According to a report by Valerie Strauss of the Washington Post, Maryland will spend at least $100 million for Common Core testing.
The testing is wreaking havoc in states like Néw York, where absurd failure rates have outraged parents across the states. Now we learn that the cost of all-online testing are likely to cause fiscal strain, larger classes, and cuts to necessary programs and courses. Los Angeles alone has committed $1 billion to buy iPads for Common Core testing even though class sizes are growing and the arts programs have been decimated by previous budget cuts.
Who had the brilliant idea that all testing had to be online? The vendors? Ka-Ching.
This may turn out to be the innovation that ate American education.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
On-line testing may be the innovation that eats the common core. The cost and logistics of this clueless idea will de-rail it before it ever gets off the ground. Witness the fact that the NY Board of Regents has voted to indefinitely postpone PARCC testing.
Cost aside, there needs to be serious discussion concerning taking any standardized test on line. Students arrive at each grade level with diverse technology skill sets that will impact testing. The division in skills sets will certainly impact the test results especially on any test that has a time limit. When testing online are we testing technology skills, concepts or both??? Not every household is wired and not every student has access to a home computer. Until we can guarantee that every student in every grade has achieved the same proficiency with computer skills why is anyone agreeing to online testing?
Having nine year olds keyboarding essay responses on a timed test
demonstrates just how ignorant they are.
Ka-Ching is correct. It is not about what is best for our students, it is about the money. Again– the have-nots have a clear disadvantage with online testing. Until they can level the playing field with skill sets they are asking for skewed results.
AL,
There is no “level playing field” and there never will be. The way it is, is that the playing field is tilted at 89.9 degrees from level with the most advantaged at the top and least at the bottom and both have to reach the midpoint in the same time so that some slide downhill while others struggle uphill.
Why standardized test at all?
Someone please give me a valid logical rational reason why standardized testing should be part of the teaching and learning process!
Agree, more reason why teacher evaluations should not be tied into students test results. Standardized test assume a level playing field.
Why standardized test at all—Ka-Ching?
Capitalism at its best! It is too late now to turn this movement around, the Books have been written and are being printed as we email! NEA and AFT presidents use our union dues to support the creating of Teacher Proof lessons for all the bad teachers out there and they wait for a Foundation or Corporation to offer them a huge salary for a future job selling all of this nonsense! If I would have written this story in a book, let us call it Looking Backwards, then anyone reading it would think I was another Edward Bellemy or Ray Bradbury. This could never happen in real life! Whoops, it happened. Now what?
Is anyone else having trouble linking to Valerie Strauss’s article? Looks like one must “subscribe” for access!
The Washington Post went to a pay-for-access model in their online washingtonpost.com some time ago. It could be that you’ve hit the limit of “free access”, and they are now requiring you to pay for access.
clear your website data for the washingtonpost
Thanks! It worked!!
jaded:
I had no trouble getting the article. What I cannot find there or elsewhere is a link to the actual Maryland DOE report from which the article is derived. Has anybody found it?
Strauss article indicates that the report has some useful information on testing in Maryland in general, particularly the amount of time currently spent on testing and the amount of time estimated for the future.
Another article in the Baltimore Sun, I think, indicates that paper based tests will be available for at least 3 years.
It seems to me that this is a typical forcing event that is going to lead to all classrooms & schools in Maryland and PARCC involved States being WiFi enabled.
To help gauge the significance of the $100 million figure, Maryland spend $13,250 million on education of which $1,100 million is capital expenditure – which is what this $100 million should fall under.
The relevant tables can be found here:
http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2013/expenditures2/tables.asp
I live in Maryland and have attended my local BOE meetings where this was discussed. The test can be on paper for the 1st year only. Our local school board admitted that they “haven’t a clue” as to where the funding is going to come from for the PARCC test. That test is being “randomly” field tested this year in my kids school. They haven’t decided if those scores will be shared with parents. So, in other words if the scores are good, we will here about it non stop. If they are terrible, we will never know. I’m refusing the test for my kids.
Nicole, you are right to opt out. What matters in a test is not just the score, but knowing where the student needs help, knowing strengths and weaknesses. If this is a secret rating system, opt out.
Diane & Nicole:
Wouldn’t a more productive approach be to argue first for full transparency of questions and scoring as a condition for participation?
In fact, ALL Maryland schools are participating in the field test. PARCC will offer the paper & pencil back-up through the 2016-17 school year, but it will cost more for the schools to use paper&pencil rather than taking it online. As a result, many schools are saying the test “can’t” be taken online after a certain (earlier) date. They would rather spend the money to buy computers, I guess, than on paper&pencil tests. Neither has a positive effect on education, but here we go again!
Also, the scores from the PARCC field test will DEFINITELY not be shared with parents. MSDE said this in a release just last week. The field test’s ONLY purpose is to assess the quality of the test (validity, reliability, fairness). My prediction is, well, it will be neither valid nor reliable, which provides another reason for not sharing the results with parents or the public.
pkatula:
That is totally unacceptable and totally unnecessary. I can see the need for a short time lag, but there is no justification for this secrecy. I would argue that the best test for establishing minimum standards is one where you actually know the form and nature of the questions beforehand. Why should there be any surprises or novelties? Everybody knows the elements of a driving test and that increases whatever validity it has.
There will be a 280 percent increase in the number of online test-takers when we move to PARCC — 301,036 vs 1,144,448
* Total time (in minutes) devoted to state standardized testing will increase with the PARCC exams by:
– Grade 3: 73 percent (277 vs 480)
– Grade 4: 102 percent (276 vs 560)
– Grade 5: 90 percent (297 vs 565)
– Grade 6: 95 percent (289 vs 565)
– Grade 7: 84 percent (306 vs 565)
– Grade 8: 83 percent (308 vs 565)
When the full cost of this train wreck closes in on the due date, more and more states (like NY) will suspend and or terminate their commitment. And if they don’t drop, watch the circus unfold on test day.
NY Teacher:
I am not sure as to the actual cost and the article does not really help. By my calculation the time spent on testing goes from 5 hours to 10 hours. It would be useful to see the actual report to see how these time estimates were determined.
PARCC requires testing TWICE A YEAR. See EdHarris post below.
This is a PARCC requirement. Another reason that states will start dropping like cluster flies.
I should note that the students will take the PARCC test when they are 75% of the way through the curriculum and then at 90% completion.
Thank you for revealing a little discussed REQUIREMENT. Tests in mid April and in June as well. PARCC also offer two optional tests for any administrator who has received a frontal lobotomy.
As noted above, this testing is going to require kids to have the typing skills to enter a 1 page essay. I have asked those responsible if there are guidelines/suggestions/skill standards/anything for the kids to master or show competency. Nothing from the local school system, nothing from PARCC or Smarter Balanced.
And even if there was, when do the teachers have the time to take the kids to a lab (in the schools that have them) to practice. All Maryland schools are fully implementing the new Common Core curriculum and the teachers are stretched a thin as a lightbulb filament. (And that’s another story- CommonCore curriculum but the state NCLB test the kids take in March will be based upon the old curriculum. And those test scores will be used for teacher evaluations this year and retention decisions next school year)
But the teachers have no one to blame but themselves and their union leadership. 22 of the 24 school district unions signed onto all this when they supported Maryland’s Race to the Top proposal. All for the money.
This quote from the article is very. very important:
just last month Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Lillian Lowery tried to reassure Gov. Martin O’Malley that the challenge was with the tests, not the technology. O’Malley said: “Describe for me how much of this is an IT challenge and how much of this is a testing and education. [challenge]?” She gave a long response, and then said, “It’s the testing, not the IT.”
the brainless leading the braindead.
My daughter, 3rd grader has been practicing how to type all year. The program is called “Type to Learn” Her typing is about 5 wpm tops, it’s not typing either, it’s pecking.
What worries me the most is that the presentation to the Maryland legislature was stunningly one-sided. More support is needed for the argument that schools don’t need such a huge expenditure in technology, because it won’t solve any EXISTING problems, simply because the absence (or shortage) of technology was never the problem with schools in the first place. Enter online standardized tests and a law that requires every student to be tested in every year, not necessarily in that order. Ka Ching.
http://schoolsnapshots.org/blog/2014/01/17/md-s-new-need-for-tech-has-schools-asking-for-100-mil/
Pkatula:
Did you find a link to the actual report presented to the legislator.
Many thanks to the links to the actual test items.
Bernie1815: There is only testimony, and I don’t know if the written portion will ever be published. The audio testimony begins at about 1h 11m into the official vox audio recording from the Maryland General Assembly here:
http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/webmga/frmcommittees.aspx?pid=av&tab=subject7
Go to the Senate Audio for the Education, Health & Environmental Affairs Committee session, set the date of the recording you want for Wedensday, January 15, 2014 – Session #1, and click the arrow.
Being practical, I thought you would enjoy the links to PARCC’s practice tests. However much I may think this has just gone too far, our kids are still going to have to prepare for these tests so they don’t get stressed out. Practicing with actual tests from PARCC (if you’re in a state in that consortium) is the best way I know to give kids the chance to feel comfortable about the format and the online test-taking skills they need to bring in. Adults can argue about the merits of testing, but I hope that can be kept out of kids’ way as much as possible.
pkatula:
I admire and respect your pragmatism. There is a huge difference between ensuring familiarity with the layout, format and mechanics of a test and narrowly teaching to a test. My wife teaches ESL and her students have to take the TOEFL in order to take college and graduate school courses. Part of the Test Prep is essentially ensuring that the students manage their time.