A new, online standardized test designed to test Nevada schoolchildren on Common Core standards has been a huge fiasco in its first year, with the vast majority of students unable to event complete the test. The failure could expose the state to federal sanctions.
Under No Child Left Behind, states are supposed to test children in grades 3-8 each year in mathematics and reading. At least 95 percent of students must take the tests, or else a state can face federal sanctions such as a loss of millions of dollars in funds.
Nevada, on the other hand, was only able to test 37 percent of the 213,000 students it was supposed to, thanks to a cascade of glitches and computer problems that left students unable to complete their exams. In Clark County, which contains the Las Vegas metro area and over half the state’s students, only 5 percent were successfully tested.
Because so few were tested, Nevada’s department of education says it will be unable to issue grades for individual schools based on performance, like it is supposed to. The failure means Nevada is at risk of losing millions in federal funding, but such sanctions are unlikely in this case because the state made an honest effort that simply undone by technical shortfalls.
Blame for the fiasco is being placed squarely with the groups chosen to produce Nevada’s tests: the Smarter Balanced testing consortium, which is supposed to organize similar Common Core tests for member states, and the company it hired, Measured Progress. Measured Progress attempted to administer its test entirely via computer, but its servers were not up to the task of handling thousands of test-takers at once. Despite providing schools a testing window of nearly three months to avoid overloading, there were still repeated crashes that left students unable to make any progress. In response, Nevada has accused Measured Progress of breaching its $4 million contract with the state.
Even though it designed the tests, Measured Progress has tried to deflect the blame, pointing a finger back at Smarter Balanced instead. They claim the consortium provided an online testing platform which proved to be inadequate and unpredictable.
Via: Daily CallerContinue Reading....
