer's office. And fresh on the job after serving in
the Statehouse as the governor's education counsel, acting
Commissioner Lucille Davy said yesterday she is taking
another look at the state's testing system as a whole in an
effort to make it more useful to schools, teachers and
families.
"This is not saying we don't want to give
the tests at all, but if we are going to spend this kind of
money and take the time to do it, we need to get more
educational value for that investment," said Davy, who has
been on the job less than a month.
Davy did not rule out the possibility
that the new tests could be postponed a year, but she
stressed that that and other changes would require the
federal government's permission.
Under Education Secretary Margaret
Spellings, the U.S. Department of Education has shown some
new flexibility in how states implement the law and its many
mandates, but not in the testing timeframe
itself.
"That would require a waiving of the law,
and there's not much flexibility in that," said Chad Colby,
a department spokesman.
Federal and state officials are expected
to meet in the next couple of weeks, Colby said.
Since their inception nearly a decade
ago, New Jersey's existing standardized tests have been
criticized by local districts and educators for failing to
provide timely and useful information to schools.
There also has been some recent criticism
from business organizations that the tests are not rigorous
enough and fail to match the state's own standards for what
students should learn. A coalition of education and business
groups has led a pilot program that uses broader measures
for testing, including so-called performance
assessments.
Davy said all these issues should be
considered as the state embarks on the new contract, which
is expected to cost in the tens of millions of dollars over
several years. Many of the improvements under consideration
could only add to the cost.
"This is a juncture where we're about to
jump off and essentially double the system," she said. "The
window of opportunity is right in front of us, right
now."
But the uncertainty of the testing has
left school officials in flux, unable to schedule for the
new exams in the winter and spring and at this point even
uncertain whether they will have them at all. Some districts
didn't budget for their own standardized assessments -- the
state's would take their place.
"It would be nice to find out what's
going on," said Anne Dudley, assistant superintendent of
Chatham schools.
But Dudley was also among those who have
no great love for the state's current tests, and said a
reassessment would be useful.
"We don't get the results back fast
enough to make a difference in that child's current year,"
she said. "Really, it doesn't do us much good other than
maybe the placement for the next year ... They are mediocre
tests at best."
Other education leaders who have spoken
with Davy about her plans also applauded the chance to
rethink the state's course.
"We've had several reports that tell us
we don't lack in our standards, but there's this extreme
disconnect with the tests," said Edwina Lee, director of the
New Jersey School Boards Association. "Let's do this
right."
Added JoAnn Bartoletti, director of New
Jersey's Principals and Supervisors Association: "I give
Lucille credit; she doesn't want to move ahead with
something that isn't in the best interest of the
students."
Yet Bartoletti said her principals are
getting anxious about how and where the tests will fit into
the year. Davy said she hopes to have an answer in the next
couple of weeks. "I know they need the answer sooner than
later," Davy said.
John Mooney covers education. He may be reached at
jmooney@starledger.com or (973) 392-1548.
© 2005 The Star-Ledger. Used by NJ.com with
permission.
|