> The focused test eliminates questions that would enable students to score A's,Not only a poor way, but a logically inconsistent one. The purpose of the test is to establish a standard level of accomplishment for HS grads in MA. As I posted at an early hour this past am, such a test has no interest in discriminating between t he A and B students. To try to merge the two objectives runs the serious risk, if not guarantee, of missing both.
> B's, and C's. All they get is another chance to score a D rather than an F.
> Implicit in the very concept of the focused test is the idea that a student who
> fails the standard MCAS test cannot be more than a D student. Such students
> will be accommodated with a special test on which they cannot score better than
> a D: MCAS for Dummies. The cynicism of the proposal is almost beyond belief ...
> The board is telling every 10th-grader in Massachusetts: "It's not important to
> pass the MCAS on the first try. Not only will we give you four more chances, we
> will offer you an easier test if you fail the first time. That's your prize for
> losing." The booby prize turns out to be first prize.
The focussed test isn't an entirely bad idea; it does allow a genuine D
student to avoid getting blown out of the water by questions intended to
discriminate between A and B students. However, it seems like a very
poor way to carry the idea out.
The fact that the retest permits a reduced set of questions suggests that the MCAS administrators agree.
[snip]
Jay--
Jay Warner
Principal Scientist
Warner Consulting, Inc.
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Racine, WI 53404-1216
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