Politics and Education

On Wednesday, September 23, the Baltimore Sun reported the results of the recent Maryland High School Assessment Tests that are now required for graduation. It turns out that out of a graduating class of 62,000 students only 11 students were denied graduation because of the High School Assessments. In Baltimore City where everyone feared large numbers of students would fail to graduate, not a single student was denied graduation due to these tests. A few thousand students across the state completed special graduation projects in lieu of the tests, and some were given waivers or special certificates rather than actual diplomas. Still, it is clear that students in the state of Maryland were impressively successful in negotiating Maryland's High School Assesssments (HSA's)

Maryland introduced these HSA's several years ago. Passing rates were quite low with Baltimore City in particular having huge failure rates. The State of Maryland wanted to require these tests for graduation, but the requirement was delayed for a number of years because of fears that large numbers of students would fail to graduate and parents would be outraged. There was also concern about what it would mean if large numbers of students lacking high school diplomas were dumped on society.

So it seems that everyone would now be happy. Students have been successful in passing the tests, and parents have been able to enjoy seeing their beaming children walk across the stage. Apparently that is not the case. The high pass rate has generated a huge controversy throughout the state. The test must be too easy. The tests must be made more rigorous. Even the Baltimore Sun is already opining that more difficult questions need to be included on the exam.

The HSA's test minimum skills in English, Algebra, Government, and Biology. They are not college entrance exams. They attempt to prevent the awarding of a diploma to students who lack the most basic skills that society believes students should have to be considered a high school graduate. By and large the idea is to assure local employers that if they hire one of our graduates, they are hiring a young person who has the basic english and math skills an employer would expect of a new hire.

The history of such tests illustrates some of the problems that are inherent in this kind of endeavor. Baltimore City was a leader in the development of minimal requirements which began with proficiency tests in the early 1970's. The state of Maryland copied and subsumed Baltimore's tests into functional reding and math tests some years later. In every case history has repeated itself. Initially large numbers failed the tests and over time it became a routine activity that students negotiated successfully in one way or another. This is an extremely important point, but no one seems interested in focusing on it. The pattern keeps repeating itself, but what does it mean.

Are teachers teaching to the test? Are students over time getting used to the expectations of a particular test? Is there actually improved instruction and learning going on? What have we really learned and gained by introducing such a requirement?

The answer to the first two questions is a qualified yes. Teachers are not teaching the questions and answers that students will see on the actual tests themselves. They are however, pursuing a curriculum that focuses heavily on the kinds of information that will be covered on these tests. In many cases their jobs or their tenure depends on making sure that their students are successful. Repetition is also a significant aid to improvement on such exams. We even recommend that students take the college entrance exams several times as a way of improving their scores. So the fact that scores and pass rates improve over time should not be a surprise to anyone.

Are students really learning more? There is not a lot of evidence that this is the case. The problem with focusing so heavily on the content of the tests is that other areas of instruction are likely neglected. If the goal is to ensure that students know the material that is included on a particular exam then perhaps this may be a good way of achieving that goal. The real test may be how students perform in other circumstances apart from the HSA. Do they know the information on the exams only to successfully answer exam questions, or can they use this information in other settings?

Ome of the major difficulties is that everyone has their own expectations for these tests. It may be a good idea to be able to certify that students exiting our secondary schools have attained basic specific knowledge in certain high school subjects. The problem is that school officials, politicians, and the community want so much more. An urban school superintendent wants to demonstrate that his program is creating dramatic improvements in student learning. Politicians want voters to believe they have found a way to fix ongoing problems with our schools. We want to be able to point to a marker that shows how much better our schools have become. Parents want to be able to see and say that their child is developing well.

As with Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegon we want all our children to be above average. Neither this exam nor any other is able to provide such information or all the other kinds of results we seek. We have forgotten the reality of what tests are designed to do, and the reality that different tests measure different aspects of the educational process. Perhaps if we could feel good about the fact that across the state are students are mastering important basic concepts, and if we continue to tweak the tests as needed to insure students know those things we feel are most important, we will then be able to move on to effectively confront other educational challenges not met by HSA's.