Studer Community Institute

FSA scores not likely this school year

May 18, 2015
/ Shannon Nickinson
/ education

The drama of the Florida Standards Assessment test will last into next school year. Scores from the test — which was plagued by technical problems across the state, including a hacking allegation — aren’t likely to be in until well into next school year. Gov. Rick Scott is working on appointing a panel that will conduct a validity study on the FSA and its results. While that group has not been named, it is to issue a report before Sept. 1. One of the few things Florida lawmakers did accomplish in their truncated session was to pass legislation requiring this validity study be completed before any student scores — or school grades — are released. “For parents… until they figure out this field test thing, the other test (FSA) probably isn’t worth worrying about,” says Superintendent Malcolm Thomas. Escambia schools will rely on Discovery Education tests, which are given to students throughout the school year to measure their academic progress, at least for this year. In grades where retention is an issue — first, third and 10th in Escambia — Thomas says teachers will use Discovery Ed results and, if needed a portfolio of other work to see if students will be promoted to the next grade. “The Legislature may not believe it, but our teachers recognize the children who can’t read and who shouldn’t be promoted based on their work in the classroom,” Thomas says. “That’s how we’re registering for summer reading camp, which we’re in the middle of now. Life goes on.” Because there is no scale set for what counts as passing on the FSA given all of the uncertainty about the test, which was not field tested in Florida before it was administered to students this year, Thomas says administrators always knew they would not get typical scores. “We don’t have meaning to scores,” he says. Relatively speaking, Thomas says, district could expect “T-scores” to be released — essentially a list of the scores students earned divided into top, middle and bottom thirds. By then, the state’s validity study would be complete. If school grades were to be issued, Thomas believes it could be December or January before they are issued. “The bigger mess is about kids on the end of course exam,” required for high school graduation. Thomas says he has not received a clear answer from the Education Commissioner’s office about when — or if — those scores will be forthcoming. Graduation ceremonies begin tonight, when students from Virtual School and George Stone Academy will have their ceremonies. “I’m not going to stop a kid from graduating because the state hasn’t dealt with the EOC,” he said. “I’m going to have to make decisions that are right for kids.” Santa Rosa Superintendent Tim Wyrosdick says his teachers also will use Discovery Ed testing and “old school classroom observation” to make decisions about whether third graders should be promoted to the fourth grade. Wyrosdick says the validity study is something educators said they wanted, so that this year could be a year that would allow schools and teachers to find their footing in the FSA world. Today, state education officials announced that end of course exams for algebra 1, 2, and geometry will not be used for final course grades because the tested results won’t be back in time. The end of course exams for U.S. history, civics and biology will count toward final grades because they will be released in June, Wyrosdick says. Testing issues that plagued Santa Rosa schools in the last six or seven days have given Wyrosdick more cause for concern than the issues with the writing test that made headlinesn earlier this year. “The past or six-seven days have been horrible,” Wyrosdick says. “We have had more delays, more interruptions, and more restarts with the latest Pearson product with FSA than we’ve ever had. “There is a Java problem with Pearson and Pearson can’t tell us what it is. Last week’s civics exams, it was horrible. I’m concerned about our kids going into a testing center and having to restart six or seven times.” He says all of those issues will make him skeptical of the ultimate results. “I have no security that this assessment season is any good,” Wyrosdick says.

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FSA scores not likely this school year

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