The College Board´s Eighth Grade Test
Stuart Nachbar
October 28, 2008
Starting next fall, the College Board will administer an assessment and instructional test to eighth graders, at an option to schools, for ten dollars per student. According to a College Board vice president, the test is not a prequel to college entrance examinations such as the PSAT or SAT; it is designed to identify student strengths and weaknesses for placement into high school classes.
The new test, called ReadiStep, can be completed within two hours and is divided into three multiple-choice sections of critical reading, writing skills and mathematics. It is not, and cannot be considered a "high stakes" test. It is administered too early in a school year and it is a normative test, as opposed to a proficiency examination. Students who take ReadiStep or the college entrance tests are not given a passing score. They, and their parents and teachers, are told where they stand against a national average of test takers.
American College Testing, which administers the ACT exam for college students already offers an eighth grade examination called Explore, which is taken by 1 million students across the country. As a business person, I see no reason why both testing firms should not compete in this market. School systems deserve a choice of vendors. Criticism that one vendor only desires a revenue stream is unwarranted when a direct competitor has already entered the market. The College Board is doing what professional marketers are supposed to do: fill a need. If one million eighth graders are already taking a similar exam, then it´s reasonable to believe that more schools will want to consider more than one test.
Unlike detractors, who say it ReadiStep is one test too many for an eighth grader, I have no issue with the new examination. It is meant to help students prepare for high school classes and see where they are advanced or deficient. In fact, I wonder if it makes more sense nationally than a state-developed proficiency test. If a nation is serious about improving its schools, it might be better to measure student abilities through a national low-stakes test than a statewide high-stakes test. ReadiStep also makes more sense than using the PSAT as an assessment tool; the PSAT tests mathematical knowledge in algebra and geometry that is not usually studied until high school.
The only thing stopping schools from using a normative exam for such purposes is a goal in No Child Left Behind that every student must be proficient in language arts and mathematics by the year 2014. However, the act leaves it up to states to decide proficiency. A state that makes their tests tougher will find scores go down, while "dumbing down" a test will produce more questionable results too. But improvements on a national test such as ReadiStep could also be used to show progress, just as school districts use SAT or ACT scores for this purpose.
When I think about "proficiency" I am reminded of Garrison Keillor´s words from Lake Wobegon Days: Welcome to Lake Wobegon, where all of the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all of the children are above average. It´s easy to chuckle as you read that line and go through the book, but it´s a fun fantasy. So is the idea of 100 percent proficiency.
Contact Stuart Nachbar at http://www.EducatedQuest.com, a blog on education politics, policy and technology or read about his first book, The Sex Ed Chronicles, a novel on education and politics in 1980 New Jersey, at http://www.SexEdChronicles.com.
The new test, called ReadiStep, can be completed within two hours and is divided into three multiple-choice sections of critical reading, writing skills and mathematics. It is not, and cannot be considered a "high stakes" test. It is administered too early in a school year and it is a normative test, as opposed to a proficiency examination. Students who take ReadiStep or the college entrance tests are not given a passing score. They, and their parents and teachers, are told where they stand against a national average of test takers.
American College Testing, which administers the ACT exam for college students already offers an eighth grade examination called Explore, which is taken by 1 million students across the country. As a business person, I see no reason why both testing firms should not compete in this market. School systems deserve a choice of vendors. Criticism that one vendor only desires a revenue stream is unwarranted when a direct competitor has already entered the market. The College Board is doing what professional marketers are supposed to do: fill a need. If one million eighth graders are already taking a similar exam, then it´s reasonable to believe that more schools will want to consider more than one test.
Unlike detractors, who say it ReadiStep is one test too many for an eighth grader, I have no issue with the new examination. It is meant to help students prepare for high school classes and see where they are advanced or deficient. In fact, I wonder if it makes more sense nationally than a state-developed proficiency test. If a nation is serious about improving its schools, it might be better to measure student abilities through a national low-stakes test than a statewide high-stakes test. ReadiStep also makes more sense than using the PSAT as an assessment tool; the PSAT tests mathematical knowledge in algebra and geometry that is not usually studied until high school.
The only thing stopping schools from using a normative exam for such purposes is a goal in No Child Left Behind that every student must be proficient in language arts and mathematics by the year 2014. However, the act leaves it up to states to decide proficiency. A state that makes their tests tougher will find scores go down, while "dumbing down" a test will produce more questionable results too. But improvements on a national test such as ReadiStep could also be used to show progress, just as school districts use SAT or ACT scores for this purpose.
When I think about "proficiency" I am reminded of Garrison Keillor´s words from Lake Wobegon Days: Welcome to Lake Wobegon, where all of the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all of the children are above average. It´s easy to chuckle as you read that line and go through the book, but it´s a fun fantasy. So is the idea of 100 percent proficiency.
Contact Stuart Nachbar at http://www.EducatedQuest.com, a blog on education politics, policy and technology or read about his first book, The Sex Ed Chronicles, a novel on education and politics in 1980 New Jersey, at http://www.SexEdChronicles.com.
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