Cairo Association of Teachers - Newsletter

CAT Tracks for May 17, 2006 ISAT - ON "TESTEES" & PUTTING TESTERS TO THE TEST

Two related articles from the Bloomington Pantagraph...

Students' test scores may be late again

By Phyllis Coulter

BLOOMINGTON -- School districts may get their students' state test results later than expected again this year.

The State Testing Review Committee is concerned about the accuracy of Illinois Standards Achievement Test scores and related analysis for Illinois third- to eighth-graders. The committee recommended on Tuesday that the Illinois State Board of Education delay releasing scores until their accuracy can be confirmed.

Committee members, meeting at Bloomington District 87's service center, decided that it was "reasonable" to wait to post the results. The tests help determine whether school districts comply with the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

"We want to get it absolutely right," said committee member Harvey Smith, a professor at Northern Illinois University.

No one knows for sure when the complete data will be released, but some demographic data may be released by June 1 if it is technically feasible, Becky McCabe, head of state testing at the Illinois State Board of Education, said after the meeting. The goal each year is to release all scores around June 1, but the state often misses that date for various reasons.

While Harcourt Assessment Inc., the Texas-based company may lose its state contract this week because of testing problems this year, Tuesday's recommendation for a delay was related to how the data is being evaluated, officials said.

This is the first year in which all students from third to eighth grade are being tested. The information is being compiled differently so fairer comparisons can be made, and an accurate scale for reporting information must be established, officials said.

Harcourt's $45 million contract called for the company to deliver ISAT materials to school districts beginning Feb. 28, but nearly every school in the state reported some problem with the tests, ranging from delivery problems to faulty test booklets.

Some board members weren't appeased on Tuesday by the information that Harcourt had begun verifying test results.

The state school board is expected to make a recommendation on whether to cancel Harcourt's contract on Thursday.

Posting demographic data early would allow school districts to start their data correction period by ensuring students are listed in the right school and subgroup.

"We could likely get the (demographic) data up by the first of June, but I don't know when test scores would be posted," McCabe said.

Before the test results are released, the results of bellwether districts will be checked for anomalies.

Those districts, which were chosen to represent urban and rural, large, and small districts, have similar test results every year. If their results are skewed this year, then all the test results may be off, said Rense Lange, a member of the ISBE assessment staff.

Sam Krug of MetriTech Inc., a test analysis company based in Champaign and Bloomington, presented the committee with examples for the data received so far from 10,000 tests at each grade level.

About 960,000 students across the state were tested this year.

Krug said he was comfortable the "meat" of the results, but he said he wasn't surprised at the committee's decision to wait for more information.

Committee President John Wick stressed to members the importance of getting the test scales right. If there is an error now, it will continue into the future, he said.

Kurt Erickson contributed to this story.

ISAT providers will be put to test

By Phyllis Coulter

BLOOMINGTON - A discussion in Bloomington today likely will determine whether a company gets another chance at providing tests for Illinois students.

Harcourt Assessments delivered the Illinois Standards Achievement Test late, provided wrong materials, duplicate questions and misprints. The tests are used to determine whether schools and school districts are in compliance with the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

"The stakes don't get any higher than this," state Superintendent Randy Dunn said. Harcourt "has failed to meet its contractual obligation with the state."

The delivery and scoring of ISAT and Prairie State Achievement Examinations are among topics today before the Illinois Testing Review Committee, which will meet at Bloomington District 87 offices.

The Illinois State Board of Education, which meets Wednesday, likely will decide whether Harcourt will continue with its $45 million contract with the state.

A long-awaited proposal about special education test scores is also on today's agenda. Several school districts attributed failure to meet federal requirements to how special education testing was recorded.

"One of the things I hope to see is special education students tested on a value-added basis," said Olympia Superintendent Don Hahn. Such testing would show how students grow from one year to the next, instead of giving a pass-fail mark on tests designed for average students. "It would be much more useful to educators and parents."

Hahn agreed there were problems with Harcourt's delivery, but he would like to see the company given another chance because educators were basically pleased with the content of the tests.

"There's no value in testing if you can't compare it to something," he said. If a new company takes over, the tests would be new, and couldn't be compared to previous years.

The state testing review committee, which usually meets in Springfield, will meet in Bloomington because it is more centrally located.

"This group is hard to get together," said Cheryl Jackson, a District 87 board member who will lead the meeting.