It is that time of year; Standards of Learning, and to add fuel to an already hot issue, this year all Virginia students will have to use a computer to take the Standards of Learning test. Virginia is one of the only states to go totally electronic; no longer using the paper multiple choice sheets.
The obvious advantages are they can offer more critical-thinking level questions and in theory there will be less test tampering. It is also a lot easier to mark the tests allowing schools to get the results quicker.
The disadvantages? The expense and the technology challenge for the schools. Find more details on the May 20, 2013 Washington Post article.
On Thursday, May 23, 2013 the disadvantages became more apparent as I received the following message:
A message from FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Dear Parents and Guardians:
FCPS encountered significant problems today administering the online SOL tests. Our Internet service provider apparently experienced a service outage that affected Internet connectivity which also impacted the Pearson test site. About half of FCPS schools were impacted by the service outage with many schools having to cancel and reschedule parts of their testing. If you have questions about the testing schedule specific to a certain school, please contact the school directly. We have been informed that our Internet service provider has fixed the problem that caused today’s outage and the online testing will resume tomorrow.
Luckily, my third grader at Cunningham Park Elementary School did not have a test that day and the sixth graders, who did, managed to get it completed without incident. However, it did affect one of her friends, a student at Louise Archer Elementary who ended up just sitting there for well over an hour while they solved the problem. I understand computer glitches happen, but for third graders taking their first SOL, this can be an upsetting and disruptive experience.
This leads to the question – how necessary are the SOLs?
In third grade (eight and nine year olds) they take Reading, Science, Social Science and Math. Teachers get assessed on how well the students perform – which can lead to teaching to the test and putting pressure on the children to perform well.
I know they have been doing some SOL Prep at Cunningham Park, but I think it is commendable that they haven’t expected my child to study at home. They did provide a link to some practice sites, which she took a brief look at, but I really don’t think my students should be expected to cram all the basic facts they have learned about history and science in the first three grades.
Here’s a sample science test from 2010, you either know the answers or you don’t and to a certain extent I believe it is testing reading rather than science. I agree they should test math and reading, but anything else at this age? It seems to put unnecessary pressure on both teacher and student.
There is a recent debate on this issue on DC Urban Moms and Dads – parents seem very passionate on either one side or the other.
The main problem I feel SOLs pose for schools like Cunningham (with weaker scores), it can make it look like a hindered school with failing pupils and poor teachers. This isn’t necessarily due to bad teaching, but in large part due to a lot ESL (English as Second language) who are starting off with more educational needs.
For the AAP centers, I’m sure there is pressure to ensure the presumably gifted children demonstrate their true abilities. Does that happen with an SOL test? Lots of kids can cram facts and get a perfect score.
Hopefully with tests geared towards critical thinking, SOLs will veer away from the current format and there will be more opportunity in class to study and test skills that involve working things out, rather than learning information. It might be hopeful, but maybe, despite the expense and computer glitches, this can still be accomplished with fully computerized test taking.