From Jess Rose, Assistant Superintendent Lincoln Public Schools: Starting next week, students in grades 3-8 will take the annual Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS). Our testing days are: English Language Arts (grades 3-8): 4/7 and 4/8 Math (grades 3-8): 5/5 and 5/6 Science (only grades 5 & 8): 5/19 and 5/20 What is MCAS and why do we take it? MCAS is the annual state-wide test that students take in grades 3-8. It is untimed and students can take as long as they need on an individual school day to complete each session. In grades 3-8 scores have no negative consequences for students; scores will not impact a child’s report card, the classes they take, or their grade level placement. In our district we look at MCAS results for high-level patterns, changes across years, and how grade-level performance compares to our own internal assessments. How will faculty talk about MCAS with students? When talking with students, we emphasize that this test assesses some of the content and skills that are important for students to know. We also remind them that this assessment only represents a couple of days with a handful of questions and performance does not demonstrate all of a student’s strengths as a learner. Ultimately, it represents a slice of what students can do at one point in time. We remind students that there are no negative consequences based on their score. Sometimes we see students hold one of two mindsets: either that the test does not matter at all and they do not give it a serious try which often leads to inaccurate data on the student’s skills--or they believe that it matters a great deal and they worry so much about doing a good job that they become anxious and freeze. We believe the healthiest approach for students is to embrace the mindset of: “We try our best; it is a chance to show what I know and what I can do. It may be challenging, but I am confident and in a couple days it will be over and I will be back to my regular learning with my classmates and teachers.” How will we prepare students for MCAS? For the vast majority of the school year, we prepare students by simply working hard to teach all student well and create strong learning experiences for them every day. But, we also believe that if we do not explicitly equip all of our students with strategies that help them navigate this experience then that perpetuates inequities across the student body; therefore we believe it is important to spend a small amount of time preparing students for the test. There is a stark difference between test practice and test preparation. We should not be putting students through endless practice, where they simply answer MCAS-like questions to get used to the test. We do not think that actually helps to ease anxiety, teach students how to handle the test experience, or engage students in meaningful learning. Instead, we contain our preparation to the few weeks before the test, where we help students dissect the test so that they understand the “rules of the game” and learn some strategies they can employ on this or any test in the future. All of this will be done in engaging lessons that get students talking and debating with one another, like we want our teaching and learning to look like every day.
Tests are a part of our lives in society, whether we want them to be or not. Tests are nearly always required for those who want to go to college or into the military, become an electrician, a lawyer, or a teacher. We want our students to feel like they have power over them, and not feel threatened by them. The strategies we will teach students--like how to discern what a question is really asking, how to talk out their thinking to themselves, and how to find evidence for their answers--can be used in any testing situation their whole life, but also in their everyday learning outside of testing. If you have questions, please reach out to your child’s teacher or your principal. Best, Jess Rose, Ed.L.D Assistant Superintendent jr...@lincnet.org <mailto:jr...@lincnet.org>
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