Week 13

I made several connections with this week's reading, both related to multicultural assessment and to assessment of people with disabilities.  Reading about the multicultural bias in tests further supports my argument that PSSA testing is simply not appropriate as a measure of student achievement.  The notion that 100% of students should be “proficient” on PSSAs by 2014 is absurd, especially when many immigrants from a variety of countries move into schools each year and are expected to acquire grade-level reading and writing skills by the spring time!?  In addition, perhaps some of these students have never taken a standardized assessment.  PSSAs assume test-wiseness.  This is precisely why schools have been forced to “teach to the test,” which is not authentic nor valuable learning, in my opinion. 

Drummond & Jones (2010) identified internal structure as a form of test bias.  I wondered if the PSSA vs. the PSSA-M (M stands for modified) would be an example of this, even though it was discussed under the multicultural assessment section.  The modified PSSA was offered only for 2 years; the state no longer offers the PSSA-M.  The content of the modified version was the same, but structurally a little different in order to accommodate primarily for reading disabilities. The problem with the PSSA-M was that students could only take it if they were in the general education setting for the particular modified test they were taking (i.e. to take the modified reading test they had to be in general education reading).  This is a little backwards since the students who are in the learning support setting are generally the ones who need the most modifications!  I know for sure that the PSSA-M was an example of test modifications, as discussed on page 334 (Drummond & Jones, 2010).  In addition to this, it is very common for students with disabilities to take the tests in an alternate, small group location.  They are also given extended time on tests, although all students are now able to do so on the PSSAs.  Making such modifications reminds me of the saying that “fair isn’t everyone getting the same thing.  Fair is everyone getting what they need to be successful.”  I try to instill this way of thinking in my students (easier said than done!).

Drummond & Jones (2010) also discuss motivation and anxiety as test taker factors.  Motivation and anxiety are factors that can affect anyone.  Motivational factors are those that I especially experience when giving PSSAs.  Students absolutely despise taking these tests, and see no value in them for their lives (can you blame them?)  I have had a number of students color in patterns on the scantron sheet or even downright refuse to complete the test.  This, in turn, creates unnecessary anxiety for teachers, administrators, and the school district in general, because we cannot “afford” low test scores.  The emphasis on tests absolutely does not create a climate conducive for authentic learning.

           

When reading about assessment of individuals with visual impairments and of those with hearing impairments, I thought of a situation that one of the speech therapists told me about.  There is a new student at our district’s high school who is both legally blind and deaf.  Apparently she can see a little if something is right up to her face, so the professionals working with her need to set aside their sense of personal space.  I would be interested to know how people have made modifications with assessing her, as that would certainly take some creativity and patience to do so.  

I think that in any testing situation, it is important to consider potential bias or necessary modifications and accommodations in order to best serve the student.  I thought the authors did a great job outlining some of the important issues related to assessment issues with diverse populations.

References

Drummond, R. J. & Jones, K. (2010). Assessment procedures for counselors and helping

professionals. (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ:Pearson.