2 22-2015 tamsa-overview

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Texans Advoca-ng for Meaningful Student Assessment

(TAMSA)

Implementa-on of HB5 and Further Progress

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TAMSA Overview

Evolu2on of Texas Student Assessments

Concerns About Current STAAR Tes2ng

TAMSA Advocacy Objec2ves

How You Can Help

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Who Is TAMSA?

A statewide, grassroots organiza2on comprised of concerned parents and other community members

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Mission

Improve public educa2on in Texas through the use of meaningful and effec2ve student assessments, allowing:

à  more produc2ve classroom instruc2on

à  more efficient use of public funds

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Statewide Membership

*Pins represent where TAMSA has members (as of 7/1/14)

Texas Educa2on Service Centers: 1.  Edinburg 2.  Corpus Chris2 3.  Victoria 4.  Houston 5.  Beaumont 6.  Huntsville 7.  Kilgore 8.  Mount Pleasant 9.  Wichita Falls 10.  Richardson (Dallas) 11.  Fort Worth 12.  Waco 13.  Aus2n 14.  Abilene 15.  San Angelo 16.  Amarillo 17.  Lubbock 18.  Midland 19.  El Paso 20.  San Antonio

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Parental Involvement is Cri-cal to Policy Making

•  Legislators understand that parents have an everyday perspec2ve on what is and is not working in public educa2on. The current system is broken.

•  Momentum for reform con2nues to build. •  TAMSA’s SlideShare presenta2on was in the top 1% most viewed in 2013.

•  Within 48 hours of HB 5 being signed into law, TAMSA had over 100,000 views on Facebook.

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TAMSA’s Mo-va-on

•  Provide parents’ voice on the consequences of excessive standardized tes2ng

•  Ask decision-‐makers to consider the purpose of standardized tests and ensure that every test is meaningful

•  Demand that assessments be used to support our children, not to close down our schools

•  Promote accountability as a means by which we measure achievement in mul2ple ways, not just based on standardized tests

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Recent Polls Shows Bi-‐Par-san Support of Reducing State-‐Mandated Tests

A majority of respondents from both poli2cal par2es (58% Reps; 64% Dems) felt that reducing the number of standardized tests students are required to take would be effec2ve in improving K-‐12 public educa2on in Texas. 1

A second poll in Feb 2014 similarly showed “reducing the number of standardized tests students must take was iden2fied as one of the most effec2ve changes Texas could make in public educa2on.” 61% Reps and 69% Dems agreed cuhng tests would help public educa2on in Texas. 2 1 University of Texas / Texas Tribune Statewide Survey conducted in June 2013

2 University of Texas/Texas Tribune Statewide Survey conducted in February 2014

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TAMSA Overview




How You Can Help

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Texas Student Assessment Programs

Year Began Name # of High Stakes tests*

1979-‐1984 TABS 0

1984-‐1990 TEAMS 3

1991-‐2003 TAAS 3

2003-‐2010 TAKS 8

2012 STAAR/EOC 19

2014 STAAR/EOC 9

*  High-‐stakes tests are exams that must be passed to either advance to the next grade level or graduate. High-‐stakes also include using test scores to determine teacher evalua9ons and/or school accountability.

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State High-‐Stakes Exam Comparison

Texas requires more state-‐mandated, high-‐stakes tests for high school gradua-on than most other states1

Number'of'States 30# 3' 3' 5' 3' 5' 1'

Number#of#Tests#Required#to#Pass#for#

Graduation0 1 2 3 4 5 6

1 Data from Center of Educa2on Policy: “State High School Exit Exams: A Policy in Transi2on” 9/12

•  Of the top 10 states ranked by NAEP in 8th grade math or reading in 2013, over half of the states require no exit exams for high school gradua2on.

•  Of the states that require exit exams, ALL BUT 3 offer alterna2ves, such as pormolios, to earn a high school diploma.

•  Texas ranked #19 in math and #39 in reading by NAEP, and requires students to pass 5 End of Course exams to graduate.

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Limited Benchmark Tests

“Benchmark tests” are district-‐required assessments designed to prepare students for state-‐mandated (STAAR) tests. HB5 permits ONLY TWO (2) per year per subject tested. If you have any concerns about benchmarks in your child's school, check with your principal and school district board of trustees.

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Parents, employers, & taxpayers ask:

1.  How much are we spending on state standardized tests?

2.  What is the purpose of these tests? 3.  Do these tests help prepare students for

college or careers?

Return on Investment of Tes-ng

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Texas Tax Dollars Paid to Pearson

2000#–#2001 2001#–#2002 2002#–#2003 2003#–#2004 2004#–#2005$39,122,054* $50,208,435* $47,451,455* $58,692,430* $62,641,857*2005#–#2006 2006#–#2007 2007#–#2008 2008#–#2009 2009#–#2010$87,427,757* $100,214,658* $87,260,970* $92,103,116* $85,208,340*2010#–#2011 2011#–#2012 2012#–#2013 2013#–#2014 2014#–#2015*$90,665,041* $86,947,731* $76,221,745* $92,920,192* $85,345,415*

TOTAL 2000 – 2015 $1,142,431,196

* 2014-‐2015 data esKmate based on actuals through July 2014.

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Lost Opportunity

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TAKS% Passing: Sum of All Grades 2003 – 2011

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

90

95

100

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009* 2010* 2011*

Mathematics Reading WritingScience Social Studies

*2009 – 2011 include TAKS-‐Acc

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STAAR Passing: Sum of All Grades 2012 -‐ 2014

62

64

66

68

70

72

74

76

78

80

2012 2013 2014

Reading

Math

Social Studies

Science

Scores represent iniKal Spring tesKng.

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Texas Mean SAT Scores 2003 – 2010 – NEED TO ADD 2011 -‐ 2013 (M

axim

um Score 1600)

700

750

800

850

900

950

1000

1050

1100

1150

1200

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

African Am. Hispanic White Asian

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Success in Higher Educa-on Overall

*Source: Na2onal Center for Higher Educa2on Management Systems (NCHEMS) report “A New Measure of Educa2onal Success in Texas: Tracking the Success of 8th Graders Into and Through College” Feb. 2012

College Persistence

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Success in Higher Educa-on by Ethnicity *Source: Na2onal Center for Higher Educa2on Management Systems (NCHEMS) report “A New Measure of Educa2onal Success in Texas: Tracking the Success of 8th Graders Into and Through College” Feb. 2012

College Persistence

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TAMSA Overview




How You Can Help

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•  STAAR tests are not diagnos2c – they provide no substan2ve data or analysis to help children improve.

•  Norm Referenced Tests (NRTs), such as ITBS, ACT, SAT, are na2onally accepted exams that provide pages of detailed diagnos2c data and sugges2ons for improvement.

•  As a state, our tax dollars would be beser spent on assessments that help, not punish, children

What is the Purpose of the Tests?

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Impact of 2 decades of standardized tes-ng

In Texas, SAT scores hit a 22 year low; reading hit the second lowest level.*

"It is disturbing to see the trend … where we raised the bar, raised standards, and tested more intensely, and all during that -me we are now seeing a precipitous drop in our college readiness tes-ng mechanism. I find that both puzzling and troubling.”

-‐RepresentaKve Jimmie Don Aycock Texas House Public EducaKon CommiTee Chairman

October 8, 2014

*hsp://www.dallasnews.com/news/local-‐news/20141007-‐texas-‐sat-‐math-‐scores-‐hit-‐a-‐22-‐year-‐low.ece

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Time for a Paradigm Shii

-‐ For decades educators have become accustomed to high stakes tes2ng. Many educators believe that a state test somehow represents value. This is based on years of condi2oning. As parents, we believe educators freed of high stakes tes2ng can work miracles. -‐ Texas should be proac2ve in providing guidance and assistance to schools instead of reac2ve in punishing based on test scores.

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The same grades and subjects are tested with TAKS and STAAR, but STAAR exams are 2med and more rigorous.

Grade Math Reading Wri-ng Science S. Studies

3 X X

4 X X X

5 X X X

6 X X

7 X X X

8 X X X X

Federal requirements dictate 14 tests; Texas administers 17.

Grades 3-‐8 State-‐Mandated Tests

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High School State-‐Mandated Tests

TEXAS 5 STAAR EOCs Must Pass to Graduate

•  English I •  English II •  Algebra I •  Biology •  US History

FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS NOT High-‐Stakes

•  Reading •  Math •  Science

Five STAAR EOCs must be passed for gradua-on

Star2ng with the 2015-‐16 school year, school districts, at their op2on, may add English III and Algebra II EOCs

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•  Eight year old third graders must sit quietly at desks for 4 hours for 2 consecu2ve days to take STAAR tests.

•  High school freshman and sophomores must sit at desks for 5 hours to take English EOC exams. The SAT and ACT exams test math and English (and science) in less than 4 hours. – 22% of the ques2ons are field ques2ons; including 1 of the 2 required essays. NRTs typically have 10% field ques2ons and no essay is a field ques2on

Are the STAAR Tests Appropriate?

1 Times Record News, Educators Challenge STAAR QuesKons, May 12, 2014

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Drop-‐Out Projec-ons

•  As of June 2014, there are 287,865 students in the Class of 2015

•  Of these students, at least 28,117 (10%) have not passed all the required EOCs, and are off track to graduate. What is the state doing for these thousands of students?

Removal of high stakes (requirement for gradua2on) would help put these on track to graduate (as is done in more than half of the states).

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Lack of State Informa-on on Students

•  Perhaps as troubling as the 10% off track to graduate is the lack of explana2on of what has happened to approximately 100,000 students.

•  In Fall 2011 as the Class of 2015 began its 9th grade year, TEA records show 393,553 students enrolled (hsp://www.tea.state.tx.us/acctres/Enroll_2011-‐12.pdf, p. 16)

•  In June 2013, TEA records show 287,865 in the class (hsp://www.tea.state.tx.us/news_release.aspx?id=25769811943)

•  What happened to 105,688 students?

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Is It Worth It?

1.  Taxpayer Expense: $1.2 Billion (minimum) 2.  College and Career Ready: No measurable

improvement 3.  Success in Higher Educa2on: Below

na-onal levels 4.  Dropout Forecast: Troubling 5.  Validity: Unknown 6.  Appropriate: No

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TAMSA Overview




How You Can Help

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•  Administer assessments for diagnos2c purposes to support student learning

•  Require no high-‐stakes for individual students: no performance requirement for grade promo2on or high school gradua2on

•  Decrease 2me spent on state-‐mandated tes2ng, including shortening state-‐designed exams.

•  Eliminate all field test essay ques2ons, and reduce the number of mul2ple choice field test ques2ons

•  Ensure that state-‐mandated exams are valid and appropriate

General Assessment Objec-ves

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Specific Legisla-ve Recommenda-ons

•  No more tests than required under federal law. •  Eliminate “high stakes” for grade promo2on and gradua2on.

•  Gradua2on commisee if retain high school high stakes.

•  Replace wri2ng EOC with non-‐high stakes assessment.

•  Decrease length of tests and eliminate field test ques2ons.

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TAMSA Overview


Texas State-‐Mandated Standardized Tests


How You Can Help

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What TAMSA Is Doing

•  Mee2ng with legislators, parents, teachers, community groups and businesses

•  Working with educa2on and tes2ng experts at UT Aus2n and other universi2es

•  Par2cipa2ng in media interviews and wri2ng Op-‐Eds and Counter Op-‐Eds

•  Tes2fying in hearings before the House, Senate and State Board of Educa2on

•  Communica2ng formally with TEA regarding STAAR implementa2on and tes2ng issues

•  Upda2ng members via e-‐mail, Facebook and Twiser

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What TAMSA Members Are Doing

•  Joining TAMSA, liking us on Facebook, and following us on Twiser

•  Ac2ng when TAMSA sends “Call to Ac2on” instruc2ons

•  Contac2ng elected officials to request support for educa2on tes2ng reform

•  Par2cipa2ng via social media in the debate about tes2ng in Texas schools

•  Mee2ng with legislators in local districts

•  Tes2fying in Aus2n

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Please Join Us

Sign up for updates on our website: www.tamsatx.org Follow us on Facebook and Twiser www.facebook.com/tamsatx www.twiser.com/tamsatx Email: [email protected]

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“I believe in standardizing automobiles,

not human beings.”

Albert Einstein

Education

2 22-2015 tamsa-overview