State may add more MCAS tests

Weighs shorter exams; faces federal mandate

By Megan Tench, Globe Staff, 3/23/2002

n response to a federal mandate to test students in grades 3 through 8 in English and math, Massachusetts education officials are developing a plan to add more MCAS tests, although they are shorter versions of the controversial exam.

''We do think that we don't have to give the full-blown MCAS. The key is that we're able to document progress, and we think we might be able to do so with a shorter test,'' said Education Commissioner David P. Driscoll.

Between now and 2005, said Driscoll, the state will be piloting a new, streamlined MCAS test, which will probably be mostly multiple-choice tests because those are easier to score.

The new tests - which in some cases would double the number of exams students take - are alarming parents and educators who contend that students already are tested too much.

''I think we are overusing all of these tests,'' said Deborah Meier, principal of Mission Hill School in Roxbury. ''For us to select flawed instruments and deny teacher judgment and student judgment ... it seems, to me, to be a mistake and leading us down a blind alley.''

Driscoll's response: ''I'll quote the president. He said, `For those who don't feel we need more testing, I have two words: too bad.' This is the law, so we have to do it.''

Earlier this year, President Bush signed a federal law requiring states to assess students' math and reading skills every year in grades 3 through 8. Under the law, schools also will receive ''report cards'' based on their reading and math results. Children in schools that fail to make progress in two to three years can transfer to other public schools - at the state's expense - or get private tutoring. Schools that languish for five years will have to reorganize or face a loss of federal aid.

But some educators already are acknowledging some of the concerns surrounding the testing.

Anticipating that Boston public school students may face a heavy testing burden in the spring, Superintendent Thomas W. Payzant next week will propose moving the district's annual Stanford 9 exam to the fall. It is now given in certain grades in the spring. This year the MCAS test will be given from April 2 to mid-May.

Moving the Stanford 9 ''will hopefully reduce the anxiety teachers and students feel when they prepared for two tests,'' said Payzant, who supports the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System exam. ''There should not be mixed messages.''

In 1999, Boston students in grades 4 and 10 weren't given the Stanford 9 because they took the MCAS exam. Parents argued that giving the Stanford 9 as well would be too much testing.

Currently, Massachusetts pupils in grade 3 are required to take a reading test. Students in grades 4 and 7 take the English portion of MCAS, and students in grades 4, 6, and 8 take math. Students in the eighth and fifth grade are tested in science and history.

The state spends about $20 million a year giving MCAS exams. The new, shorter versions of the test would be paid for with federal dollars. Massachusetts will receive about $22 million over three years, or $7.4 million a year to pilot, develop, and test the exams.

Those who oppose the MCAS exam, saying the test is experimental and should not be used as the sole measure of student progress, insist more MCAS tests could lead the state down a dangerous path.

''We are still finding flaws with the MCAS,'' said Karen Hartke, project director for FairTest in Cambridge. ''Unfortunately, there's been a tendency to rely on test scores for promotion.''

Critics insist the exam is transforming Massachusetts classrooms into laboratories for ''teaching to the test.''

But Driscoll argues that more tests will not interfere with learning.

''If a high school team is going to the Super Bowl and the high school decides to have a rally Friday afternoon, have you taken away an hour from instruction? Yes. We do scoliosis screening or teach kids the Heimlich maneuver. Have we taken away from other things? Yes,'' Driscoll said. ''The whole idea is to have a comprehensive approach, and part of that is testing. I don't think that the time we spend on testing is ill-spent.''

He acknowledged, however, that after shorter versions of the MCAS exam are developed, there will be little room for more tests. (Last year the state repealed the third-grade Iowa exam to make way for the MCAS reading test.)

Some superintendents are considering dropping their own standardized tests, he said, although he is leaving it up to each district to decide what's best.

''We may start to see that kind of thing happening if we find that people are very comfortable using MCAS,'' Driscoll said. Dropping such tests could save districts money, he said, especially as the state faces budget cuts.

Payzant is unwilling to abandon the Stanford 9, saying it remains an important assessment tool, especially for Boston students who may qualify for advance classes.

The exam uses multiple choice and open-ended questions to measure the math and reading skills of students in grades 3 through 11. It was implemented in 1995 at Payzant's urging for a tough, comprehensive test to assess the new learning standards and to clamp down on underachievers.

Some parents remain unconvinced.

Moving the Stanford 9 to the fall will not ease the pressure and anxiety some students and teachers already feel constantly, said Peggy Wiesenberg, a member of Boston's Citywide Parents Council.

''The amount of testing that students are subjected to is ridiculous right now,'' she said. ''I think there is an opportunity here for Boston and other school districts to step back, rethink what we're doing with all these tests, and put more emphasis back on teaching and education.''

Anand Vaishnav contributed to this article.