Lose-Lose-Lose

Should Maryland suspend statewide testing of students until new tests are ready that will better match what is being taught under the new Common Core State Standards?

I say YES. Statewide testing should be suspended for at least a year. Teachers are now teaching a new common core standards curriculum. The old MSA test is designed for a previous curriculum. It isn't fair to test students on things they are not being taught. No wonder test scores across the state went down. And now teachers are rated on how well their students do on standardized tests. It's not fair to rate teachers on student test performance when the test covers old curriculum and not the new one.

It is a lose-lose situation. The state looks bad because of lower scores. Students appear to be learning less. Teachers who have no control over the situation will be rated poorly, not because they are doing a poor job but because people in positions of power have made some stupid choices. The system is setting everyone up for failure.


http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/second-opinion-blog/bal-ed-poll0726,0,1024808,post.poll

Pros and cons of standardized testing:
http://standardizedtests.procon.org/