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Students often worry about exams, but one state test continues to have local educators worried.
Superintendent Jana Reuter and others from Elgin Independent School District have expressed worry at the state’s school evaluation measures, particularly the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness exam. They were joined by representatives of Raise Your Hand Texas at a press conference Feb. 17 to call on state lawmakers for change.
“The current system’s overemphasis on the STAAR test puts too much stress on students and creates frustration for teachers,” said Reuter. “We live in a system of high stakes testing-based accountability that always has a moving target of what is considered student, campus and district success measures.”
STAAR is the state's testing program and is based on state curriculum standards. Core subjects include reading, writing, mathematics, science and social studies.
In STAAR’s wake has come Raise Your Hand Texas, a nonprofit aimed at supporting public policy solutions to invest in Texas’ 5.4 million public school students, encourage innovation and autonomy, and improve college and workforce readiness. The group works in communities throughout the state “to raise the voices of parents, teachers, community leaders, business owners and students who care about the future of public education,” according to its website.
“We strongly believe that a meaningful accountability system looks at the whole child and school, not just a single test on one day,” said Libby Cohen, senior director of advocacy for Raise Your Hand Texas. “To do what is best for students, we must identify what actions matter most inside our schools and ensure they are reflected in our accountability system. To do what is best for teachers, we must allow sufficient time and flexibility in our classrooms for them to deploy their expertise. Doing so means we will move closer to the mark of doing what is best for the future of Texas.”
Teacher Ashton Howell said student assessments should be made in more ways than just the STAAR test.
“In my experience, STAAR tests score reflect how well a student has been able to take a test that day rather than what they’ve learned throughout the year,” said Howell.
In addition, student Ralyssa Enueshike talked about what the STAAR exams don’t demonstrate.
“They do not reflect how many hours of sleep I’ve lost from studying,” said Enueshike. “They do not reflect the physical demands my extracurriculars ask of me, and they surely do not reflect the passion and effort I put into everything I do in and out of school.”
Despite STAAR exam qualms, Reuter said she isn’t against its intention. The Texas Education Agency describes STAAR tests as a measure for what students are learning in each grade and whether or not they are ready for the next grade.
“We welcome accountability. We want our community to feel confident we are using their resources wisely,” said Reuter, “but we need an accountability system that more accurately reflects the richness and complexity of the work happening on our campuses every day.”
