The Breakfast Club – #BFC530 – is a 15 minute, 1 question Twitter chat every weekday. We chat in 4 timezones Mon-Fri – 5:30am Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific Times. The mission of BFC is to empower participants to make a difference in education by engaging in consistent reflective practice in a supportive community that inspires and challenges one another.
Wishing you a wonderful and productive day! I’m off for an early run. Long day ahead...4 hours of conferences with parents after school (4-8 pm). 😊 #bfc530
I may be in the minority here but of course they have some value. I think we give them too much value because we have an obsession with hard data. #bfc530
If you stack them in piles, they make good bookends? 😉 just kidding. They are helpful to compare growth year to year, as a benchmark, but they have little if any meaning to daily learning #bfc530
Now that’s a loaded question. I think it depends on what we value first. I’ve always told my daughters that it’s a “show what you know and what else we can teach you.” #bfc530 It’s one point of data, not the only.
If you stack them in piles, they make good bookends? 😉 just kidding. They are helpful to compare growth year to year, as a benchmark, but they have little if any meaning to daily learning #bfc530
Seems like the tests only tell us how students perform while stressed, reading above level (for many) and sitting for 2-3 hours. But, that's important to know, right? #bfc530
Yes, when the only focus is a diagnostic for the betterment of the student. When they are used to determine quality of schools/teachers, then schools are no longer about inspiring thought & creativity, but about test taking #bfc530
There is value in the idea of consistent expectations, but the volume, quality, and usefulness of the our current testing regimen is all wrong. #bfc530
Good morning #BFC530! Sarah from gym in VA. I can’t say they have *no* value, but very little, at least the way I have seen/heard/experienced them. I’d rather see portfolios and performance-based assessments. 280 characters is not even enough for me to answer this one 😜
They are but a glimpse into the learning that has been happening in a classroom. They do not reflect a kid discovering a passion or relationships built. #bfc530
Wishing you a wonderful and productive day! I’m off for an early run. Long day ahead...4 hours of conferences with parents after school (4-8 pm). 😊 #bfc530
#bfc530 If they are updated and designed to reflect real learning then yes. By themselves they are only self serving to those who conduct it and reduce complex and wondefu learners to numbers.
Kevin from NJ. Anything in life only has value if you extract it. Standardized tests are no different. I’ve found in some cases excellent information can be found. If that data is too hard to identify or is ignore all together, they have no value #bfc530
So here the follow up question: How do we fix standardized tests? How do we account for what the kids know on a large scale while being responsive to classroom learning? #bfc530
There is a place: to see if the written curriculum aligns with the taught curriculum in a standards-based arena.
Better as a gauge and indicator rather than high stakes.
#bfc530
The numbers I see often don’t appear to accurately measure growth when compared with growth I’ve seen that student demonstrate in other ways. That’s a real problem. #bfc530
If you stack them in piles, they make good bookends? 😉 just kidding. They are helpful to compare growth year to year, as a benchmark, but they have little if any meaning to daily learning #bfc530
V, that is my biggest problem w/standardized test. It is educational schizophrenia. We are encouraged to differentiate in clssrm, but when it comes to testing, we throw that practice out the window #bfc530
The numbers I see often don’t appear to accurately measure growth when compared with growth I’ve seen that student demonstrate in other ways. That’s a real problem. #bfc530
If you stack them in piles, they make good bookends? 😉 just kidding. They are helpful to compare growth year to year, as a benchmark, but they have little if any meaning to daily learning #bfc530
When a standardized assessment creates a culture of testing where you spend a month or more of the school year doing "progress monitoring" there is a problem. #bfc530
We had Vietnam Vets who fought with school's namesake share information and memories of life during the war and with their fallen friend. I was captivated by their stories. #bfc530#VeteransDay2017
I think the benefits are little when thinking about the individual, but more worthwhile when looking at the big picture and school based trends over the yrs & with a specific population of S. #bfc530
Honestly, I see this as more of a curriculum problem than a testing problem. We need to get on the same page. Like a common set of core beliefs about what kids should learn. What could we call that? #bfc530
It is funny that Ss can do well on one test and not on another. Get high marks on SBAC but not on the F and P reading levels. Which test is more accurate then? Hmmm #bfc530
Standardized tests tell us more about dominant cultural values than they tell us about students. Why do we think all students should know and be able to do the same things? Isn’t a diverse community a more resilient one? Why is sorting and ranking important? #bfc530
We have a school wide program, then they stay and are hosted by the 8th graders at a catered lunch. The kids get to listen to their stories and ask questions. Lots of photos too! #bfc530
Ss learn what kind of tester they are.A majority of careers have assessments whether it's food service cert at Burger King(soft serve cert),public service exams(fire, law, corrections),or edu/medical/law. Ss need exp testing to learn their style & strategies to overcome #BFC530
I love the school district where I send my children, but they hardly have any time in the school day for science or social studies (only get 1 of the 2 each quarter), & that time 1st to be encroached on if more time needed for math or Language Arts #bfc530
I have a hard time putting any value on standardized tests. They are a one day one moment in time look at how kids do with one form of assessment. They don’t take into account any type of growth socially and they can be very biased in their questions. #bfc530
Our world is changing at high speed. The most important thing we can teach is critical, creative & flexible thinking. Hard to test with bubbles #bfc530
in most curriculums ... in Social Studies sometimes the standards are so vague it is difficult to cover all ... "Florida SS.8.A.2.4 Identify the impact of key colonial figures on the economic, political, and social development of the colonies." #bfc530
Yes yes yes!!
I want my students to show me what they know, however they can show me. But the standardized testing takes away all that freedom and confidence for them! #bfc530
Our world is changing at high speed. The most important thing we can teach is critical, creative & flexible thinking. Hard to test with bubbles #bfc530
Like all data, it can be spun to show what you want it to. With all of the focus on the area, there should be as much focus on providing meaningful PD for teachers and staff on how to read the data so you can use it to enhance instruction. -JE #BFC530
They have some use for comparative analysis, but lose value when used as a political tool or held up as the main indicator of a students overall growth or knowledge. Education/learning isn't always quantifiable. #bfc530
Should teachers not take a standardized test to prove proficiency to become teachers? Just reading about the crisis occuring in Kaduna which is an interestingconnection #bfc530
I will add as a parent I really do NOT like all the extra data the tests collects. No of their business if I went to college. Or other personal data. #bfc530
I find that I can spin the test to a competition, “show everybody what you know. Let’s join together and show off our skills!” I do my best to pump them up as motivation iften low in this area! #bfc530
I think the benefits are little when thinking about the individual, but more worthwhile when looking at the big picture and school based trends over the yrs & with a specific population of S. #bfc530
Have a wonderful day! Keep your compliments and encouragement close by and ready to hand out. Someone needs them, and you don't even know it yet! #bfc530
Standardised Tests are standardised to a specific group for a specific purpose. The purpose is usually fairly narrow (eg. Reading Level). Beyond that,it has no validity & is a corruption of purpose. Just a thought! #bfc530
Absolutely. One of our Ss had an entrance evaluation for univ that asked Qs like "are you empathetic? Give 2 examples that show this." No content. #bfc530
The issue is that tick a box type tests and assessment cannot reflect the complexity of teaching. We are working with human beings, with their own needs, their own socio economic restraints, gifts, leaning difficulties and emotions. No assessment can measure all of that. #bfc530
Which is why ideally you should triangulate results. EG. Pre-Test/Assessment, Post-Test/Assessment & a formative task checking process and understanding as they learn. If the first & last are Standardised, you check against formative task for growth. Growth is a journey! #bfc530
What is even more bizarre is that they start these standardized tests earlier and earlier. Now they want a test to see if kiddies are ready for the first year in school. #bfc530
We tend to over value the importance of standardized testing, there are many things that the tests don’t measure. Additionally testing has over emphasized the importantance of some subjects over others. #BFC530
The larger scale doesn’t matter. Everyone is gifted with different talents, strengths, interests, and passions. Schools should be a place to awaken and cultivate those in students #bfc530
Exactly. And some of those questions! Seriously, these are little kids! The abstract nature of some of those questions seems developmentally advanced for the age of the test taker. #bfc530
Hey #bfc530 Crew! If you have a dollar or two to spare, I'm trying to renovate a new CLT and small group intervention space for my teachers. Flexible seating! Whiteboards! Student commissioned art!
https://t.co/oHUBdoWMX2
What is even more worrying is that all these standardized tests are done...and then? Where does the data go? What changes actually happen because of the results? #bfc530
Ss risk low efficacy when those scores reflect how well they know the test, the privilege (or lack thereof) for tutors, social capital and other socioeconomic factors. It's important we don't let a number define a learner #bfc530
My answer to today's Q is: it depends on what you value. As Ts, I'm inclined to say that while some information is given, most valuable info comes from Ss/T relationship & work. #bfc530
The answer to that Q is so obvious: Q1 "I feel that I am!" Q2 "Hard to quantify but I had that feeling this morning and noticed I had that feeling again this afternoon- twice in one day!" Enjoy your day! #bfc530
And not only that, in Pennsylvania you don’t even get the data until the following school year and it is pretty much impossible to use it to drive individual instruction. #bfc530
They are brief (40 minute) share sessions with my staff. I've also called them lunch and learns but since they don't all take place during lunch, I've rebranded 😉. #bfc530
When a standardized assessment creates a culture of testing where you spend a month or more of the school year doing "progress monitoring" there is a problem. #bfc530
Value perhaps but should they have weight? We used to do those CAT tests and simply looked at results for the info. Why do these tests have to be 25% of HS S's grades? #BFC530
We tend to over value the importance of standardized testing, there are many things that the tests don’t measure. Additionally testing has over emphasized the importantance of some subjects over others. #BFC530
and the kids know what the teacher determines to be "important" ... and they value the teachers who value them more as a person than a test score. #bfc530
Come and take part in activity that will show you how to expand the learning students experience beyond the walls of your school with our Virtual Poetry Slam on 11/30. Sign up to be a judge in the link below.
https://t.co/qxGOpn4Pid…
#bfc530@DeputyMitchell#Comments4Kids
Standardized tests have some value as they provide data & data drives instruction BUT they are overemphasized & differences/learning styles/unique abilities go out the window. #bfc530
Only if their results are used to guide instruction. Difficult bc most are given too late in yr and don’t get results until it’s too late. #bfc530#edchat
Standardized tests can provide some information about groups but not a lot of info about individuals.
Need to zoom out to see the big picture: https://t.co/yw7QZ05KEy#bfc530
Morning, #bfc530. Standardized tests are 1 way to define systemic or programmatic floors. They set learning's lowest common denominator, which has some (limited) value.
We just finished our PSAT with 1000+ students. I can’t honestly say what the value is to them- perhaps college choice or getting out of class for the day. For us- our wireless held up and teachers are patient. #bfc530
I'm chewing over idea of standardized testing as rite of passage in college admissions. Like you, I'm finding that to be unsatisfying rationale. #bfc530
I have a hard time putting any value on standardized tests. They are a one day one moment in time look at how kids do with one form of assessment. They don’t take into account any type of growth socially and they can be very biased in their questions. #bfc530
Standardized tests tell us more about dominant cultural values than they tell us about students. Why do we think all students should know and be able to do the same things? Isn’t a diverse community a more resilient one? Why is sorting and ranking important? #bfc530
