Laura Chapman read the post about the U.S. Department of Education threatening to cut off $340 million in Title 1 funding from Arizona unless all high school students took the same test—either the state test or the SAT or the ACT. She pored through the Every Student Succeeds Act and could find no legal basis for this threat.
Laura Chapman writes:
I have spent several hours looking at ESSA. I could find nothing about specific tests other than those required for the International Baccalaureate or Advanced Placement. Neither the SAT or ACT is mentioned but there are technical requirements for ESSA accountability tests. As Diane notes, the SAT and the ACT are designed for college admission, not as a high school accountability test or a test aligned with state standards, a requirement for ESSA. Use for high school accountability is in violation of ESSA. I do not understand why EdWeek and state officials think SAT or ACT tests are OK. Here are a few relevant sections of ESSA.
ACADEMIC ASSESSMENTS.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—Each State plan shall demonstrate that the State educational agency, in consultation with local educational agencies, has implemented a set of high-quality student academic assessments in mathematics, reading or language arts, and science. The State retains the right to implement such assessments in any other subject chosen by the State.
(B) REQUIREMENTS.—The assessments under subparagraph (A) shall—be
(I) the same academic assessments used to measure the achievement of all public elementary school and secondary school students in the State; and (II) administered to all public elementary school and secondary school students in the State; (ii) be aligned with the challenging State academic standards, and provide coherent and timely information about student attainment of such standards and whether the student is performing at the student’s grade level; (iii) be used for purposes for which such assessments are valid and reliable, consistent with relevant, nationally recognized professional and technical testing standards, objectively measure academic achievement, knowledge, and skills, and be tests that do not evaluate or assess personal or family beliefs and attitudes, or publicly disclose personally identifiable information; (iv) be of adequate technical quality for each purpose required under this Act and consistent with the requirements of this section, the evidence of which shall be made public, including on the website of the State educational agency;
(v) (I) in the case of mathematics and reading or language arts, be administered— (aa) in each of grades 3 through 8; and (bb) at least once in grades 9 through 12;
(II) in the case of science, be administered not less than one time during—(aa) grades 3 through 5; (bb) grades 6 through 9; and (cc) grades 10 through 12; and
(III) in the case of any other subject chosen by the State, be administered at the discretion of the State.” find that and more beginning on page 24 in the ESSA pdf
In addition, Betsy cannot tell states what tests to use. There are multiple prohibitions in ESSA, and this is a variant of long established federal law governing the US Office of Education.
SEC. 2302. 020 U.S.C. 6692 RULES OF CONSTRUCTION. (a) PROHIBITION AGAINST FEDERAL MANDATES, DIRECTION, OR CONTROL.—Nothing in this title shall be construed to authorize the Secretary or any other officer or employee of the Federal Government to mandate, direct, or control a State, local educational agency, or school’s—
(1) instructional content or materials, curriculum, program of instruction, academic standards, or academic assessments;
(2) teacher, principal, or other school leader evaluation system;
(3) specific definition of teacher, principal, or other school leader effectiveness; or
(4) teacher, principal, or other school leader professional standards, certification, or licensing. p.196
ESSA also has stipulations about informing parents about opt out policies.
There is much else in ESSA. It should be repealed and replaced with a bare minimum document for distributing federal funds to the schools and students most in need. ESSA turns the idea of accountability into an extended effort to micromanage public education and de-professionalize the work of educators. I became an involuntary expert on NCLB. ESSA is a nightmare. It is filled with contradictions, planned loopholes, gotchas. word salads. It gives legitamacy to too many really bad ideas from amateurs and reformers.
Reblogged this on David R. Taylor-Thoughts on Education.
Laura Chapman: verb, transitive. To research a topic so thoroughly that it becomes pointless to argue the point or do more research.
I Laura Chapmaned that topic so well that my debate opponent went home crying.
Roy,
Love your new verb, transitive … “Laura Chapmaned.” Perfect.
DeVosed ( intransigent verb)
DeVossed from reality; pointless to argue with
She was so completely deVossed that she thought the bearded school principal was a grizzly bear
SDP: thanks for that one. Intransigent verb, indeed. You have made me laugh in a library.
SomeDAM: intransigent verb. ROFLMAO!!!!
A superb addition to the language, Roy! I entirely concur regarding its appropriateness!
Excellent, Roy. I was about to leave a similar comment, but why bother? Nothing tops this.
It doesn’t matter if what Brain-Dead Betsy did was against the law. If the DOJ ignored what she did, nothing will happen. It will take someone going to court to “maybe” stop her.
How do we know when a court rules against someone in the MAGA man’s administration like Betsy the Brainless if they comply with the judge’s ruling or just ignore it?
I’ve read that the MAGA man’s administration is winning about 6 or 7 percent of the court cases brought against it but we never hear if the ruling is ignored or not.
People like MAGA Man and Brainless Betsy grew up in an environment of wealth and privilege and learned to do whatever they want regardless of what the law says because they are almost untouchable, and even when they end up losing, the worst most of them get is a pat on the hand and a tiny fine they earn back in an hour or so from interest on their invested wealth.
We all learn so much from Laura Chapman. What an awesomely well-informed person she is! Thank you, Laura!
Well, none of the high-stakes standardized tests in ELA currently being used a) “provide coherent and timely information about student attainment,” b) “are valid and reliable, objectively measure academic achievement, knowledge, and skills”; or d) “are of adequate technical quality.” So, no state is in compliance with this law. None could be given that the existing ELA “standards” are not reliably or validly measurable, the tests themselves don’t measure what they purport to measure, and the results are not specific or timely enough to provide any pedagogically useful information about academic achievement, knowledge, and skills.
“ESSA . . . gives legitimacy to many really bad ideas from amateurs and reformers.” Exactly, Laura. You nailed it.
Here’ a critique of the current ELA tests: https://bobshepherdonline.wordpress.com/2019/03/24/how-to-prevent-another-parcc-mugging-a-public-service-announcement/
Swacker has repeatedly pointed out the vacuous nature of assessment in these discussions. It is difficult to refrain from suggesting that requiring teachers to,be involved in the testing of students is suborning malpractice, a phrase Swacker quite legitimately attaches to these springtime rites.
Agreed! Every time I proctored one of these infernal tests, I was quietly smouldering. It was really sad watching the despondent faces of the kids, and then after the tests, even though they all signed agreements saying they wouldn’t talk about them, they nonetheless couldn’t contain their outrage at the stupidity of the questions.
No one should be able to make anyone test those tests. That’s abuse.
If the students are forced to take those tests, they can resist. I know students how have “done resisting.” They simply don’t participate. I marvel at their courage and sense of self and what is right.
They may also bubble in only “C” for every answer and finish in a few minutes. I had one student out of the 6,000 I worked with over thirty years do that for a final exam. He hadn’t done any work in the class so he must have thought, “What the heck”. Since the classwork was 90 percent of the grade, the final wasn’t going to work any magic for him.
Ten minutes into the two hour test period, he was done and wanted to go to the bathroom so he could climb over the fence and leave.
While you were apparently typing, I read your essay on the shortcomings of testing under the CCccrap. It was all well said. Tomorrow we will have a pep rally for next week’s testing. The mushroom cloud will be my head exploding.
OMG … a pep rally. Sort of a revival meeting. Good gawd.
I feel for you, Roy. Please tell us about it.
So sorry you have to put up with this crap, Roy. I’ve retired now, so I am no longer a forced overseer.
Imagine convicts on a chain gang being forced to hold a pep rally to encourage them to do a great job at their work. Very like that.
You all have misinterpreted the situation. The children will be almost universally excited, especially since they get out of class and get to scream with their peers. The state thinks they are doing the right thing. The administration thinks this will create a positive atmosphere. Even some of the teachers see this positively.
All these things make a bad system palatable. All these things make my head explode. I am hoping I can pull away and go find school board minutes from 1970
Hey! Good news! I misinterpreted an email. We have no pep rally. The bad news is that the elementary students are having one and some of our high school cheerleaders are to be employed in the matter. So my head will remain intact, and I reacting with a solipsistic self absorption, will ignore the crime out of self preservation.
Great catch, Dr. Chapman. I would think the Repugnantans who controlled and still control the Senate and correctly insisted that the language of the ESSA prohibited the federal overreach of Common Core and Race to the Top to restore some state and local sovereignty must be displeased with DeVos’ federal intrusion in ignoring of the law. On the other hand, they’re probably not paying attention. Also on the other hand, Mitch McConnel’s Senate doesn’t follow laws much, huh. Still, it might be worth it to place a well written letter or two in Lamar Alexander’s inbox, reminding him.
The ESSA should be rewritten exactly as the ESEA was written in my humble opinion, by the bye.
And one more thing, big cheer for the above spot on dictionary description of Laura Chapman and the laugh aloud dictionary description of Betsy DeVacant.