Published in the Oregonian, March 21, 2014, as Common Core and Testing
Brett Bigham suggests that we need more standards and less testing ("Common Core Standards are not insidious: Guest opinion," March 16). The Common Core, however, is requiring an astonishing amount of standardized testing, far more than No Child Left Behind (NCLB) required. The new tests include the usual end of year tests, but in more subjects and in all grade levels, as well as interim tests during the year and possibly pretests in the fall to measure improvement over the academic year, about a 20-fold increase over NCLB.
The tests will be delivered online. Thus, all students must have access to the internet, with up-to-date equipment. This will involve a staggering expense that will increase as systems require updating and replacement.
This effort and expense are planned despite the fact that there is no evidence that increasing testing helps achievement, nor is there evidence that online testing will help.
original article: http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/03/common_core_standards_are_not.html
Amount of testing: Krashen, S. 2012. “How Much Testing?” Diane Ravitch’s Blog (July 25). <http://dianeravitch.net/?s=how+much+testing> (accessed October 13, 2013).
Expense of online testing: Krashen, Stephen, and Susan Ohanian. 2011. “High Tech Testing on the Way: A 21st Century Boondoggle?” Living in Dialogue (Apr 8). <http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/living-in- dialogue/2011/04/high_tech_testing_on_the_way_a.html> (accessed October 13, 2013).
No evidence: Nichols, Sharon L., Gene V. Glass, and David C. Berliner. 2006. “High-Stakes Testing and Student Achievement: Does Accountability Pressure Increase Student Learning?” Education Policy Archives 14 (1). <http://epaa.asu.edu/ojs/article/view/72/198> (accessed October 14, 2013).