Comments on: West Seattle schools: Sanislo support for MAP test revolt

By: SPS MOM

SPS MOM — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 16:19:21 +0000

@ K – I am sure not. If that were true there wouldn’t be Spectrum & AP programs – no one would be testing into them.
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@ RC – the map tests are given the same time every year roughly, and the kids know. Your child didn’t tell you? Also, IF the tests were loved by all, then I’d bet you wouldn’t care when they’d be given, correct? My point being – I doubt SPS thought “oh, everyone will boycott these tests in Jan but NOT back in the fall, lets not tell them when they will be given (evil laughing)”

By: RC

RC — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 03:25:58 +0000

Unfortunately my child attends a West Seattle school that is still taking the MAP test. Tomorrow he will go to school with a letter to his teacher, his principal, and cced to the superintendent that specifies, as a parent, I DO NOT GRANT PERMISSION TO THE SEATTLE SCHOOL DISTRICT TO TEST my child with a high stakes test. And they can’t do a damn thing about it. My kid will not take it! His teacher knows much more about his progress then a computer screen, and a test that even the district says is bad.

I didn’t even get a letter home telling me that the kids were taking the MAP test at this time!

By: K.

K. — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 21:40:09 +0000

SPS MOM, I wouldn’t be surprised if your son is an unusual case. Most parents I’ve surveyed (unofficially) have had similar experiences to what AH parent describes above.

By: SPS MOM

SPS MOM — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 15:35:33 +0000

Since the district uses MAP scores to place students in advanced learning – how will boycotting affect that? My student’s scores have been consistent throughout his 3 yrs of taking the test. So I am confused how you can get 20s then 80s — he’s told me some kids just sit there and do the old “check check check – done!” and not actually take it. And these are 1st graders!

By: JTS

JTS — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 20:07:02 +0000

I hope that this revolt is the spark that ignites a real revolution in education in this country. A revolution one that will leave NCLB behind, in the dustbin of history, a place where it richly deserves to be. A revolution that will permit greater autonomy in our schools and and encourage creativity in our classrooms!

By: jeunglady

jeunglady — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 05:56:34 +0000

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE our Sanislo teachers…way to go for being so vocal expressive about this test and showing support for Garfields decision.

By: Juju

Juju — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 05:06:07 +0000

As a parent of two children who attend Sanislo, I say, “BRAVO,” to the teachers who are standing up for our kids and looking out for their best interests. I think the MAP test pigeonholes our children’s intelligence and doesn’t give a realistic view of what our children know or don’t know. Especially at the K-1 level. These tests only create stress for the parents, create work for the teachers and label children early on in their education. Time would be better spent in the classroom enriching our children’s minds, not implementing tests that create questions about their abilities or intelligence. I would like to see a Superintendent who can start being proactive and empower our teachers by listening to what they have to say…..and let them do their job…TEACH.

By: kayo

kayo — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 21:16:31 +0000

It is a huge waste of time and money, especially in the K/1 classes. Kids click on the most interesting picture on the screen instead of the right answer (what little kid wouldn’t click on the pink cupcake or the cute kitty just because?. Others rush through the test randomly clicking just to get done quickly. Others come home exhausted and stressed (and that is in kindergarten for goodness sakes!!!) Last year my kid had to take the test 3x because she was at a school that administered it in the fall. She spent a significant amount of time practicing and then actually taking the test each quarter. Honestly, I would’ve preferred more recess for my 6 year old child than this crap. I can understand the desire to want to assess kids and teachers, but this is not the way to do it. Maybe give teachers an assistant for a few days so they can spend one on one time with each child to individually assess how kids are learning. That is a much more effective strategy for most children than a test like this.

By: robin

robin — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 20:52:54 +0000

I stand behind these teachers. Let’s measure what is actually being taught and for once correlate curricula to test, and vice-versa! Money always seems to trump this.

By: Cid

Cid — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 19:22:24 +0000

Kudos to Sanislo, Garfield and all teachers brave enough to speak out about flawed standardized testing like MAP and previously WASL. As a retired teacher, another frustration was that these scores were used for punitive measures against schools in lower socio-economic areas. Children are not “standard” and a blanket stem requirement will not show a child’s growth or how much effort a teacher has put into their instruction. Standardized testing is big business…Seattle should rethink a more meaningful assessment…involve your teachers in the process!

By: AH parent

AH parent — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 14:31:23 +0000

AMEN!!! MAP is a crock! It is not an accurate measure and student scores are all over the place. My son scored a 27 in math one quarter and then an 82 the next. These are percentiles. How believable that he seemingly went from below average to above average in the space of one test session.
I hate the MAP and how it limits teacher ability to differentiate. My son in unchallenged in math yet because he did not score 85 or above, he cannot have access to supplemental math. BS!!!!

By: sanisloparent

sanisloparent — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 04:44:58 +0000

And…instead of slapping the hands of teachers because of test scores, why not offer consistent, substantial, on-going professional development opportunities for teachers? The money now used for testing would be better spent on teachers who were hired for their skills and talents in the first place.

By: sanisloparent

sanisloparent — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 04:37:39 +0000

Way to go, Sanislo teachers! Thank you for being vocal about this.

As an educator, I agree with you. Too much testing sets our kids up for a lack of critical thinking skills. Testing also diminishes their motivation to learn for the love of learning…which does them a disservice when/if they get to HS and college.

By: harry

harry — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 02:24:08 +0000

As a former SSD teacher – lower elementary my biggest complaint was never being to actually see the questions the students missed. How can I help guide each student if the information is so vague? A lower score in math operations give no valuable feedback to a teacher and how differentiate instruction. The test is also set up to increase the difficulty until a student misses a problem and then decreases in difficulty until answers are correct and then increases again. Because of this kids often guess and through chance they can increase their scores light years. The teacher is then chastised for the child’s progress regressing the rest of the year.

It’s a sad story. Hopefully the new Superintendent will grow some and really make some changes that benefit the kids, families, teachers and stop bowing down to the political powers that be.

By: Georgia

Georgia — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 02:00:42 +0000

Nice work Sanislo teachers! I’m an elementary teacher as well, and I agree with you. We need to use a test that monitors progress on the common core since that is what we are teaching.