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Pennsylvania's assessment tests growing teeth
Sunday, August 27, 2000 By Eleanor Chute, Post-Gazette Education Writer
Pennsylvania System of School Assessment tests have been given since 1992, but they're still a work in progress.
In the early years of the test, students didn't even have to write their names on the tests, and all districts didn't have to give them. But now the stakes on the test for both test takers and schools are rising, beginning with the Class of 2003.
The state's academic standards and assessment regulations, known as Chapter 4, were approved by the state Board of Education last year. The regulations say students' test scores will determine whether they get seals of "proficiency" or "distinction" on their diplomas.
The regulations also say that in order to graduate, students must demonstrate proficiency on those tests or a similar test given by their school districts. Those who aren't deemed proficient in 11th grade will have one additional chance in 12th grade.
No one knows what level of achievement will be considered proficient on a test; the state, with the help of teachers, is still determining how well a student must do on a test to be considered "proficient." Proficiency levels are expected to be determined for the math and reading tests next spring.
All schools will have to give the math, reading and writing tests, and rules have been tightened to make it difficult for students to opt out. Parents may ask to have their children excluded from the test only for religious reasons and only after reviewing the test. Parents may review the test up to two weeks before it's given, but they must sign a pledge that they won't reveal the contents.
Still, this isn't quite the "high stakes" faced by student test-takers in other states. Pennsylvania school districts have plenty of opportunities to wiggle out of any unwanted regulations.
For instance, the local school board must decide it will use the PSSA, its own local assessments or both as one of its graduation requirements.
"So, in the end, whether or not a student graduates still will be determined by the local school district," pointed out state Department of Education spokesman Dan Langan.
But these "limited stakes" are "an important endeavor that students should take seriously," said Lenny Lock, education associate in the state Department of Education. For the first time, parents will get an individual report on their students' PSSA scores. The state Department of Education recently mailed those to individual school districts; the districts will mail them to parents.
The math reports will give a score for each of 11 math skills. Two of these are new -- trigonometry and calculus -- and the total length of the math test has increased from two hours and 40 minutes to four hours.
Reading scores will be given for individual students on five standards: learning to read independently; reading critically in all content areas; reading, analyzing and interpreting literature; characteristics and functions of the English language; and research. The reading test increased from two hours and 40 minutes to three hours and 40 minutes.
The state is in the process of shortening reading passages from long to intermediate lengths because it makes room for more variety, which Lock said added validity. That means moving from long passages of 1,500 words to intermediate passages of 700 words.
"You're not relying on one topic to make a determination of a child's reading," Lock said.
The sixth- and ninth-grade writing tests will be given in the fall. In addition, the state is devising a writing test for 11th-graders as a result of the state standards. That is expected to be given in the late winter or spring this school year.
The math and reading tests for fifth-, eighth- and 11th-graders will remain in the spring.
In the old writing test, students had one writing prompt -- a subject to write about -- which they worked on over two 40-minute writing sessions.
In the new test, the sixth- and eighth-graders will be given two writing prompts and will write on each for 60 minutes.
The tests will be scored by at least two graders using a format developed by Pennsylvania teachers.
For the tests overall, Lock said, "I think they're very well developed, and I believe the basis of that is the foundation of the Pennsylvania teachers who have very diligently worked on aligning the assessments with the academic standards."
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