Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Test Dilemma
Houston Chronicle posted an article, Texas Dilemma, on March 17, 2015 informing us on the effects of not passing a statewide test. According to this article, there are 28,000 diplomas withheld a year, based on just one test a student did not pass. This is extremely unfair to students because they can make perfect attendance and outstanding grades, and still not be able to pass high school when everyone else does. I don't understand how a student should be unable to pass high school merely to bad test taking skills or just having a bad day, especially when this can effect the rest of their lives. This article also informs the consequences students who don't pass high school will have. “cannot attend most colleges, join the military or qualify for even some minimum wage jobs”(Houston Chronicle) Being unable to do any of these over such a small matter can change a student’s life. Senator Kel Seliger has passed a bill where the high school students that have failed tests are now allowed to pass high school through certain circumstances. Seliger's bill creates an individual graduation committee for the members of that committee to pass students by their grades and attendance. Although this is only a “band-aid” to this states problem we hope to one day not base a huge test on passing or failing high school. Although there were many critics disagreeing with Seliger’s bill, I completely agree because a student should not have that much pressure over one test.
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The fact that many students entire futures are determined just by the passing or failing one of the five high stakes tests is completely ridiculous. I completely agree with my classmate Madeline Shapland.
ReplyDeleteBasically students could invest hours of work into school having straight A's, perfect attendance, and becoming an honor roll student yet be denied not only their much deserved diplomas but their hopes and dreams to achieve greater things in life."Students who do not graduate simply because they failed one high-stakes exam cannot attend most colleges, join the military or qualify for even some minimum wage jobs. Many "drop out" even though they may have passed course requirements"( Houston Chronicle; March 17, 2015). What does a child do when they have all these scholarships to attend Ivy League schools, but cannot attend do to inability to pass a single test?
Just as Madeline stated Texas did not take into account students who suffer from test anxiety or just do very poorly on tests but excel in other skills.It is hard to understand the reasoning for why Texas would implement a testing system with such sever consequences. The simple fact that 28,000 students may not graduate since the test was implemented should be an automatic red flag that is may not be the best choice.
But the part that really gets me fired up is that even though 28,000 students may not receive their diplomas it is stated, " This statistic might be a sad but necessary consequence of educational accountability if these exams measured the skills sought by employers."